Bachelor 2024/2025

Politics and Societies in the European Countries

Type: Elective course (Political Science and World Politics)

Area of studies: Political Science

Delivered by: Department of Political Science and International Affairs

Where: Saint-Petersburg School of Social Sciences

When: 3 year, 1, 2 module

Mode of studies: offline

Open to: students of one campus

Instructors: András Gál

Language: English

ECTS credits: 4

Course Syllabus

Abstract

The course offers an introduction to the politics in European countries, combining topical and regional approaches. The objectives of the course are twofold: to familiarize students with the political life of European countries, and to closely scrutinize concepts from comparative politics that are overrepresented in (and often are unique to) the European continent. The course structure therefore aims to combine these approaches, so most ideas (e.g. polarized parliamentary systems, consensus democracies) will be analyzed in the framework of a broader discussion on various regions (e.g. Mediterranean or Benelux countries).

Learning Objectives

• The course comprises of 10 lectures (20 academic hours) and 10 seminars / discussion groups (20 academic hours). The following teaching methods are involved: Lectures: - Multimedia support: all lectures are followed by multimedia presentation (slides) with textual and visual materials; - Interactive lectures: interactive elements (quizzes, surveys) during the lecture are used. Seminars (tutorials): - Group presentations - Debates and open discussions based on the mandatory readings; - Mini-group work (collective tasks in class); - Case analysis individually or collectively.

Expected Learning Outcomes

• • Perceives and critically addresses the in socio-historical, ethical and philosophical perspectives of inter-cultural diversity.
• • Establishes causal inferences, assesses and evaluates social, political, and economic events and processes in a cross-national context; identifies trends and patterns of integrated development at the global, continental, macro-regional, national, and subnational levels.
• • Analyzes and interprets global and international political, social and economic processes to support management decision-making and prepare informational, analytical, and media materials.
• • Identifies the features and trends of socio-political development of regions and countries in Europe, and integrating this analysis in addressing professional tasks.
• • Provides analysis relevant for government authorities, representatives of business structures, institutions, organizations, and interested parties, concerning the major socio-political and economic processes of the European continent.

Course Contents

• A brief political history of Europe after 1945.
• Majoritarian democracies: Great Britain and France.
• ‘Sheer’ parliamentarism? Is there a ‘Mediterranean model’?
• Consensus and cooperation I: consociationalism and its variants (Alpine and Benelux countries).
• Consensus and cooperation II: moderate parliamentarism and minority cabinets (Nordic countries).
• Democracy by design: Germany.
• Patterns of democratic transitions in Central and Eastern Europe.
• Democratic backsliding and illiberalism: Hungary and Poland (+Bulgaria? Slovakia?).
• The politics of conflict and reconciliation in post-war Europe.
• Ideologies, Populism, and Polarization in Contemporary Europe
• Position paper
• Conclusion, consultation
• Preparation for final exam
• Group presentation

Assessment Elements

• grade for position paper
  Recommendations for the position paper The position paper shall be a problem-based, argumentative text demonstrating the student’s capacity to identify academically relevant problems, finding avenues to tackle it, and communicating her/his arguments in a persuasive, transparent, and succinct manner. The position paper should also demonstrate the student’s firm understanding on the differences between epistemic and methodological traditions. The position paper’s extent shall not exceed 1,000 words, including foot/endnotes, excluding the bibliography. The review part of the essay shall not exceed 40% of the position paper. The deadline for sending a position paper linked to each specific topic is the beginning of the following seminar session. Essay structure: 1. Short and general formulation of answer, outline of structure 2. Review of relevant claims in the literature 3. Critical review of relevant positions. 4. Core of argument, supported by analytical and/or empirical claims. 5. Conclusion, summarizing the core points of the argument. Examples for essay topics: - Are presidential systems with proportionally elected legislatures necessarily inefficient? - Is the practice of grand coalitions rooted in the lack of established democratic traditions? - Is left-wing populism less dangerous for democracy than right-wing populism?
• grade for book review
  Recommendations for the book review The book review shall critically discuss the core arguments of a selected academic monograph on the politics of a European country or region; edited volumes are not available for this exercise. While a list of recommended books will be provided, students are also encouraged to select a book of their choice, corresponding to their intellectual and academic interests. In such cases, the book of choice needs to be approved by the course instructor beforehand. The review should be between 700 and 900 words-long, including discursive foot/endnotes, excluding bibliographical notes. The deadlines for preliminary approval and the book review itself will be agreed during the first seminar session. The book review should address some the following questions: - What is the core argument(s) of the book? - What kind of audiences and debates are addressed by the author(s)? - What kind of methodology is employed in the book? Are the author’s choices adequate, or more adequate alternatives could have been found? - Is there anything that the student would have done differently concerning the conceptualisation of the core subject, or the presentation of the main argument?
• grade for class participation
  Recommendations for class participation - Meaningful engagement with the mandatory readings demonstrated - Own critical approach to the reading and lecture materials elucidated - By bringing in concepts and empirical examples from other fields of study, the student demonstrates a complex understanding of the introduced concepts - Contribution to the class dynamics: by reflecting on earlier points and comments, students can again demonstrate a practical understanding of the discussed concepts, as well as their abilities to understand the dynamics of ongoing discussions. Conversely, redundant and self-serving comments will lower the participation grade. - In case someone finds participation in discussions challenging, there is also an opportunity to send questions and comments related to the mandatory readings before the respective class sessions.
• grade for final test

Interim Assessment

• 2024/2025 2nd module
  0.2 * grade for book review + 0.1 * grade for class participation + 0.4 * grade for final test + 0.3 * grade for position paper

Bibliography

Recommended Core Bibliography

• Adam Fagan, & Petr Kopecký. (2018). The Routledge Handbook of East European Politics. Routledge.
• Middleton, R. (2010). The Oxford Handbook of British Politics. By Matthew Flinders, Andrew Gamble, Colin Hay, and Michael Kenny. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.93428C94
• The Oxford handbook of French politics / edited by Robert Elgie, Emiliano Grossman, and Amy G. Mazur. (2017). Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edswao&AN=edswao.491423535

Recommended Additional Bibliography

• José M. Magone. (2015). Routledge Handbook of European Politics. Routledge.

Authors

• GAL ANDRASH