Issues in Authoritarian Politics POLITIC4187

  • Academic Session: 2024-25
  • School: School of Social and Political Sciences
  • Credits: 20
  • Level: Level 4 (SCQF level 10)
  • Typically Offered: Either Semester 1 or Semester 2
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No

Short Description

The course looks in-depth at research on one or two issues of contemporary importance in the study of authoritarian politics (e.g. opposition politics, one-party politics, propaganda/censorship, repression etc but will vary year on year). The course will explore how scholars do research in authoritarian contexts and how to read and engage with academic and policy work beyond a surface level.

Timetable

Seminar: two hours per week, for 10 weeks

Requirements of Entry

Entry to Honours Politics requires a grade point average of 12 (Grade C) over Politics 2A and Politics 2B as a first attempt.

Excluded Courses

None

Co-requisites

None

Assessment

Two referee reports' (750 words each) - 40%

Students will prepare peer-review reports about published academic articles or working papers written on authoritarian politics.

Essay (2500 words) - 60%

Are reassessment opportunities available for all summative assessments? Not applicable for Honours courses

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. Where, exceptionally, reassessment on Honours courses is required to satisfy professional/accreditation requirements, only the overall course grade achieved at the first attempt will contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

Course Aims

The aim of the course is to give students a better understanding of how research in authoritarian politics, and political science more broadly, is done by delving into one or two topics in detail over the course of the term. By closely reading and unpacking a small number of academic works each week, students will have the opportunity to better understand what research is, how to do it and how to engage with it. Students will be exposed to a number of research methods and gain a better handle on how to understand and critique them.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ Analyse topics of contemporary importance in authoritarian politics

■ Propose and formulate ideas for research on the issue of focus in authoritarian politics

■ Assess the research design of scholarly work on authoritarian politics

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.