Political Systems and Dilemmas of Western Democracies 2751-IP-S2-2-PSD

https://moodle.umk.pl/course/view.php?id=5613

This course offers an in-depth exploration of the functioning, challenges, and transformations of contemporary Western democracies. It introduces students to key theoretical frameworks and institutional models of democratic governance, drawing on the classical works on the one hand (like e.g. by Robert Dahl and Arend Lijphart), and the newest literature, analysis and data.
Through a combination of lectures, workshops, and debates, students examine how democratic systems operate, the ways in which they diverge across contexts, and the pressures they currently face—from democratic backsliding and populism to polarisation, rule of law crises, and digital media disruption. The course also addresses questions of political participation, party systems, and the evolving relationship between national sovereignty and European integration.
Interactive components include mapping threats to democracy, analysing case studies, and simulating debates on the future of the European Union. By the end of the course, students will have developed both a conceptual understanding of democratic systems and a critical awareness of the dilemmas confronting them in the 21st century.

Całkowity nakład pracy studenta

participation in the classes - 30 hours consultations with the teacher 5 hours preparation for the classes 10 hours preparation of the presentations - 10 hours preparation for the group discussion 10 hours preparation for the quiz 10 hours

Efekty uczenia się - wiedza

Student: K_W02 The graduate has systematic knowledge about political and international relations. K_W05 The graduate has in-depth knowledge about internal and external relations in Europe, especially about the EU. K_W07 The graduate has in-depth knowledge about the rights of the individual and communities on the international arena.

Efekty uczenia się - umiejętności

Student: K_U01 is 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/entities. K_U02 is able to describe political, economic and social processes in international relations. K_U03 is able to identify argumentation strategies applied in social sciences, also with the use of ICT tools. K_U04 is able to use the social sciences knowledge in order to describe and analyse international problems. K_U05 is able to coherently discuss international issues, using the achievements of political science and security studies (at the B2+ level or higher). K_U06 is able to plan and lead the team work. K_U07 is able to plan and implement the self-study process, both for himself/ herself and other persons.

Efekty uczenia się - kompetencje społeczne

Student: K_K02 correctly identifies and solves moral and ethical problems related to their work and is ready for professional development. K_K03 is ready for professional challenges and willingly undertakes them; K_K04 is ready to participate in the preparation and realisation of social projects, also in the context of international cooperation. K_K05 is able to think and act in an entrepreneurial and creative manner

Metody dydaktyczne podające

- wykład konwersatoryjny

Metody dydaktyczne poszukujące

- panelowa
- referatu
- giełda pomysłów
- stolików eksperckich
- klasyczna metoda problemowa
- ćwiczeniowa
- okrągłego stołu

Rodzaj przedmiotu

przedmiot obligatoryjny

Wymagania wstępne

Good command of English

Koordynatorzy przedmiotu

Maria Wincławska

Kryteria oceniania

Requirements:
• Attending the class – attendance is obligatory. The student may be absent twice during the semester (regardless of the reason),
• Being prepared for the class, reading the articles, doing homework, including presentations on the given topic (20%)
• Actively participating in class assignments and class discussions (20%)
• Preparing presentations, working in a group and presenting group work (20%)
• End of the semester quizz (40%)

Literatura

Dahl Robert A. (1998). On Democracy, Yale University Press, pp. 35-43
Zsolt Enyedi (2024). Concept and Varieties of Illiberalism, Politics and Governance, Volume 12 (open access).
Carrión Julio F. (2025). Populism and Democracy: What We Know and Don’t Know, Political Science Quarterly (online first)
Wellings Ben (2023) Nationalism and European disintegration. Nations and Nationalism, 29, pp. 1164–1178.
Weiss Julia (2020). What Is Youth Political Participation? Literature Review on Youth Political Participation and Political Attitudes, Frontiers in Political Science, vol. 2, art. 1,
Bernhard, Michael, Allen Hicken, Christopher Reenock, and Staffan I. Lindberg, (2020). “Parties, Civil Society, and the Deterrence of Democratic Defection.” Studies in Comparative International Development, 55: 1-26
Lijphart Arend (2012). Patterns of Democracy, Yale University Press.
Curtice John, Marta Mezzanzanica and Katy Bailey (2025). Politics and social media: Scrolling politics -engagement, trust and polarisation in the digital age https://natcen.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2025-06/bsa-42-%7C-politics-and-social-media-1679.pdf
Additional Literature:
Bernard Crick (2002), Democracy. A very short introduction, Oxford.
Andrew Heywood (2012), Essentials of UK politics, New York.
Peter Joyce (2015), Politics. A complete introduction, London.
Steven Levitsky & Daniel Ziblatt (2017), How Democracies Die.
Ian Ward, Randal Swasand (2010), Politics One, South Yarra.
James Wilson (2012), American government, Wadsworth.

Więcej informacji

Dodatkowe informacje (np. o kalendarzu rejestracji, prowadzących zajęcia, lokalizacji i terminach zajęć) mogą być dostępne w serwisie USOSweb:

Strona przedmiotu 2751-IP-S2-2-PSD w USOSweb