1. Introduction, Changing Politics (February 15)

The course will be introduced, and the organisation of the semester will be presented. Besides this, the rationale and benefits of the course will be explained together with a debate on the recent changes in politics.

Reading:

Clinton, W. J. (1993). Inaugural Address of the 42nd President of the United States. Washington, D.C.
Biden, J. R. (2021). Inaugural Address of the 46th President of the United States. Washington, D.C.

2. Polarization (February 22)

Increasing polarization is one of the most influential factors in today’s politics across the world. Thus, students will learn about polarization’s definition, existence in different states and effects on political systems.

Reading:

Rathje, S., Van Bavel, J. J., & van der Linden, S. (2021). Out-group animosity drives engagement on social media. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(26), 2-9.

3. Conspiracy Theories (March 1)

Although conspiracy theories are not a new phenomenon, their importance in contemporary politics is rising due to easier spreading. Therefore, students will find out what the role of conspiracy theories in today’s politics is and what political science knows about them.

Reading:

Forberg, P. L. (2021). From the Fringe to the Fore: An Algorithmic Ethnography of the Far-Right Conspiracy Theory Group QAnon. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 1-27.

4. Populism (March 8)

Populism has been employed by not only minor but also mainstream political parties and politicians in different states in recent years, which makes it an influential political concept. Thus, students will understand populism together with its worldwide impacts.

Reading:

Cavalieri, A., & Froio, C. (2021). The behaviour of populist parties in parliament. The policy agendas of populist and other political parties in the Italian question time. Italian Political Science Review/Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica, 1-14.

5. Modern Political Communication (March 15)

Today’s politics is inseparable from intense communication with the public. Thus, students will learn what the role of modern political communication in contemporary politics is, and some relevant terms, such as permanent campaigning or politainment, will be discussed.

Reading:

Howard, P. N., Woolley, S., & Calo, R. (2018). Algorithms, bots, and political communication in the US 2016 election: The challenge of automated political communication for election law and administration. Journal of information technology & politics, 15(2), 81-93.

6. Changing Parties and Party Systems (March 22)

Contemporary politics witnesses new forms of political parties and transformations of party systems. Thus, students will reveal what the new party types are and in what manner party systems transform.

Reading:

Hloušek, V., Kopeček, L., & Vodová, P. (2020). The rise of entrepreneurial parties in European politics, pp. 29-39, 48-63, 82-91. Springer Nature.

7. Evidence-Based Policy-Making (March 29)

Together with the increasing amount and accessibility of data, their role in the policy-making process is being discussed. Therefore, students will learn about an approach of evidence-based policy-making.

Reading:

Van der Deen, F. S., Wilson, N., Cleghorn, C. L., Kvizhinadze, G., Cobiac, L. J., Nghiem, N., & Blakely, T. (2018). Impact of five tobacco endgame strategies on future smoking prevalence, population health and health system costs: two modelling studies to inform the tobacco endgame. Tobacco Control, 27(3), 278-286.
Ministry of Health (2021). Smokefree Aotearoa 2025 Action Plan. Available at: https://www.health.govt.nz/publication/smokefree-aotearoa-2025-action-plan-auahi-kore-aotearoa-mahere-rautaki-2025

8. Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic (April 5)

The outbreak of COVID-19 has affected almost all aspects of life across the globe and the world of politics has been no exception. Thus, students will understand how the pandemic has influenced not only the content of politics but also the form of governing and policy-making.

Reading:

Altiparmakis, A., Bojar, A., Brouard, S., Foucault, M., Kriesi, H., & Nadeau, R. (2021). Pandemic politics: policy evaluations of government responses to COVID-19. West European Politics, 1-21.

9. Trends in Your Country I (April 12)

Students will present contemporary trends that take place in their countries.

10. Trends in Your Country II (April 19)

Students will present contemporary trends that take place in their countries.

11. Trends in Your Country III (April 26)

Students will present contemporary trends that take place in their countries.

12. Trends in Your Country IV (May 3)

Students will present contemporary trends that take place in their countries.