1952
William Alexander Robson
London School of Economics, United Kingdom
(1952–1955)
William Alexander Robson (1895–1980) was a British scholar of administrative law and political science, making significant contributions to both fields. His association with the London School of Economics (LSE) began in 1919 when he enrolled as an undergraduate after serving in the Royal Air Force during World War I. Despite lacking formal qualifications, he was admitted with the support of LSE’s founders, graduating in 1922 and later earning a Ph.D. He was appointed Lecturer in Administrative Law in 1926, where his book, Justice and Administrative Law (1928), helped establish administrative law as a recognized discipline in the United Kingdom. Robson later became Professor of Public Administration in 1947, a position he held until his retirement in 1962.
Prof. Robson published several books, mostly in the field of public administration and administrative law. His major works include Local Government in Crisis (1966); Nationalised Industry and Public Ownership (1960); The Government and Misgovernment of London (1939); The Civil Service Today (1937); The Development of Local Government (1931); and The Town Councillor (1925, co-authored with Clement Attlee).
Prof. Robson also played a key role in shaping the emerging discipline of political science. With financial backing from George Bernard Shaw, he and his friend Leonard Woolf co-founded The Political Quarterly in 1930 as a platform for progressive analysis of contemporary political issues. He remained chairman of its editorial board until 1975. He was also a co-founder of the UK Political Studies Association, established in 1950, just a year after the founding of IPSA.
As the second 5XÉçÇøPresident (1952-1955), Prof. Robson made significant contributions to the Association even before assuming the presidency. As the general rapporteur for the UNESCO-commissioned study on The Teaching of Political Science, he played a key role in creating a comprehensive inventory of the discipline across ten countries, including Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, and India. This groundbreaking study not only documented academic programs, recruitment practices, syllabi, and research-teaching linkages but also identified the challenges 5XÉçÇøwould face in its efforts to harmonize political science education globally. During his presidency, Prof. Robson continued to strengthen IPSA's intellectual foundations, especially by organizing the first 5XÉçÇøroundtable in Cambridge in 1952 about his Teaching of Political Science Research.
