I’ve never been great at mathematics. I have, however, enjoyed geometry as I can visualize the operations.
In college and graduate school, I struggled with linear algebra, i.e., vector and matrix operations, because I struggled to visualize the operations.
At some point in graduate school, I learned about eigenanalysis, particularly a cool operation known as Singular Value Decomposition, or SVD. It took me some time to get past the weird name of “eigen,” a German word meaning “own.” Eigenanalysis involves vectors that transform into their own self in linear relationships.
My intellectual leap came in the visualization through the geometry of eigenanalysis. The intuition that came from visualization opened up multiple opportunities for me to apply eigenanalysis.
Geometric Ceiling Architecture. Image from: https://pixabay.com/photos/ceiling-architecture-airport-lines-8802142/
All this to say, I recently ran across an interesting political science paper that uses eigenanalysis to investigate and interpret political parties and their positions on issues. Here’s the paper:
Magyar ZB. What Makes Party Systems Different? A Principal Component Analysis of 17 Advanced Democracies 1970–2013. Political Analysis. 2022;30(2):250-268. doi:10.1017/pan.2021.21
A PDF link to the paper is available here.
I don’t have any particular solid conclusions or insights to offer. However, I am very interested in this paper as it offers me inspiration for an argument that I’m hoping to build for why the American two-party system–which is fairly unique among democracies–is an important system for the concept of integrative complexity and bisociated compromise, both terms that I outline in The Art of the Compromise.
Stay tuned…