00895 - Political Science (A-E)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student will acquire a basic knowledge of the main approaches developed within the discipline for the analysis of political phenomena; will know the conceptual and theoretical tools for the study and understanding of political processes and institutions; will learn how to analyse the main aspects of the functioning of political systems in a comparative perspective.

Course contents

Topics that will be analyzed in the course are the following: the scientific study of politics; scope and meaning of "comparative politics"; the modern state and the first democratization; transitions to democracy; varieties of democracy; authoritarian and "hybrid" regimes; the problems of collective decision-making processes; elections and electoral systems; social cleavages and party systems; how governments form in parliamentary, presidential and mixed democracies; the institutional architecture of democracies between centralization and territorial decentralization; majoritarian and consensual models of democracy. Particular attention will then be dedicated to the Italian case, with a specific focus on the 2022 general elections (election results, competition and electoral space, economic marginality and ideology).

A series of insights will be offered during the course. A number of student presentations will be organised on the selected topics. Further details will be provided at the beginning of the lectures.

Readings/Bibliography

Clark, William Roberts, Golder Matt e Golder Nadenichek Sona, Principles of Comparative Politics, McGraw Hill 2017 (third edition). Approximately chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10 (excluding section 10.3), 11, 12 (excluding section 12.5), 13 (excluding sections 13.1 and 13.3), 14, 15 (excluding sections 15.3 and 15.4), and 16 (only section 16.1).

Foreign students are invited to contact the teacher at the beginning of the course to discuss about the programme.

Teaching methods

The course is structured in 30 lessons of two hours each, each devoted to a specific topic. Attendance is not compulsory, but strongly recommended. Slides will be used to supplement frontal teaching. Students are encouraged to read the chapters before class.

Assessment methods

For attending students, there are two written exams (intermediate or partial examinations), one in the middle of the course on the first part of the syllabus and one at the end of the course on the second part of the syllabus.

Each exam is divided into two parts. The first part is a test with 10 multiple-choice questions. The second part consists of answering two open-ended questions. The multiple-choice questions are worth 1.8 points each, and the open-ended questions are worth a maximum of 6 points each. The grade for each exam is expressed on a scale of thirty. The final grade is determined by the average of the passing grades (18/30) obtained in the two exams (rounded up). Those who scored 30 in both exams will receive 30 with honours as their final grade. The duration of each written test is 45 minutes. Details regarding the exams will be specified at the beginning of the course. While the program guidelines remain unchanged, both exams for attendees will be based on the content actually covered in class.

Attending students will also have the opportunity to deepen some of the course topics through a series of presentations. The marks from the presentations (max 2 points) will be added to those from the written exams. Further details will be provided at the beginning of the course.

The outcome of the two written exams and the presentation will determine the overall mark.

Those who fail to pass one of the two intermediate examinations will have to take a written test on the part of the program in which they did not achieve a passing grade, on the dates set for the exam sessions, following the same format as the intermediate tests.

The passing grades obtained in the intermediate exams will remain valid until the September 2025 session, inclusive, that is, until the last session of the current academic year.

Those who fail to pass both intermediate examinations will have to take the exam on the entire program for attending students on the dates set for the exam sessions. The exam consists of 20 multiple-choice questions and two open-ended questions. The multiple-choice questions are worth 0.8 points each, and the open-ended questions are worth a maximum of 7.5 points each. The grade is expressed out of 30. Honours will be awarded to students who achieve a score of 31. The duration of the exam is 60 minutes.

Attendance will be monitored in class. Students who attend at least 75% of the lectures and both intermediate examinations during the course will be considered to have attended.

For non-attending students, the written exam focuses on the entire syllabus and includes a test with 20 multiple-choice questions (0.8 points for each) and two open-ended questions (up to 4 points for each). Non-attending students will also have to answer an additional open-ended question (up to 7 points) on the supplementary chapters of the book about the 2022 political elections. The final grade is expressed in thirtieths. Honours will be awarded to students who achieve a score of 31. The duration of the exam is 80 minutes.

The grade can only be withheld once.

All students are free to opt for the exam on the entire syllabus.

Teaching tools

The slides and other teaching materials will be available on the platform Virtuale. The lecture slides are an integral part of the syllabus for attending students.

Office hours

See the website of Nicola Maggini