^aIbaraki University, Humanities, 2-1-1, Bunkyo, Mito-shi, Ibaraki 310-8512, Japan. E-mail: sagawa@mx.ibaraki.ac.jp

Abstract

The Japanese political science community has grown considerably in recent years and has succeeded in achieving internationalisation. However, there exists a significant generation gap concerning views on science, in particular, concerning the role of values in the social sciences. This has led to contrasting assessments of the history and achievements of political science. This article provides some information concerning political science and the community of political scientists in Japan, knowledge of which is lacking in Europe.