Challenges to Democracy (Winter term 26/27)
Content
The seminar seeks to analyse the current challenges democratic regimes face. It is structured along two main blocks. The first block concerns "Conceptualization and description of democratic backsliding". In the first session of the block, we will learn what (the quality of) democracy entails. Thereafter, the second session deals with measuring democracy and understanding what leads to its survival. The third session consists of a role play introducing the concept of democratic backsliding. In the final (short) session of the day, we will discuss an institutional attack on the Supreme Court as a form of institutional backsliding.
The second block revolves around the "Causes of and solutions to democratic backsliding". The first session will zoom in on the role of democratic norms and citizen's willingness to defend them. The second session takes a supply-side view, reviewing the role of propaganda for democratic backsliding. The third session will look into potential cures to democratic backsliding, focusing on the role of reducing polarization in society. At the end of the second block, students introduce their research proposal for a term paper to receive feedback from their peers in term paper workshops.
You can download the most recent version of the syllabus here.The seminar is held as an online block seminar. It consists of an introductory session on 4 November 2026 (14:00-16:00), and two full-day blocks on 07 and 21 January 2027.