Thirty years of Political Science in Spain: professionalization, expansion and adjustment

Abstract

The return of democracy to Spain in 1977 cleared the way for the institutional differentiation and launch of the discipline in the country. However, this double process did not actually crystallize until the mid 1980’s, when the “Political Science and Public Administration” was approved by the government as a separate field of knowledge. This article intends to provide an account of the most relevant milestones that took place since then until the last few years of the 20th century, when full institutionalization of the discipline was reached with the publication of the first issue of this Journal. Moreover, the article systematizes a comprehensive set of data on students, faculty staff, teaching and research structures, scientific congresses, etc., with an aim at offering a balance of the main events and changes experienced by the discipline and the profession during their consolidation phase in the 21st century. The developments covered here have contributed to the evolution from the initial amateurism to the professionalization of scholars dedicated to this social science, which has gained full recognition in the academic sphere both nationally and internationally, even if it still suffers from a lack of legitimacy concerning the specificity of its subject vis-à-vis other social sciences.