Democratic Theories and Institutions

Recommended Prerequisites

- Fluency in English

- Knowledge of research tools and techniques in humanities and social sciences

- Knowledge of techniques and styles of academic writing.  

Teaching Methods

Classes include the lecture, debate and teaching, and learning methods to foster interaction. Students are expected to participate with substantial and elaborate interventions, demonstrating their capacity to incorporate their knowledge (empirical/theorical) and present well-structured and synthetic arguments. Students must attend at least 80% of the classes and justify absences. 

Learning Outcomes

What is democracy? Where does the idea come from? Can democracy be justified and, if so, on what grounds? What are its limits? How does it differ in scales and regions? This unit aims at exploring these and other questions which lie at the heart of democratic theory, thus critically reflecting on democratic practices. The students should know and critically analyse the democratic theory and institutions by focusing on the contemporary debate. This unit is divided into three blocks which aim to: (1) trace the most important conceptual theories of democracy and its transformations; (2) look at critical positions and conceptual innovations that called into question the mainstream of democratic theory; (3) scrutinize concrete contexts in which democratic theories have been tested, while exploring different scales of democracy and their main institutions. Crosscutting the main content, the course provides methodological insights necessary in the field.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

The course combines theoretical and methodological knowledge through a student-centred, participatory approach. Student engagement is extremely important and students are expected to appropriately prepare and contribute to each lecture with informed, topical and stimulating interventions. The course fosters process of peer review and mutual learning aimed at classify, condense and discern both the course contents and scientific methodology. The topic discussed along the semester include: What Is Democratic Theory; Classical Theories of Democracy and the Main Conceptualizations of Democracy; Historical Development of Democratic Theories; Formal Theories of Democracy; Constitutionalism; Citizenship, Migrations and Borders; Parties, Populism and Emotions; Innovation and Democracy; The Crises of Democracy; Democracy and Political Representation; Democracy in the South; Cosmopolitanism and Human Rights; Postcolonial Democratisation; Socialist Institutions and Theories.

Head Lecturer(s)

Cristiano Gianolla

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Periodic or by final exam as given in the course information: 100.0%

Bibliography

Avritzer, L. (2019).The Two Faces of Institutional Innovation: Promises and Limits of Democratic Participation in Latin America. Edward Elgar

Bächtiger, A., Dryzek, J. S., Mansbridge, J., & Warren, M. E. (Eds).(2018). The Oxford Handbook of Deliberative Democracy. OxfordUP

Bobbio, N. (1987). The Future of Democracy: A Defence of the Rules of the Game. UMinnesotaP

Dahl R. A. (1998), On democracy. YaleUP

Freire, A., Barragán, M., Coller, X., Lisi, M., & Tsatsanis, E. (Eds). (2020). Political Representation in Southern Europe and Latin America: Before and After the Great Recession and the Commodity Crisis. Routledge

Held D. (2006), Models of Democracy. Polity

Chatterjee, P. (2011). Lineages of Political Society: Studies in Postcolonial Democracy. ColumbiaUP

Oloruntoba, S. O., & Falola, T. (Eds). (2017). The Palgrave Handbook of African Politics, Governance and Development. Palgrave

Santos, B. de S., & Mendes, J. M. (Eds). (2020). Demodiversity: Toward Post-Abyssal Democracies. Routledge.