Open Educational Resources and Political Science

This collection was curated by an ASCCC OERI discipline lead. A comprehensive list of current discipline leads is available.

Faculty interested in reviewing a more comprehensive list of OER are encouraged to visit Open Political Science (“OPoliSci”), a website that explores OER and open educational practices (OEP) for political science faculty and students. The mission of OPoliSci is to serve as a stable repository of political science OER materials, promote the curation and creation of political science OER materials, and facilitate the exploration of OEP.

The curated list provided here is intended to facilitate faculty selection of an OER text in lieu of a commercial text.

Introduction to American Government and Politics (C-ID POLS 110)

• Introduction to California Government and Politics (Reti) – LibreTexts (CC BY)

  This text is an OERI-supported project. It welcomes students to the study of California government and politics and invites them to develop their opinions and become active participants in shaping the future of our state.

• American Government 3e – LibreTexts (CC BY)

  American Government 3e by OpenStax (CC BY)
  This is a comprehensive, peer-reviewed textbook intended for a one-semester course on US government. Topics covered across 17 chapters include: the US Constitution, federalism, civil liberties, civil rights, public opinion, voting behavior and elections, the media, political parties, interest groups and lobbying, Congress, the presidency, courts, state and local government, the bureaucracy, domestic policy, and foreign policy. Review by Dr. Josh Franco, Political Science, Cuyamaca College: The textbook is clearly organized and written by a team of scholars and researchers in the field. The resource can be viewed online, viewed through the OpenStax app, downloaded as a PDF, or a paid print copy can be ordered. As an instructor, I appreciate that the chapters are contained in five units: Students and the System, Individual Agency and Action, Toward Collective Action, Delivering Collective Action, and Outputs of Government. I have used these units as themes to knit chapters together into broader narratives. Students have remarked that they appreciate how each chapter has learning objectives, bolded key terms within the text, and “just right” content.
  Audio recordings of chapters in the textbook: By Brian Barrick, Political Science Instructor at LA Harbor College: Available on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and the project website (plans also to release on Canvas Commons for ease in transferring to Canvas shells).

• American Government (Lenz and Holman, 2018) (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

  This textbook is intended to be a comprehensive, semester-long introduction to US government. Chapters include links to relevant online resources and study questions for students. The textbook is divided into 17 chapters that cover: concepts in government and politics; the US system of constitutional government; Congress; the presidency; courts; federalism; the media; public opinion; political ideology; political participation; political parties; interest groups; public policy; economic policy; food policy; civil liberties and civil rights; and global affairs. Note that it is unclear whether this is a peer-reviewed text.

• American Government and Politics in the Information Age – LibreTexts (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

  American Government and Politics in the Information Age (Saylor Academy, 2012) (CC BY-NC-SA)

  Note: The version by the University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing Services is unpublished as of 12/31/24.
  This peer-and student-reviewed textbook is intended to be a comprehensive introduction to US government and politics. This is an adapted and downloadable version of the 21st Century American Government and Politics (v. 1.0, CC BY-NC-SA 3.0) Topics covered across 17 chapters include: communication in the information age; the Constitution and government structure; federalism; civil liberties; civil rights; political culture and socialization; public opinion; participation, voting, and social movements; interest groups; political parties; campaigns and elections; Congress; the presidency; the bureaucracy; courts; domestic policymaking; foreign and national security policymaking. Note that this textbook is available only via web browsers and is not downloadable. There are extensive faculty reviews on the Open Textbook Library webpage for this book.

• Attenuated Democracy: A Critical Introduction to U.S. Government and Politics (Hubert, 2020); Attenuated Democracy – LibreTexts (CC BY-NC-SA)

  This textbook is divided into ten parts and emphasizes fragility in the US political system as the organizing theme. The ten sections of the book are: thinking like a political scientist; constitutional foundations; Congress; the presidency; Supreme Court; federal bureaucracy; linkage institutions; electoral politics and public opinion; political behavior; and civil rights and civil liberties. Note that it is unclear whether this is a peer-reviewed title. Review by Dr. Josh Franco, Political Science, Cuyamaca College: Attenuated Democracy is a robust introduction to American Government and Politics. It consists of 10 Parts and 70 chapters. Each chapter begins with a quotation, key terms are bolded, images are included, and references are listed at the end. I appreciate Part 1: Thinking Like a Political Scientist and its 10 chapters. Given the amount of content that needs to be covered in a POLS 110 course, instructors may decide to forgo Part 1  or somehow incorporate it with the other parts. Unlike OpenStax’s American Government 2e, Attenuated Democracy leaves individual-level matters to Parts 9 and 10. For example, Part 10, Civil Rights and Liberties, which includes 9 chapters, is at the end. I have found that my students are very interested in these topics, so I am not sure how students will feel engaging with these topics at the end, compared to the beginning, of a course. There do not appear to be Chapter Lecture Slides for the textbook, which could be viewed as a current limitation.

• Boundless Political Science by Simple Book Publishing (lumenlearning.com) – (Licensing varies by topic)

  Boundless Political Science is a collection of webpages that cover the following topics: American Politics; The Constitution and the Founding of America; Federalism; Civil Liberties; Civil Rights; Public Opinion; Interest Groups; Campaigns and Elections; Political Participation and Voting; The Media; Congress; The Presidency; Bureaucracy; The Judiciary; Domestic Policy; Economic Policy; Social Policy; and Foreign Policy.

Note – some resources may require supplementation to serve as a complete text.

• Political Philosophy Reader An Open Educational Resource (Levin, 2019) – N.G.E. Far Press (CC BY-SA)

  A collection of original readings (all translated into English). Some chapters have brief introductions of the authors and brief conceptual discussions for each unit.

• Nationalism, Self-Determination and Secession (Andres and Saward, 2013) (CC-BY-NC-SA)

  This book is intended to serve as the foundational text for a unit within a course. Over seven chapters, the book focuses on theories and concepts related to nationalism and self-determination, then asks under what circumstances secession is justified.

• Conflict, War and Revolution: The problem of politics in international political thought (Kelly, 2022) – LSE Press (CC-BY)

  Written by a professor of political theory in the London School of Economics’ Department of Government, this open access volume explores themes related to conflict, violence, and politics through essays on ten thinkers from antiquity into the present day. Part I of the book examines in separate chapters the contributions of Thucydides, Augustine, Machiavelli, and Hobbes on these themes, while Part II explores Locke, Rousseau, Clausewitz, Lenin and Mao, and Schmitt.

• On Civic Republicanism: Ancient Lessons for Global Politics (Kellow and Leddy, eds., 2016, University of Toronto Press) (CC BY-NC-ND)

  With contributions from scholars across North America and Europe, this edited volume explores contemporary political problems through various texts from antiquity through the present. Divided into two parts and a total of 15 chapters, the first five chapters explore “the classical heritage” and the last ten chapters turn to European Enlightenment ideas.

• On Global Citizenship (Tully, ed., 2014, Bloomsbury Academic) (CC BY-NC-ND)

  This edited volume is organized as a dialogue on the theme of global citizenship. In response to a lead essay by Canadian political theorist James Tully, seven subsequent chapters offer responses to Tully’s framing of global citizenship. The ninth and final chapter offers a closing response from Tully.

Introduction to Comparative Government and Politics (C-ID POLS 130)

• Introduction to Comparative Government and Politics (Bozonelos, Wendt, Lee, Scarffe, Omae, Franco, Martin, and Velduis) (ASCCC OERI, 2022) (CC BY-NC)

  The textbook is also available at opolisci.com. The textbook comprises 12 chapters on topics in comparative politics, including: methods in comparative politics; states and regimes; democracies and democratization; non-democracies and democratic backsliding; political identities; political economy; collective action and social movements; comparative public opinion; and political violence. Ancillary materials such as lecture slides, quiz banks, and essay questions are also available. This textbook and ancillaries were written by a team comprising faculty in the California and Texas community college systems: Dino Bozonelos (project lead), Josh Franco, Charlotte Lee, Byran Martin, Masahiro Omae, Jessica Scarffe, Julia Wendt, and Stefan Veldhuis.

Introduction to International Relations (C-ID POLS 140)

• Understanding Global Politics (Bloor, 2022) – E-International Relations (CC BY-NC)
• International Relations Theory (McGlinchey, Walters and Scheinpflug, 2022) – E-International Relations Publishing (CC BY-NC)
• A Short Introduction to World Politics (Meacham, 2020) – LibreTexts (CC BY-NC-ND)

  This 13-chapter textbook covers the following: System History: The Rise of the Modern World System; Images and Theories of World Politics; Foreign Policy Decision Making; Non-State Actors- IGOs, NGOs, MNCs; The World Economy; The Global North and South; Globalization; War and International Security; Military Power; Realists Paths to Peace – Alliances, Dominance and Treaties; Idealist Paths to Peace: International Law; and Human Rights, Population, and Environment. Chapters are organized into sections and the final section includes a list of questions. Note that it is unclear whether this is a peer-reviewed textbook.

• Canvas Course Shell for Introduction to International Relations (CC BY-NC)

  Introduction to International Relations Canvas Commons download This semester-long Canvas course shell includes an OER textbook equivalent, lesson plans, and ancillary materials. The content contained within this Open Education Resource (OER) was curated and/or created by Dr. Charlotte Lee at Berkeley City College, Dr. Katherine Michel at Ohlone College, and Dr. Josh Franco at Cuyamaca College. The curation and creation of this content was funded by the Academic Senate for California Community College’s Open Educational Resources Initiative. Question Banks were created by Josh Franco, Ph.D., Elizabeth Nash, M.A., and Jereme Umali, M.

• Human Security in World Affairs: Problems and Opportunities (2nd ed., Lautensach and Lautensach, eds., 2020) (CC BY-NC-SA)

  Intended for upper division students, this is the first textbook treatment of human security and related concepts such as socio-political security, economic security, environmental security, and health security. This textbook includes 21 chapters. Note that it is unclear whether this textbook is peer-reviewed.

• International Relations (McGlinchey, ed. 2017) (CC BY-NC)

  This textbook is intended as an introduction to core concepts and topics in international relations. This book contains eighteen chapters organized into two parts. Part one on “the basics” covers international relations theories and institutions, while part two on “global issues” takes up topics such as global development, human rights, terrorism, and environmental challenges. Note that this text does not appear to be peer-reviewed. Excerpt of review by Dr. Josh Franco, Political Science, Cuyamaca College: The coherent organization and structure of the textbook will help instructors facilitate the learning of the topic, as well as student’s learning about international relations.

• Meditations on Diplomacy: Comparative Cases in Diplomatic Practice and Foreign Policy (Chan, 2017) (CC BY-NC 4.0)

  This textbook explores the craft of diplomacy and foreign policy making. It begins with a chapter on international relations theories and explores issues by region as well as foreign policy topic. Note that this text does not appear to be peer-reviewed.

• Introduction to Political Science (Rom, Hidaka, and Walker, et al., 2022) (CC BY 4.0) – OpenStax

  This introductory text includes 16 chapters on topics including: the study of politics, political behavior, political ideologies, civil liberties, public opinion, group political activity, civil rights, political parties and elections, legislatures, executives, bureaucracies, courts and law, the media, international relations, international institutions, and international political economy.

• An Introduction to Politics (Sell, 2020) (CC BY-NC-SA) – LibreTexts

  The target audience for this textbook are first-year students. This book introduces concepts such as power, ideology, regime, citizenship, political economy, and sub-fields in the study of politics. It is organized into ten chapters. Note that this resource does not appear to be peer-reviewed.

• Politics, Power, and Purpose: An Orientation to Political Science (Jay Steinmetz, 2021) – Pressbooks (CC BY)

  This introductory textbook is organized into two parts: Part I explores “What is politics?” and Part II focuses on “Understanding the discipline of political science”. Part I comprises five chapters: Chapter 1: Conceptualizing Politics, Chapter 2: Ideologies of the individual, Chapter 3: An institutional view of politics, Chapter 4: How public law structures politics, and Chapter 5: Theories of democracy. Part II comprises an additional five chapters and surveys sub-disciplines: Chapter 6: Political theory, Chapter 7: International Relations, Chapter 8: Comparative Politics, Chapter 9: American Politics and Public Policy/Administration, and Chapter 10: Methods. The publisher is Fort Hays State University (Hays, Kansas) and it is not clear whether this is a peer-reviewed textbook.

Introduction to Political Science Research Methods (C-ID POLS 160)

• Introduction to Political Science Research Methods (Franco et al.) (CC BY-NC) – LibreTexts

  Introduction to Political Science Research Methods (Franco et al.) (CC BY-NC)
  This is a multi-author, peer-reviewed textbook created by California Community College faculty. With chapter contributions from Dr. Josh Franco at Cuyamaca College, Dr. Charlotte Lee at Berkeley City College, Kau Vue at Fresno City College, Dr. Dino Bozonelos at Victor Valley College, Dr. Masahiro Omae at San Diego City College, and Dr. Steven Cauchon at Imperial Valley College, the purpose of this open education resource is to provide students interested in or majoring in political science a solid introduction into the research methods of the discipline. Support was provided by the Academic Senate for California Community College’s Open Educational Resources Initiative.

Introduction to the Politics of Race and Gender (C-ID POLS 170)

No resources identified.

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This page last updated on April 8, 2024.