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Comparative Political Systems
  • Level Foundation
  • المدة 11 ساعات hours
  • الطبع بواسطة Università di Napoli Federico II
  • Offered by

عن

Comparative politics covers a wide variety of topics and themes. The course starts with the definition of the comparative method giving special emphasis to concept formation and historical and institutional approaches. The bulk of the course is devoted to the theory of coalitions and the processes of government formation, functioning, termination. Through several in-depth analyses, the course will throw light on the way democratic regimes are governed. Electoral rules will receive special attention and their impact both on citizens’ behavior and parties and the party system will be thoroughly examined. The types of Parliaments, their structures and their role will be taken into consideration also in order to understand how they affect the formation of governing coalitions. Hence the dynamics and the transformation of those coalitions, with special attention to their more or less frequent rotation in office, will be explored and explained. The assets and the liabilities of the different institutional arrangements will be evaluated. The final part of the course will be devoted to an assessment of the quality of the different democratic regimes and to the proposals for change. The overall picture likely to emerge is that of the existence of several institutional solutions to the challenges and the problems of contemporary democracies.

الوحدات

Comparative politics and comparative method

    • 3 Videos
    • 3 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Comparative politics and comparative method

3 Videos

  • Comparative politics
  • Research methods
  • Comparative method

3 Readings

  • The world of comparative politics
  • Research methods
  • Comparative method

Political system and political community

    • 3 Videos
    • 6 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Political system and political community

3 Videos

  • Political System
  • Changing political community
  • The creation of a new community

6 Readings

  • Political System
  • The political community and its transformations
  • Changing political community
  • The Alsace-Lorraine question: a contested territory between France and Germany
  • The creation of new communities
  • A federal state: the United States of America

The authorities, recruitment, selection, circulation

    • 3 Videos
    • 9 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: The authorities, recruitment, selection, circulation

3 Videos

  • Political authority
  • Party leaders
  • Types of authority

9 Readings

  • The conceptual matrix of ‘Authority’
  • Political Authorities
  • Significant comparisons: Germany vs. United Kingdom (1945-2015)
  • Different methods of candidate selection and leadership election
  • Political authorities
  • Party leaders
  • What makes authority legitimate?
  • Charismatic authority
  • Rational-legal authority

Parliamentary democracies

    • 3 Videos
    • 6 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Parliamentary democracies

3 Videos

  • Political regime
  • Parliamentary regime
  • Government types

6 Readings

  • Introduction to political regimes
  • Political regimes across time and space
  • Parliamentarism
  • Parliamentary regime and types of government
  • Coalitions
  • Significant comparisons

Presidential democracies

    • 3 Videos
    • 4 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Presidential democracies

3 Videos

  • Presidential regime
  • Diffusion of presidentialism
  • Divided government

4 Readings

  • Parliamentary vs presidential regimes
  • Juan Linz’s critique
  • Diffusion of presidentialism and types of executive
  • Divided governments in presidential regimes

Semi-presidential democracies

    • 3 Videos
    • 4 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Semi-presidential democracies

3 Videos

  • Semi-presidential regime
  • Cohabitation
  • Presidents and Prime Ministers

4 Readings

  • What is Semi-presidentialism?
  • Constitutional system of semi-presidentialism
  • Cohabitation
  • Defining feature of Semi-presidential regime

Party Systems

    • 3 Videos
    • 5 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Party systems

3 Videos

  • Classifying party systems
  • Multi-party systems
  • Consequences of the electoral systems

5 Readings

  • Institutions, constitutions and political parties
  • A typology of party systems
  • Counting rules for political parties
  • The dynamics of party systems
  • Duverger’s “laws”

Electoral Systems

    • 3 Videos
    • 5 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Electoral Systems

3 Videos

  • Types of electoral system
  • Strategic voting
  • Power of the voter

5 Readings

  • Elections and electoral systems
  • Majoritarian electoral systems
  • Proportional electoral systems
  • Theory of individual voting
  • The power of the voter

Authoritarian regimes

    • 3 Videos
    • 5 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Authoritarian regimes

3 Videos

  • Authoritarian regimes
  • Varieties of authoritarian regimes
  • Waves of democratization

5 Readings

  • Authoritarian regimes
  • Varieties of authoritarian regimes /1
  • Varieties of authoritarian regimes /2
  • Three waves of democratization
  • The democratization process

Democracy and poliarchy

    • 3 Videos
    • 7 Readings
    • 1 Assignment
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1 Assignment

  • Challenge yourself: Democracy and poliarchy

3 Videos

  • Democratic consolidation
  • Types of democracy
  • Future of democracy

7 Readings

  • Democratic transition and consolidation
  • Electoral and Liberal democracies
  • Two patterns of democratic regimes
  • Majoritarian and Consensus democracies
  • Schumpeter’s definition of democracy
  • Dahl’s Poliarchy
  • The ‘wind’ of globalization

Auto Summary

Explore the intricacies of democratic governance with the "Comparative Political Systems" course. Ideal for personal development, this foundational course delves into the comparative method, government coalitions, and electoral rules. Through in-depth analyses, learners will understand parliamentary structures, coalition dynamics, and the quality of democratic regimes. Taught by experts on Coursera, the course spans 660 minutes and offers Starter and Professional subscription options, making it perfect for individuals seeking a comprehensive understanding of political systems.

Gianfranco Pasquino
Instructor

Gianfranco Pasquino