Face-to-face , second term, 30 hours of theory.

Second term
Monday from 17:15 to 19:15 at 43 Botanique 3

French

This introductory course aims at providing the students with a good overview of contemporary political sociology, of its main issues and currents of thought. The great authors and paradigms of this sub-discipline of sociology, which is closely connected to political science, will be dealt with. For each sub-field of political sociology, classic works and contemporary studies will be presented and analysed in some detail.

For the Bachelor in Law :

For the Bachelor in Information and Communication :

For the Bachelor in Philosophy :

For the Bachelor in Political Sciences: General :

For the Bachelor in Political Sciences: General (Evening Programme) :

For the Bachelor in Sociology and Anthropology :

None

After a general introduction on what makes political sociology a hybrid discipline, which uses the sociological method to study political phenomena, the course is divided into three main parts, in order to give a good overview of classic and contemporary works:
1) The State as the framework in which political interactions take form (includes a critical discussion of weberian and marxist sociology)
2) Individual and collective political actors (includes a discussion of political socialisation, elite theories, interest groups, etc.)
3) Political action (voting behaviour, collective action, etc)
Among the issues analysed in class are: State and the market, interest groups and political parties, the determinants of voting behaviour, political socialisation, deliberative democracy...

Lecture with Powerpoint presentation. The active participation of students is most welcome. A course syllabus is made available at the start of the second term. While it contains an outline and brief summaries of the topics covered, much of the theoretical discussion and case study examples will not be included. Class attendance course is therefore strongly recommended.

Furthermore, students are required to read a book (or several articles) in political sociology. Each year, a new list of readings (or book) is selected by the lecturer, and is part of the material to be studied for the exam.

The written examination includes two types of questions:
1) one question on the required readings (book or articles)
2) several questions on the course material itself (theories, authors, historical facts, etc.).

Students are required to read a book (or several articles) in political sociology. Each year, a new list of readings (or book) is selected by the lecturer, and is part of the material to be studied for the exam. References for further reading are included in the syllabus, for information only.