Political Parties in Comparative Perspective - JPM056

• Title: Political Parties in Comparative Perspective
• Guaranteed by: Department of Political Science (23-KP)
• Faculty: Faculty of Social Sciences
• Actual: from 2023
• Semester: winter
• E-Credits: 5
• Examination process: winter s.:
• Hours per week, examination: winter s.:2/0, Ex [HT]
• Capacity: unlimited / unknown (35)
• Min. number of students: unlimited
• 4EU+: no
• Virtual mobility / capacity: no
• State of the course: taught
• Language: English
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Teaching methods: full-time
• Note: course can be enrolled in outside the study plan; enabled for web enrollment; priority enrollment if the course is part of the study plan
• Guarantor: doc. PhDr. Miloš Brunclík, Ph.D.
• Teacher(s): doc. PhDr. Miloš Brunclík, Ph.D.
• Incompatibility : JPM574
• Is incompatible with: JPM574

Annotation

Last update: doc. PhDr. Miloš Brunclík, Ph.D. (12.09.2023)

The course is intended for master's level students. It is designed as a series of lectures about new types of political parties that are new/modern in organizational and ideological terms. The key distinction between "traditional" and "modern" as far as ideology (policies) is concerned is the theory by S. M. Lipset and S. Rokkan (1967). Political parties which do not fit in this distinction are considered as modern parties. These are, for example, left-wing libertarian parties, including Green parties and Pirate parties. Also included are the radical-right / left populist parties, and the Eurosceptic parties. The course also discusses other types of parties that are not essential from a practical (electoral) point of view but are important from a theoretical perspective. From the organizational point of view, the course covers some of organizational developments since the 1960s with regard to declining party membership, the growing importance of party leaders, the professionalization of party activities, etc. In this respect, for example, electoral-professional parties, cartel parties, business parties, cyber parties, etc. are presented.

Course completion requirements

Last update: doc. PhDr. Miloš Brunclík, Ph.D. (12.09.2023)

The course requirments are as follows:

1) Regular tests on a weekly basis reflecting readings allocated for each lecture. The tests take place on the Moodle on-line platform. The tests make 33 per cent of the final grade.

2) Final exam. The exam makes 67 per cent of the final grade.

3) In both regular tests and the final exam, students are required to obtained at least 51 per cent.

Literature

Last update: doc. PhDr. Miloš Brunclík, Ph.D. (12.09.2023)

Bickerton, Christopher a Carlo Invernizzi Accetti. 2017. Populism and technocracy: opposites or complements? Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy 20(2): 186-206.

Cowell‐Meyers, Kimberly. 2017. "The contagion effects of the feminist initiative in Sweden: Agenda‐setting, niche parties and mainstream parties." Scandinavian Political Studies 40(4): 481-493.

van Haute, Emilie, ed. 2016. Green parties in Europe (conclusion). Routledge.

Hooghe, Liesbet and Gary Marks. 2018. "Cleavage theory meets Europe’s crises: Lipset, Rokkan, and the transnational cleavage," Journal of European Public Policy 25(1): 109-135.

Hopkin, Jonathan, and Caterina Paolucci. 1999. "The business firm model of party organisation: Cases from Spain and Italy." European journal of political research 35(3): 307-339.

Ignazi, Piero. 2014. "Power and the (il) legitimacy of political parties: An unavoidable paradox of contemporary democracy?." Party Politics 20(2): 160-169.

Katz, Richard S. and Peter Mair. 1995. Changing models of party organization and party democracy: the emergence of the cartel party. Party Politics 1(1): 5-28.

Leconte, Cécile. 2015. From pathology to mainstream phenomenon: Reviewing the Euroscepticism debate in research and theory. International Political Science Review 36(3): 250 –263. 

Mudde, Cas. 2004. "The populist zeitgeist." Government and opposition 39(4): 541-563.

Otjes, Simon. 2020. "All on the same boat? Voting for pirate parties in comparative perspective." Politics 40(1): 38-53.

Rydgren, Jens. 2005. Is extreme right-wing populism contagious? Explaining the emergence of a new party family. European Journal of Political Research 44(3): 413-437.

Teaching methods

Last update: doc. PhDr. Miloš Brunclík, Ph.D. (05.10.2023)

The course is based on lectures and regular readings on a weekly basis on the Moodle platform (moodle.cuni.cz). During the lectures, students are encouraged to participate in a discussion.

Syllabus

Last update: doc. PhDr. Miloš Brunclík, Ph.D. (12.09.2023)

1. Introduction: the role of political parties in modern democracies
2. Origins of political parties
3. Party types (organisation)
4. Business-firm parties
5. Left-libertarian parties I
6. Left-libertarian parties II
7. Left-libertarian parties III
8. Populist parties
9. Radical-right wing populist parties
10. Populism, technocracy and democracy
11. Eurosceptical parties
12. Other parties - feminist parties, animal parties, joke parties.