Since the third wave of democratization ended in the mid-1990s, authoritarian regimes have been on the rise, and their global economic weight is expected to surpass that of democracies in the coming years. Strongmen figures – such as Vladimir Putin or Xi Jinping – embody this authoritarian revival, yet they should not mask the complexity of these regimes and of their international interactions. This course aims to critically assess the growing impact of non-democratic regimes on world politics, the potential uniqueness of their foreign policies, and how they may challenge existing norms and orders.
During the first weeks, we will engage with the category of authoritarianism itself, as well as notions such as ‘autocratisation', ‘democratic backsliding', or ‘autocratic diffusion' to better grasp the diversity of the regimes and configurations at hand. We will then explore what drives the foreign policy of authoritarian regimes, highlighting how internal factors affect their foreign policy decisions. The remainder of the course's sessions will investigate different interactions between authoritarian regimes and the world, at the bilateral, multilateral, and transnational levels, and the forms of risk they may create. We will delve into issues such as the effects of economic sanctions, the reshaping of multilateral forums by autocratic states through institutional reform and coalition-building, the relationships between foreign aid or investments and political influence, soft power, transnational repression, or the use of digital technologies to upgrade surveillance capabilities at home and abroad.
Learning Outcomes
1. Develop an analytical perspective on the impact of authoritarian regimes on world politics.
2. Better grasp the diversity of authoritarian configurations and the type of local or international risks they may generate.
3. Being able to critically engage with the academic literature on global authoritarianism, drawing links between theories and concrete examples.
Professional Skills
- Develop the ability to pursue independent and creative research.
- Think strategically about political risk.
- Promote critical thinking through written work, group debate, and discussions.
- To be able to confidently work with pluri-disciplinary topics.
- Online learning activities: an online discussion group will be created to facilitate exchanges of views, as well as articles and other resources, outside the classroom. Each week, students will be expected to submit a short commentary (following a tweet format) about the readings on this online platform. These tweets will be used in class as a basis for discussion. ( approx. 1 hour a week)
- Reading and Preparation for Class: 3,5 hours a week
- Research and Preparation for Group Work (Oral presentation): approx. 20 hours a semester
- Research and Writing for Individual Assessments (Final essay): approx. 40 hours a semester
2. Oral presentation in groups (2-3 students) on a topic of your choice (linked with the week in question) selected in agreement with the lecturer. The exercise will be marked based on the oral presentation itself and a short outline (500 words) to be submitted within the week after the presentation taking into account potential feedback during the class (35% of the total grade).
3. A final individual essay on a topic related to the theme of the course and previously approved by the instructor. 2,000 words. (50% of the total grade).
- The course relies on a wide-ranging set of readings, including qualitative and quantitative research as well as both comparative studies of autocratic systems and country- or region-specific ones, rooting our discussions in concrete cases.
- Students will receive comments on their oral presentation from the group, which they should take into account when revising their presentation outline to be submitted within the following week. They will then receive written feedback from the instructor on the presentations.
- They will also receive written feedback on their final essays.