Introduction

This chapter presents an overview of key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book suggests that we need to understand better the form, duration and magnitude of political inequality within and across nations. We need to study it systematically, continuously, and diligently, and in an inclusive, open-minded way, inclining our ears to the varied contributions of the many academic disciplines. The book takes explicitly multidisciplinary and cross-national perspectives. It defines the field of political inequality as both interdisciplinary and cross-national. The concept of 'political inequality' has been of interest to a wide variety of disciplines; to properly synthesize what we know about it, we should move towards interdisciplinary knowledge. That political inequality lives in democracies great and small is a scientific fact. As scientists, we must be aware that the objective and subjective realities of political inequality inspires people and rouses them to action. It is a fact worthy of a closer look.