DSPO 25A76 - Populism and democracy in comparative perspective

Populism has become a widely debated and well-researched theme. The term is often ill- defined and used in a pejorative manner, contributing to misconceptions and inaccurate interpretations of what is populism and, more importantly, what it is not. The course will introduce participants to an extensive conceptual, theoretical and empirical scholarship on populism. This will provide participants with a more precise understanding of the con- cept and allow for consideration of the various ways we can examine populism. Building on this, the course discusses instances of populism in various contexts and reflects on the ambivalent relationship between populism and democracy. Throughout this discussion, the course explicitly takes a comparative approach and relies both on quantitative and qual- itative analyses in support of its discussions. Special attention will be paid to the core features of populism, such as anti-elitism and popular sovereignty, as well as its causes and consequences for democratic functioning. In a time of increasing challenges to the core components of representative democracy, this course provides an introduction to populism in theory and practice, employing an increas- ingly consensual ideational approach to populism. It introduces participants to an extensive conceptual debate, historical and current populist forces, their characteristics, causes and consequences, as well as the often-ambivalent relationship between populism and democracy.

Steven VAN HAUWAERT

Séminaire

English

It would be highly beneficial if students have taken core courses of political science or comparative politics.

Spring 2024-2025

The final grade is composed of the following three components: A coding exercise (30%) and an assigned populist leadership profile (70%).