Last modified: 25 Oct 2023 12:16
This course offers a broad introduction to the changing nature of why countries become and stay democratic and to the problems of putting democracy into practice in today’s world. The module introduces to the process of conducting empirical research by introducing the nature, limitations and possible applications of different analytical tools, and research methods including simple quantitative analysis.
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session | Second Sub Session | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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One or more of these courses have a limited number of places. Priority access will be given to students for whom this course is compulsory. Please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions for more details on this process.
The study of politics frequently focuses on explanation – what are the causes and/or consequences of features of the political world? It is not enough to know that a country has a president or a prime minister, or that it is a democracy or an autocracy. Rather, when engaging in the study of politics, we are often concerned with understanding why this is true and/or what the consequences are. Increasingly, people around the world seem to agree that democracy is the only legitimate and feasible form of government. But what exactly does ‘democracy’ mean? This course offers a broad introduction to the changing nature of why countries become and stay democratic and to the problems of putting democracy into practice in today’s world. The module introduces to the process of conducting empirical research by introducing the nature, limitations and possible applications of different analytical tools, and research methods including simple quantitative analysis. This course explores contemporary empirical research on democratization in an effort to answer the question: can democracy and democratization be studied ‘scientifically’? In addition, it re-emphasizes how researchers in PIR go about defining research questions and how apply empirical evidence to study them.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 39 | Feedback Weeks | 39 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback using standardised feedback form. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Procedural | Analyse | Analyzing fundamental problems of the relationship between society and the state |
| Procedural | Apply | Applying key concepts to the study and practice of democracy in empirical research |
| Procedural | Evaluate | Critically evaluate previous empirical research on democracy and democratization |
| Procedural | Understand | Learning analytical tools and research methods of comparative politics and international relations |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 35 | Feedback Weeks | 38 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback using standardised feedback form. |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Procedural | Analyse | Analyzing fundamental problems of the relationship between society and the state |
| Procedural | Apply | Applying key concepts to the study and practice of democracy in empirical research |
| Procedural | Evaluate | Critically evaluate previous empirical research on democracy and democratization |
| Procedural | Understand | Learning analytical tools and research methods of comparative politics and international relations |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 50 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 31 | Feedback Weeks | 34 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback using standardised feedback form. |
Word Count | 4000 | |
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Procedural | Analyse | Analyzing fundamental problems of the relationship between society and the state |
| Procedural | Apply | Applying key concepts to the study and practice of democracy in empirical research |
| Procedural | Evaluate | Critically evaluate previous empirical research on democracy and democratization |
| Procedural | Understand | Learning analytical tools and research methods of comparative politics and international relations |
There are no assessments for this course.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback | ||||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
|
|
||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Procedural | Evaluate | Critically evaluate previous empirical research on democracy and democratization |
| Procedural | Understand | Learning analytical tools and research methods of comparative politics and international relations |
| Procedural | Analyse | Analyzing fundamental problems of the relationship between society and the state |
| Procedural | Apply | Applying key concepts to the study and practice of democracy in empirical research |
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