Comparative Institutions and Public Policy

Module Description

The aim of this module is to enable students to develop an advanced understanding of central questions in the comparative analysis of political institutions around the world. Students will examine most important institutional configurations across political systems, namely electoral rules, party systems, parliamentary vs. presidential government, models of public administration, federal institutions and models of welfare provision.

As students engage with the operation and function of key political institutions, they will also be introduced to some of the most interesting questions and current debates within comparative politics. These include the analysis of the consequences of institutional configurations for government performance and political stability, the definition of democratic vs. authoritarian systems and the challenges for democratic governance under regional integration. To do so, it will develop comparisons across a broad range of countries that will include long-established western democracies as well as newer democracies.

Module Objectives

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• Understand key institutional differences between political systems
• Analyse the implications of different institutional configurations for democratic governance and political stability
• Identify most important differences and similarities between models of welfare provision
• Understand key issues in the debate on democracy as well as on its challenges under globalisation

Academic and graduate skills developed:

• Communication skills – present clear and cogent arguments in both written and oral forms
• Interpersonal skills - through team exercises and case studies
• Research skills - especially using primary sources from international organizations and governments databases, as well as secondary sources.

Preliminary Reading

Bara, Judith, and Mark Pennington. Comparative Politics : Explaining Democratic Systems.  Los Angeles ; London: SAGE, 2009.

Boix, C., & Stokes, S. C. (Eds.). (2007). The Oxford handbook of comparative politics. Oxford Handbooks Online.

Caramani, Daniele. Comparative Politics.  Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.

Castles, Francis G. The Oxford Handbook of the Welfare State.  Oxford England ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.

Clark, William Roberts, Matt Golder, and Sona Nadenichek Golder. Principles of Comparative Politics. 2nd ed.  Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2013.

Drogus, Carol Ann, and Stephen Walter Orvis. Introducing Comparative Politics: Concepts and Cases in Context. 2nd ed.  Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2012.

O'Neil, Patrick H., Karl J. Fields, and Donald Share. Cases in Comparative Politics. 4th ed.  New York ; London: W. W. Norton, 2013.

Assessment

Participants will be expected to undertake one non-assessed essay plan of no more than 1000 words and an assessed essay of 4,000 words. The summative essay is to be submitted to the VLE, by 16:00 on Monday of Week 1 in the Spring Term.