00895 - Political Science (F-N)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will gain a basic knowledge of the main approaches and methods developed within political science; will be able to  analyze political actors, processes and institutions;  will be able to understand similarities and differences between political systems in a comparative perspective.

Course contents

The course is divided into two parts: the first one based on lectures, the second one  organized as a seminar.  

The first part  is composed of 14 frontal lectures (28 hours)  taught  remotely  on Microsoft TEAMS. It  aims at introducing students to the basic conceptual and methodological  tools of the discipline.

The second part is organized as a seminar. The students will be divided into three groups: two groups will participate in the seminar in person ( 8 classes, 16 hours) in consecutive weeks and the remaining group will participate in the seminar remotely.

For each student, therefore, there will be a total of 44  classroom hours (28+16).

The first part of the course (frontal) is introduction to the main themes studied by Political Science, paying particular attention to the theoretical and  and methodological aspects that have become central to the study of politics. The syllabus of the first part is structured as follows:

Lecture 1 Introduction to the course/The Scientific Study of Politics.
Lesson 2 The Game Exit, Voice and Loyalty
Lesson 3 The State
Lesson 4 The dilemma of the state of nature
Lesson 5 Conceptualizing and measuring democracy
Lesson 6 Bottom-up democratic transitions 
Lesson 7 Top-down democratic transitions
Lesson 8 Social  Choice Theory, Part 1
Lesson 9  Social Choice Theory Part 2
Lesson 10 Parliamentary, presidential, and mixed democracies, part 1
Lesson 11 Parliamentary, presidential and mixed democracies, part 2
Lesson 12 Elections and electoral systems
Lesson 13 Parties and party systems, part 1
Lesson 14 Parties and Party Systems, Part 2

The second part of the course (seminar) will consist of two seminars  that will take place in person or  remotely. The class will be divided into three groups. The students will have to choose between:

Seminar 1 (in-person). Title: Spatial competition, parties, and policy positions (Groups 1 and 2)
Seminar 2 (remote). Title: Political parties' Funding (Group 3)

The seminar activity is an integral part of the course. As part of it, students are expected to read the assigned material prior to class and actively participate in the discussion. The distribution of students in the three groups will try to take into account as much as possible the willingness to participate in person and the interest in the proposed  topics. However, groups should be approximately of equal size.  In the event that it is not possible to form two groups in person, a group could attend remotely.  
Any change in the  organization of teaching depending on changed health conditions will be communicated promptly on this site.

Readings/Bibliography

Clark, William Roberts, Golder Matt; Golder Nadenichek Sona, Principles of Comparative Politics, Sage, third edition (originally published 2009). Other materials will be specified at the beginning of the course.

Foreign students are invited to contact the teacher at the beginning of the course.

Teaching methods

The course is organized in lectures and seminars. Lectures aim to introduce students to the core tenets of the discipline. Seminars aim to provide occasions for in-depth discussions of class materials and exercises.  Students are required to carefully read the assigned material before the seminar sessions.

Attendance is strongly recommended.

Assessment methods

At the end of the first part of the course, there will be an intermediate test consisting of multiple-choice questions which will weigh 40/100 of the final mark. At the end of the seminar part, an exercise will take place, which will weigh 30/100. Assiduous attendance of lectures and active participation in class during the seminar will count for the remaining 30/100 of the final grade

An insufficient result in the intermediate test does not prevent the participation in the seminar. In the last week of May there will be the opportunity of repeating the  test on the first part of the programme, reserved for those who have successfully passed the seminar. On the contrary, those who have not successfully completed the seminar part of the course will have to take the exam in the ordinary sessions (appelli) , studying the entire textbook of Clark, Golder and Golder (all chapters).

Students who are unable to attend the lectures and/or seminars will have to take the exam in the ordinary  sessions (appelli) and prepare the entire textbook of Clark, Golder and Golder (all chapters).

Student can reject only the final grade (only once). In this event, students will have to take the exam in the ordinary sessions (appelli) and prepare the entire textbook of Clark, Golder and Golder (all chapters).

Exams will be in person, if possible, or remotely using the Online  (EOL) and Zoom platforms. Remote mode is always guaranteed for those unable to attend in person.

Teaching tools

Slides and other course materials will be available on line, at the web site https://virtuale.unibo.it.

Links to further information

https://virtuale.unibo.it/course/view.php?id=20875

Office hours

See the website of Daniela Giannetti

See the website of Chiara Fiorelli