UCL - Comparative Politics of Western States

[SPRI2050]

[30h] 5 credits

This course is taught in the 1st semester.

Teacher(s): Lieven De Winter

Language: French

Level: Second

Aims
Main themes
Content and teaching methods
Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Aims

- The aims of this course in comparative analysis is to offer the students an analytical framework allowing them to understand the structure and functioning of Western political systems, their components and inter-actions between subsystems, and to be able to interpret processes of change. This skill will equally be use-ful to grasp the functioning of non-Western democratic systems. Students have to gain insight into the degree of linkage and interdependency between subsystems. He must be able to make a critical evaluation of the effects of proposals for institutional reform. Doing so, he will get acquainted with current research methods and techniques and data collection of comparative politics and be able to apply these to new po-litical subjects of comparison.

Main themes

This course offers a comparative overview of the major political decision-making actors, institutions, processes and contents of European countries in the post-war period. The following themes will be addressed: electoral behaviour and societal cleavages; electoral systems; parties and party systems; political representation and parliaments; interest groups; the formation, structure, stability and decision-making methods of national gov-ernments; the policy content and forms in a variety of policy sectors; the organization en political impact of the judiciary; forms of political and administrative (de-)centralization.
Each year a particular focus will be defined, depending on most recent innovative publications and relevance to understanding current events common to many Western democracies, for instance the rise of the populist right wing parties.

Content and teaching methods

This course offers a comparative overview of the major political decision-making actors, institutions, processes and contents of European countries in the post-war period. The following themes will be addressed: electoral behaviour and societal cleavages; electoral systems; parties and party systems; political representation and parliaments; interest groups; the formation, structure, stability and decision-making methods of national gov-ernments; the policy content and forms in a variety of policy sectors; the organization en political impact of the judiciary; forms of political and administrative (de-)centralization.

The courses are given "ex cathedra" but allowing for informal interaction between student and teacher. After the presentation of the theoretical approaches of each component of the political system, is presented a sub-stantial empirical part based on comparative research and practical examples, in order to develop the factual characteristics of political institutions, actors and processes in Western democracies.

Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

A keen interest in the politics of other countries, and a good passive knowledge of Eng-lish (reading and listening)

Oral exam with written preparation. International students can pas the exam in English, French, Italian and Dutch.

The teacher will provide for a reading list including the most recent and relevant theo-retical and empirical contributions to the different comparative politics subfields

LANE, J.-E., ERSSON, S., Politics and society in Western Europe, Sage, London, 2000
LIJPHART, A., Patterns of Democracy, Yale University Press, New Haven, 1999.
CASTLES, F., Comparative Public Policy, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, 1999