Andean Journal of Political Studies

Reconstructing disciplinary studies in Latin American Political Science: Approaches and challenges

Pablo Alberto Bulcourf — 2025-12-29

This study seeks to provide a historical-analytical framework for disciplinary studies within Latin American Political Science. It is based on a detailed survey and analysis of disciplinary production on the subject, along with metatheoretical criteria that allow for a reinterpretation and analysis of the ontological and methodological orientations present in these approaches to the history, development, and teaching of Political Science. In this sense, the networked construction of knowledge becomes central to understanding the web of relationships within a given scientific community, as well as its criteria for validating and selecting topics to be addressed in close connection with the political, social, economic, and cultural problems that shape the complex structuring of societies. With an axial structure in its approach, a selection of topics considered relevant is made, primarily guided by the Popayán Manifesto (2015) as a series of criteria for the reconstruction of Political Science, taking into account its spatial and temporal dimensions within the complex scientific-technological framework of peripheral societies, where the Social Sciences also play a role in the decision-making process.

Reflexiones Transversales sobre la Emergencia del Campo de la Ciencia Política en Colombia Durante el Siglo XXI, ¿Un Odradek, Kafkiano?

Julian Andres Cuellar Argote — 2025-12-29

Este artículo recoge algunos resultados de la investigación doctoral sobre la historia global de la ciencia política en Colombia desde 1968 hasta 2024. Basados en la penúltima convocatoria 894 de 2021 del Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación del Gobierno Nacional de Colombia, realizamos un análisis descriptivo (cuantitativo) y exploratorio (cualitativo) sobre la transversalidad de la ciencia política, recogiendo el surgimiento de áreas, subáreas y enfoques de 66 grupos de investigación en Colombia a partir de la confluencia de cinco variables: las influencias externas: a) de otras ciencias sociales y b) del contexto internacional, así como las influencias internas: c) del territorio nacional y d) del campo politológico. Encontramos una proliferación de estudios sobre el Estado, el gobierno y las políticas públicas a nivel nacional, y a nivel internacional, las teorías sobre el desarrollo, la integración regional, los derechos humanos y el derecho internacional humanitario a través de enfoques predominantes como el feminista, el neoinstitucional y el diferencial.

Formação acadêmica no exterior e internacionalização da produção da ciência política brasileira: causalidade, indução ou aleatoriedade?

Rafael Machado Madeira — 2025-12-29

The internationalization of academic training is a central axis of the Brazilian government's science and technology development policy. Financing academic training abroad would increase the chances of establishing collaboration networks in international research projects and of publishing studies co-authored with foreign colleagues. Previous research show that an important portion of professors linked to Brazilian postgraduate programs in political science had access to such internationalization modalities in their training. They also demonstrate that the publication of papers in international journals has grown significantly in recent years. Using dependency and interdependence methods, this paper aims to verify whether there is any relationship between the internationalization of training and the publication of articles in international journals. It is also intended to measure whether the country of destination of the training is the same country of destination of the published articles. Such analyzes will increase our understanding about the inducing power of financing internationalized training in the publication standard of professors linked to Brazilian postgraduate programs in political science.

A matter of time? Women in Uruguayan Political Science

Cecilia Rocha-Carpiuc — 2025-12-29

Studies on women's place in political science have increased, but are incipient in Latin America. Research on the Global North shows that the field remains masculinized, although women's representation has improved. This leads to the “catch-up” hypothesis: the lower participation of women in critical institutions can be attributed to the historically masculinized origins of the discipline, but over time, this imbalance is expected to correct itself as societies become more gender equal. Based on original evidence, this article discusses the hypothesis through the case of Uruguay, an ideal country for study because its equality in various dimensions suggests that if gender inequalities in political science are found here, they should also be present (and possibly more significantly) in other countries in the region. After contextualizing and describing the general characteristics of political science in Uruguay, the article examines the presence of women in academic teaching programs and research. We found that in some indicators the evolution over time has been positive for women, but there are other gender biases that require action to change.

Lourdes Sola: Una de las Fundadoras de la Ciencia Política Brasileña

María Elena Martin — 2025-12-29

El artículo presenta la biografía académica de Lourdes Sola, una de las pioneras de la ciencia política brasileña y latinoamericana, e interlocutora de grandes intelectuales de su época: Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Florestan Fernandes, Guillermo O’Donnell, Lawrence Whitehead, entre otros. Impulsora de la institucionalización de la disciplina, presidió la Asociación Brasileña de Ciencia Política y la Asociación Mundial (IPSA), entre otras importantes actividades en su trayectoria. Reconstruir las biografías académicas de los pioneros constituye una de las formas de aportar comprensión sobre el desarrollo de un campo científico. Así, valiéndonos particularmente del análisis documental de textos de la autora y sobre la autora, pretendemos poner en valor la figura de una pionera, buscando además, subsanar omisiones de género en los estudios precursores sobre la ciencia política en Brasil. El cruce entre los estudios sobre la historia disciplinar con los estudios de género, aún tiene mucho camino que recorrer para recuperar trayectorias de mujeres que construyeron la disciplina en la región.

“Domesticación Intelectual” en Cuba, Nicaragua y Venezuela: Régimen Político y Ciencia Política en las Dictaduras de Izquierda en América Latina

Sergio Angel Baquero — 2025-12-29

The article analyzes the connection between political regime and disciplinary development in the authoritarian governments of the extreme left in Latin America. It is argued that in these countries the intellectual production of Political Science is experiencing stagnation due to the restrictions imposed on academic freedom, negatively affecting the training and research processes in universities. In order to address this issue, first a theoretical review is conducted to explore the connection between democracy and academia. Subsequently, a comparative analysis of the autocratization processes in Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela is carried out, paying special attention to the limitation of academic freedom and the current state of Political Science in these countries. The text contributes to the works on history and development of Political Science in Latin America, along the lines of the Popayán Manifesto (2017), questioning the thesis of “academic domestication” in autocratization processes.

Raúl Cardiel Reyes, 1913-1999: Trayectoria de un Pionero de la Ciencia Política Mexicana

Víctor Alarcon Olguín — 2025-12-29

This paper presents a general approach to the work of one of the "founders" of Mexican political science, Professor Raúl Cardiel Reyes (1913-1999). An assessment is made of its main topics of reflection, as well as its contributions to the process of institutionalization and professionalization of the discipline.

Keywords: Raúl Cardiel Reyes, Political Science, Mexico, History of the Ideras, Intellectual Biography.