PSCI 4002 Sec. 001 & 002 – Western European Politics 1 Fall 2006 PSCI 4002 Sec. 001 & 002 Western European Politics Instructor: Lapo Salucci Department of Political Science Email: [email protected] Office Hours: Monday 3:00 – 6:00 pm and by appointment Office: Ketchum 21 Phone: (302) 492-1733 Class Schedule and location: MWF 11:00 AM - 11:50 AM KTCH – 234 (Sec. 001) MWF 9:00 AM - 9:50 AM KTCH – 234 (Sec. 002) I. Course Overview This course examines institutions, political economy and political change in selected countries of Western Europe. Also, part of the course will be devoted to the European Union, especially its institutional setting and its development. The course will illustrate the development of institutional structures in Western European countries and how those different institutional structures influenced policy issues, with a particular focus on welfare, labor markets and immigration. II. Course Requirements This is an upper division political science course and places a heavy emphasis on students’ participation and writing. Class attendance is strongly recommended. NOTE: repeated absence (more than 10%) may result in a low class participation grade. Students are therefore expected to attend all class sessions and complete the assigned readings prior to class. The final grade is based on participation, on a mid-term exam, a final project and a final exam; the grade is determined as follows: • Class participation: 20%. This grade will be determined by the students’ attendance and participation in the discussion sections. Students will be called randomly to answer questions of relevance to the class topics during the discussion sessions. I strongly encourage every student to participate actively in class; however, should you feel uncomfortable about speaking in front of your fellow classmates, you can email me questions and comments before each class. That will count toward your participation grade in the same way as in-class interaction. • Midterm Exam: 25%. The midterm exam will test students on their knowledge of the material covered in first part of the semester. It will have both a multiple-choice section and an essay/ID section. • Policy Brief: 30%. This assignment will test students on their ability to use the theoretical knowledge they acquired in a practical way. Students will produce a brief on a topic of their choice amongst the ones proposed in class or will propose a topic to the instructor. Proposals are due by Oct. 27. The purpose of the brief is to inform a political leader on the issue(s) at stake and to propose policy recommendations based on the students’ knowledge. The brief’s length should be between 10 and 12 pages. Further details on the brief’s format will be provided in class. • Final Exam: 25%. The final exam will test students on their knowledge of the material covered in the second part of the semester. It will have both a multiple-choice section and an essay/ID section. III. Readings Readings will include both books and articles. The following books are required (or optional where marked) for the class and are available for purchase at the UMC bookstore: • Gallagher, Laver and Mair, “Representative Government in Modern Europe” (4th edition), McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages, 2005 (REQUIRED) • Buchanan, “Europe's Troubled Peace 1945-2000”, Blackwell Publishers, 2006 (OPTIONAL) Assigned articles and book chapters are listed in the course schedule.PSCI 4002 Sec. 001 & 002 – Western European Politics 2 IV. Class Schedule Part I: Institutions Week #1: Introduction Mon. Aug. 28 Class description & Introduction to topics No readings Wed. Aug. 30 Introduction on Institutions Class Notes / Presentation Fri. Sep. 1 Evolution of Political Systems in Europe – Europe in the 20th Century Gallagher et al, Ch. 1, pp. 6 – 22 Week #2: The Executive Mon. Sep. 4 Labor Day: No Class Wed. Sep. 6 Presidential and Parliamentary Governments I Gallagher et al, Ch. 2, pp. 24 – 34 Fri. Sep. 8 Presidential and Parliamentary Governments II Gallagher et al., Ch. 2, pp. 35 – 55 Week #3: Parliaments Mon. Sep. 11 Parliaments & Governments Gallagher et al., Ch. 3, pp. 57 – 69 Wed. Sep. 13 The Role of Parliaments Gallagher et al., Ch. 3, pp. 70 – 82 Fri. Sep. 15 Discussion Week #4: The European Union Mon. Sep. 18 EU's Institutional Structure Gallagher et al., Ch. 5, pp. 115 – 137 Wed. Sep. 20 EU's Policies Gallagher et al., Ch. 5, pp. 138 – 150 Fri. Sep. 22 Discussion Week #5: Cleavage Structures Mon. Sep 25PSCI 4002 Sec. 001 & 002 – Western European Politics 3 Origins of Cleavages Class Notes / Presentation Wed. Sep. 27 Modern Cleavages Gallagher et al., Ch.9, pp. 263 - 297 Fri. Sep. 29 Discussion Week #6: Parties in W. Europe Mon. Oct. 2 Party Families Gallagher et al, Ch. 8, pp. 230 – 260 Wed. Oct. 4 Evolution of Parties Bartolini (Web Link) Fri. Oct. 6 Discussion Week #7: Parties & Electoral Systems Mon. Oct. 9 Types of Electoral Systems Gallagher et al, Ch. 11, pp. 340 – 362 Wed. Oct. 11 Representation & Political Outcomes Gallagher et al, Ch. 11, pp. 363 – 377 Fri. Oct. 13 In-Class Midterm Exam Week #8: European Politics in Practice Mon. Oct. 16 Simulation: Introduction Instructions: see website and/or handout Wed. Oct. 18 Simulation: Part I Fri. Oct. 20 Simulation: Part II & Discussion Week #9: Institutions & Parties Wrap-up Mon. Oct. 23 Choice of Electoral Systems Norris, P., "Choosing Electoral Systems: Proportional, Majoritarian and Mixed Systems", International Political Science Review (1997), Vol. 18, N. 3, 297-312 Wed. Oct. 25 Electoral Systems in Historical Perspective Class Notes / Presentation Fri. Oct. 27PSCI 4002 Sec. 001 & 002 – Western European Politics 4 Discussion Policy Brief Proposal Deadline Part III: Topics Week #10: Demographic Change Mon. Oct. 30 The Ageing Bomb European Demographic Data Sheet 2006 (Link) Wed. Nov. 1 The Future of Europe's Population Vienna Institute of Demography: European Demographic Report - Trends (Link) Fri. Nov. 3 Discussion & Comparison with the US Week #11: Migration Mon. Nov. 6 Immigration Trends Boswell, C., "Migration in Europe", Global Commission on International Migration, September 2005 (Link) Wed. Nov. 8 Integration & Social Tension "A Muslim in Europe?", The Atlantic Monthly, January/February 2005. Leiken, R., "Europe's Angry