Psychological and Sociological Aspects of Politics 2751-KONJA-PSAP

List of topics for the course:

1. Concepts of politics in common sense and science
2. Relations between psychology, sociology and political science
3. Values in politics. Problem of justice and equity
4. Political stability and change
5. Globalization and world as a system. Contemporary global challenges
6. Public opinion and democratic process
7. Political elites
8. Political leadership
9. Personality in politics
10. Psychology of political decision-making – the problem of rationality in politics
11. Political and social conflict
12. Political culture
13. Legitimization of political systems
14. Social trust and social dilemmas
15. Social inequalities

Total student workload

Excersises: Contact hours with teacher: 15 h – Classes Self-study hours: 25 h – Additional literature reading, 10 h – preparation for the presentation, 25 h – Preparation for the exam Total: 75 h (3 ECTS) Lecture: Contact hours with teacher: 15 h – Lecture Self-study hours: 10 h – Additional literature reading, 25 h – Preparation for the exam Total: 50 h (2 ECTS)

Learning outcomes - knowledge

Excersises: W1: - has profound knowledge about the objective and methodological character of international politics and their interdisciplinary specificity related to political science and security studies Lecture: W1: - profound knowledge about the objective and methodological character of international politics and their interdisciplinary specificity related to political science and security studies W2: - detailed knowledge about international relations affecting security

Learning outcomes - skills

Excersises: U1: - able to search for, select, analyse and process information from written and electronic sources, and interpret it in terms of problems in international operations of different subjects U2: - can describe political, economic and social processes in international relations U3: - exploits the social sciences knowledge to describe and analyse international problems U4: - is able to plan and implement self-studying,proces both for himself/ herself and others

Teaching methods

- problem lecture - presentation - discussion - inscenization

Observation/demonstration teaching methods

- staging

Expository teaching methods

- problem-based lecture

Exploratory teaching methods

- Oxford
- presentation of a paper

Online teaching methods

- exchange and discussion methods

Type of course

elective course

Course coordinators

Wiktor Szewczak

Assessment criteria

Assessment of presentation (30%) – U1, U3, U4
Grading activity during classes (30%) – W1, U2, U3
Participation in debates (40%) - U1, U3, U4
Oral exam of essay questions (optionally) : 3 questions – W1, W2, U1, U2, U3
Assessment: each answer will be assessed in the scale of 0-10 points (total for 3 questions – from 0 to 30 points)
Range of points for the proper marks:
0-14,5 pts - unsatisfactory (2)
15-18 pts - satisfactory (3)
18,5-20,5 pts - satisfactory plus (3+)
21-24 pts - good (4)
24,5-26,5 pts - good plus (4+)
27-30 pts - very good (5)

Practical placement

n.a.

Bibliography

B.A. Dobratz, L.K. Waldner and T. Buzzell, Power, Politics, and Society: An Introduction to Political Sociology, Routledge, New York – London 2012.
K. Nash, Contemporary Political Sociology. Globalization, Politics, and Power, Wiley – Blackwell Publishing, Southern Gate 2010.
M. Cottam, B. Dietz-Uhler, E. Mastors and T. Preston, Introduction to Political Psychology, Lawrence Erblaum Associates, Mahwah (NJ) 2004.
Political Psychology. A Social Psychological Approach, ed. by Ch.J. Hewer and E. Lyons, Wiley and Sons, Hoboken – Southern Gate 2018.
Political Psychology. Key Readings, ed. by J.T. Jost and J. Sidanius, Psychology Press, New York and Hove 2004.
The Oxford Handbook of Political Behavior, ed. by R.J. Russell and H.-D. Klingemann, Oxford University Press, Oxford – New York 2007.
The Oxford Handbook of Political Psychology, ed. by L. Huddy, D.O. Sears and J.S. Levy, Oxford University Press, Oxford – New York 2013.

Additional information

Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system:

Description of 2751-KONJA-PSAP in USOSweb