ATS2856 · Populism and the crisis of democracy

Overview

This unit will provide you with an understanding of one of the defining political phenomena of our times – populism. Several of the most prominent and controversial leaders, parties and movements of recent years have been labelled as 'populist’ – but what does populism actually mean? Why is it so controversial? What unites populists of different ideological stripes across the world? What explains its success and failures? And is populism ultimately a threat or corrective to democracy? To answer these questions, this unit will familiarise you with cutting-edge debates on populism and examine a truly global array of case studies of the phenomenon. Organised over three central sections, you will first examine the historical background and theoretical underpinnings of populism; in the second section, you will analyse populism in different regional settings across the globe; and in the third you will explore populism's broader relationship to ideology, media and democracy in the 21st century. Overall, this unit will help you make sense of populism both in theory and practice.

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook does not list a final examination among the assessment items. That is not a guarantee there is none.

Within semester assessment: 100%

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.

Learning outcomes

1. critically analyse different conceptualisations of populism in the political science literature;
2. identify and analyse key cases of populist actors, parties and movements across a variety of regional, ideological and historical settings;
3. apply different conceptualisations of populism in order to operationalise or ‘measure’ populism;
4. identify supply and demand side explanations for populist success, and apply them to empirical cases;
5. engage with and articulate a position on the relationships between populism, ideology, media and democracy in high-quality academic written expression.

Workload

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.