Political Institutions and Leadership, Essay

The
student understands the central features of political decision-making and those
institutions where political decisions are taken. The student is familiar with
different political systems and with comparative research about these regimes.
The student also understands the key properties of democracy and the specific
features of political leadership.

Political
decision-making and political institutions; democracy; political leadership;
political systems and comparison of political systems.

An essay is an extended piece of (academic) writing on a particular topic or theme that you carefully analyze. You must always contact the responsible teacher of the study unit before starting to write the essay. With the responsible teacher you should discuss and agree on the theme and scope of the essay, the book(s) it will compensate for, and its length. Furthermore, the examiner must approve the bibliography before you can start writing. Citations, references and the bibliography need to be marked and listed in accordance with good scientific practice (see further instructions from the Politics’ Guide to Writing Academic Papers).

You can find the Guide to Writing Academic Papers here (detailed instructions for writing essays on page 7).

Compulsory Prerequisites

• Introduction to Political Science, POL.102, 5 cr

McCormick, Hague & Harrop, Comparative Government and Politics. 11th edition. Palgrave Macmillan 2019 (3 ECTS)

or

Laing, Political Leadership: An Introduction. Palgrave Macmillan 2021 (3 ECTS)

and

Dalton, Farrell & McAllister, Political Parties and Democratic Linkage. How Parties Organize Democracy. Oxford University Press 2011 (2 ECTS)

or

Held, Models of Democracy. 3rd edition. Stanford University Press 2006 (2 ECTS).

General scale, 0-5

• YHTOPPIOAY Social Studies for Subject Teachers, Open University Studies