Applications to Other Groups

Politics is a characteristic feature in any enduring group. All that is required is:

• a social group, communal or organized, where the good of the whole must be pursued

plus

• a desire by each member to exert power to get a share of social goods.

Politics becomes more prominent as groups get larger and command more resources.

Applying politics frameworks, as with any taxonomic framework, involves a sensitive appreciation of the chosen context. With sufficient knowledge and experience, fundamental political phenomena can be discerned in a variety of groups.

The initial choice of group was society and its government as it has been the recipient of so much study. However, three more forms of social group are briefly examined here:

• Organizations i.e. organizational politics.
• Community of Nations i.e. global politics
• Families i.e. family politics.

Originally posted: July 2009; Last updated: 12 June 2014.