B2996 - Populist Politics in Central and Eastern Europe

Learning outcomes

The course aims at providing students with a thorough understanding of the changing nature of politics, institutional dynamics, and democratic participation in East Central Europe — focusing on the phenomenon of populism. Particular attention will be given to the cases of Hungary and Poland.

Course contents

The course content:

1. Introduction to populism and illiberalism in Central and Eastern Europe.

2. Methodology and theory of populism: how to define and measure populism in CEE?

3. Populist actors in CEE

4. Different shades of populism: Populism & Identity/Memory Politics

5. Different shades of populism: Populism & Religion in CEE

6. Different shades of populism: Populism & Foreign Policy

7. Case study: Populist Euroscepticism in Poland

8. Populism in CEE – case studies from the region (Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria)

9. Concluding session: populism in Europe – do we face a East–West divide?

Readings/Bibliography

Mudde, C. and Rovira Kaltwasser, C. (2017) Populism: A Very Short Introduction

Máthé-Tóth, A.; Nagy, G; Szilárdy, R. (2020): Populism and religion in Central and Eastern Europe. Belvedere Meridionale vol. 32. no. 3. 19–30.

Styczyńska, N. & Meijer, J.D. (2023) The ‘pure Polish people’ vs the ‘European elite’ – how do populism and Euroscepticism interact in Polish politics?, Journal of Contemporary European Studies

Havlík V. and Hloušek V. (2021) Differential Illiberalism: Classifying Illiberal Trends in Central European Party Politics, in: Astrid Lorenz and Lisa H. Anders (eds) Illiberal Trends and Anti-EU Politics in East Central Europe, Plagrave

Kopper, A., Szalai, A., Góra, M. (2023). Populist Foreign Policy in Central and Eastern Europe: Poland, Hungary and the Shock of the Ukraine Crisis. In: Giurlando, P., Wajner, D.F. (eds) Populist Foreign Policy. Global Foreign Policy Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-22773-8_4

Hooghe, L., Marks, G., Bakker, R., Jolly, S., Polk, J., Rovny, J., Steenbergen, M., & Vachudova, M. A. (2024). The Russian threat and the consolidation of the West: How populism and EU-skepticism shape party support for Ukraine. European Union Politics, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/14651165241237136

Teaching methods

Lecture with visual presentation (ppt, video) and seminar (including student projects, presentation, analyses of speeaches). The final session will include an in-class mini-quiz.

 

"Communication for students with SLD and/or temporary or permanent disabilities: it's recommended to get in touch beforehand with the designated University office (SERVICE FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AND SLD [https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en]). The office will recommend you the possible adjustments, which must receive (at least 15 days beforehand) the professor's approval in relation to the course's educational goals".

Assessment methods

The final grade of the course consists of 3 elements: (1) in-class presentation 20%, (2) in-class text analyses 20%, (3) mini quiz 20%, (4) final essay 40%.

Guidelines and deadlines for a final essay will be given separately.

Office hours

See the website of Natasza Maja Styczynska