The Government Department will next year offer four areas of specialized concentration instead of the present three.

Arthur A. Maass, chairman of the department, announced yesterday that the area now called "political thought and institutions" will be split into "political thought and behavior" and "comparative politics." Concentrators are required to choose one of the department's areas.

The change, which chiefly affects the structure of general examinations, becomes effective for members of the class of '68.

The new division was originally suggested by the Harvard Policy Committee last spring in its audit of the Government. Department.

Maass explained yesterday that the one area was "much too big." He said that faculty members had agreed that it was "unrealistic" to expect a student to specialize in a field that encompassed the history of political thought, modern political theory, comparative government, and political development.

Tremendous Growth

Maass noted that the area had grown tremendously since the original three divisions were organized. He pointed out that the field of political development, for example, now has a set of theories of its own which did not even exist a few years ago.

The name "political thought and behavior" was chosen for the general area of political theory, Maass said, to indicate that the field covers more than the history of theory.

Concern within the department over the relation of theory to practical politics is not limited to terminology. Maass said yesterday that the special exam (senior concentrators take two sets of generals--one in their specialized area, and one in the other fields) is being rewritten to place increased emphasis on the practical application of theory. This change is also effective for '68.

The division is one of several HPC recommendations on which the department has acted since last spring. Still under faculty study, Maass said, is the weighting of thesis grades relative to generals, and the structure of sophomore tutorial. A decision is expected soon