The PSA has been the home of political studies in the UK since 1950. We advance, support and promote the study and public understanding of politics and international relations for all. The PSA is a learned society, membership body, and charity.

Our objectives as an Association are ‘to promote the development of political studies and to encourage education and the advancement of learning in the art and science of government and in other branches of the political sciences’. We do this through our global membership community, our leading academic publications, our international annual conference, our prizes and awards, and our broad range of specialist groups and networks.

So what is Political Studies, and how does it make a difference? From democracy to dictatorship and local councils to international organisations, Political Studies examines how power is obtained, kept, lost, mobilised, divided, used and abused. It asks who gains and who loses from these processes, and why. Politics is studied in theory and in practice, often using scientific methods. The impact and outcomes of political theory and practice influence almost everything, and everyone.