Like in all social sciences, theory plays a critical role in comparative politics because theory is a simplified representation of reality and a framework within which facts are not only selected but also interpreted, organized, and fitted together so that they create a coherent whole, according to Timothy C. Lim. Hence, doing comparative politics means developing and supporting arguments and explanations about the world applying theoretical principles to evident facts with a comparative approach. Three major branches of theories are used: Rational Choice, Structuralism, and Culture. Within these branches, three theories try to understand world poverty: Modernization as a rationalist theory, and Dependency and Marxism as structural theories.
