政治学研究科長 久米 郁男My name is Ikuo Kume. As of January 2021, I have started serving as dean of the Graduate School of Political Science.The seemingly everlasting coronavirus pandemic has significantly impacted this graduate school’s entrance examinations, education, and research, and I am keenly aware of the considerable inconveniences affecting everyone that have arisen from this situation. There is still no end in sight for our predicament, but all faculty members are continuing to strive as hard as possible to maintain the quality of the education and research that we conduct. I would like to kindly ask for your continued understanding and cooperation.The coronavirus pandemic that is currently roiling the world has provided us all with an enormous trial to pass. This trial is more than just elucidating the mechanisms by which COVID-19 causes disease, developing vaccines and treatments, and other challenges in the field of medicine. This is also a societal challenge that concerns how we will overcome this infectious disease. Regarding the latter challenge, how have our political leaders fared in handling the crisis? Their triumphs and failures are now major topics for discussion. The reasons for the success—or lack thereof—of the measures that leaders have implemented are often looked for in their capabilities and characters. It is obviously true that the quality of political leadership affects whether measures will succeed or fail.However, more in-depth considerations are needed to aim to solve the problems we face now and, further, to learn lessons for the future. Determining whether one country’s policies have succeeded and another have failed is embedded with the difficult problem of the very standards by which we should measure success or failure.A balance between measures to fight infection and economic activity is frequently talked about, but even by that standard it is not clear what kind of situation we should be aiming for. This has been the cause of various debates. Furthermore, each country’s political system, political circumstances, historical experiences, and other factors greatly determine how expert knowledge is reflected in deciding on policies, how quickly those decisions can be made, and how binding the enforcement of those policies can be. Political leaders are forced to make decisions under such constraints, and this influences whether policies will succeed or fail. Another crucial issue when it comes to the means that are expected to finally put a stop to this pandemic—namely, vaccines—is how priorities should be set, both internationally and domestically, for who will receive inoculations before others. This would seem to not only be a practical question of which way of doing things will most effectively bring this pandemic to an end but also to entail questions of fairness. Going beyond the debates alluded to above, it is clear that our response to the coronavirus pandemic is constrained by the state of our politics and society; it seems that the potential success of any policies will depend on strategies that are based on a correct understanding of those constraints.This graduate school has established required courses covering three methodological categories for our students to study: those covering empirical methods, in which reality is analyzed based on quantitative and qualitative data; those covering mathematical methods, in which reality is modeled and analyzed theoretically; and those covering methods of conceptual analysis, in which students are taught to understand and use normative concepts effectively. Building on these methodologies, we have established areas of study, including contemporary politics, political thought, political history, comparative politics, international relations, public policy, and journalism. Thus, we have created a framework in which students can proceed with their studies based on a strong methodological bedrock. This graduate school is proud of how it has produced numerous talented researchers and advanced professionals active in society who have studied such methodologies interwoven with specific topics of research. I have every confidence that this framework for research and education will serve as a vital set of intellectual infrastructure for conceiving of and researching responses to the current coronavirus pandemic.However, this will not be the end of our journey. We will enrich our research and learning environment in ways both tangible and intangible, further expand our staff capable of being active at an internationally recognized academic level, strive further improve our frameworks for research and education, and aim to remain an education and research institution of the first order internationally. I believe that these very efforts will be our path toward contributing to resolving the various societal issues that can still be expected to persist after the current COVID-19 crisis has been dealt with. On behalf of the Graduate School of Political Science, I ask for you to continue to bestow on us your understanding and support.Message Ikuo KumeDean of the Graduate School of Political Science 2021年１月から研究科長をつとめる久米郁男です。 長引くコロナ禍の中で、本研究科の入試、教育、研究いずれもが大きな影響を受けており、皆様には多大なご不便をおかけしております。未だ収束の見込みは立ちませんが、教職員一同、教育と研究の質を維持するべく可能な限り努力を続けてまいります。何とぞご理解とご協力をお願い申し上げます。 世界を揺るがせるコロナ・パンデミックは、我々に大きな試練を与えています。それは、COVID-19の発症機序の解明やワクチン・治療薬の開発といった医療上の挑戦のみならず、この感染症を我々がどの様に乗り越えるのかという社会的挑戦でもあります。そして、後者の挑戦に対して政治リーダーがどの様に対応できているのか。その巧拙が大きな話題になってきました。対策の成否の原因がリーダーの資質に求められることもしばしばです。政治的リーダーシップのあり方が対策の成功・失敗に影響することは言うまでもないでしょう。 しかしながら、現下の問題解決を目指し、さらに将来への教訓を得るためにはより深い検討が必要です。ある国が対策に成功し、他の国が失敗したと判断する際に、成功と失敗は何を基準にどの様に測るのか自体難しい問題を含んでいます。感染症対策と経済活動の両立が言われますが、それを基準としても、現在どの様な状態を目指すべきかが自明ではないが故に、様々な論争が起こります。さらには、対策の決定において専門的知識をどの様に反映させるのか、決定をどの程度迅速に行えるのか、対策の実施に強制力をどこまで使えるのか等は、それぞれの国の政治制度、政治状況、歴史的経験等に大きく規定されます。政治リーダーはそのような条件の中で決定をせざるをえず、それが対策の成否に影響します。さらには、パンデミックを最終的に収める手段として期待を集めるワクチンを国内において更には世界においてどの様な優先順位で接種していくべきかという問題も重要です。これは、パンデミックの収束に向けてどのやり方が効果的かという実践的な問いであるとともに、公正さをめぐる論点も含まれるでしょう。以上の議論にとどまらず、コロナパンデミックへの対応が、我々の政治社会のあり方に制約されていることは明らかであり、対策の成功はその正しい理解に基づいた上での戦略にかかっていると言えるでしょう。 本研究科は、量的、質的データに基づいて現実を分析する経験的方法、現実をモデル化して理論的に検討する数理的方法、規範的な概念を適切に理解し使用するための概念分析の方法を学ぶ３つの方法論科目を必修科目として課した上で、現代政治、政治思想、政治史、比較政治、国際関係論、公共政策、ジャーナリズムなどの研究領域を置くことで、確固とした方法論的基礎の上に研究を進められる体制を整備してきました。方法論を横糸に、具体的研究テーマを縦糸にして学ぶ中から、多くの優秀な研究者、社会で活躍する高度専門職業人を輩出してきたことは、本研究科の誇りとするところです。そして、このような研究教育体制は、今回のコロナパンデミックへの対応を考え研究する上でも、重要な知的インフラとなると確信しています。 しかし、我々はここで歩みを止めません。ハード・ソフト面での環境の充実をはかるとともに、国際的学術水準で活躍しうるスタッフの更なる拡充も進め、研究教育体制の一層の向上に努め、国際的にトップレベルの教育研究機関たることを目指します。このような努力こそ、今回のコロナ禍の収束後の世界においても予想される様々な社会的課題の解決に貢献する道であると考えています。引き続き、ご理解とご支援を賜りますようお願い申し上げます。4政治学研究科長からのメッセージ
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