GV383-6-SP-CO:
German Politics
2020/21
Government
Colchester Campus
Spring
Undergraduate: Level 6
Current
Sunday 17 January 2021
Friday 26 March 2021
15
06 January 2021
Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
The aim of this module is to provide a profound understanding of contemporary German politics. For this purpose, the course will give a brief overview over Germany’s post-war political development. We will examine, in particular, the role of political culture and political institutions as determinants of successful democratization.
The course sheds light on general trends and developments that Germany shares with other countries, such as the increasing fluidity of electoral preferences, the fragmentation of the party system, and the increasing use of referenda. At the same time, the course outlines and discusses some of the more distinct features of the German case, such as its mixed-member proportional electoral system, patterns of coalition formation, and the role of the second chamber and the Constitutional Court as veto-players. Apart from that, the course highlights critical policy issues and current challenges including Germany’s role in the European Union as well as economic, environmental, and immigration policies.
To provide students with a thorough knowledge and understanding of German Politics
At the end of this module, students should understand:
• contemporary German politics
• Germany’s political culture and institutions
• the importance of specific policies in Germany
• the current challenges the country is facing
No additional information available.
This module will be delivered with (i) a weekly pre-recorded lecture and (ii) a weekly interactive lecture. The pre-recorded lecture will consist of one or more items of prepared content that students can access electronically and must study before the interactive lecture. The interactive lecture will consist of one 50-minute lecture in which students can ask questions about, and discuss various aspects of, the prepared content with the module supervisor.
- Alister Miskimmon. (2012) 'Citizenship and demographics: (Still) a country of immigration?', in The politics of the new Germany, Abingdon: Routledge., pp.115-135
- Debus, Marc; Müller, Jochen. (2013) 'Do Voters’ Coalition Preferences Affect Government Formation?', in West European Politics. vol. 36 (5) , pp.1007-1028
- Russell J. Dalton. (©1993) 'The Institutions of Governance', in Politics in Germany, New York: HarperCollins College Publishers. vol. The HarperCollins series in comparative politics, pp.44-79
- Schmidt, Manfred G. (2003) 'From Negative Parliamentary Politics to Democratic Parliamentary Government: The Role of the Legislature', in Political institutions in the Federal Republic of Germany, Oxford: Oxford University Press., pp.74-105
- Krisch, Henry. (c2009) 'Organized Interest Groups and Social Movements', in Politics in Germany, Washington, DC: CQ Press., pp.136-156
- Miranda A. Schreurs. (2016) 'Is Germany Really an Environmental Leader?', in Current History. vol. 115 (779) , pp.114-116
- Eric Langenbacher; David P. Conradt. (2017) The German polity, Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littelfield.
- Russell J. Dalton. (©1993) 'Changing Political Cultures', in Politics in Germany, New York: HarperCollins College Publishers. vol. The HarperCollins series in comparative politics, pp.107-144
- Henry Krisch. (2009) 'Germany Divided and Unified', in Politics in Germany, Washington, DC: CQ Press., pp.38-56
- Wilke, Jurgen. (2008) 'Germany: Media System', in The international encyclopedia of communication, United States: Wiley/Blackwell., pp.1961-1964
- Susan E. Scarrow. (1997) 'Party Competition and Institutional Change: The Expansion of Direct Democracy in Germany', in Party Politics. vol. 3 (4) , pp.451-472
- Stephen Padgett. (2014) 'Energy and Climate Protection Policy', in Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., pp.241-261
- Dieter Rucht. (2014) 'The Politics of Social Protest', in Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., pp.118-132
- Russell J. Dalton. (2014) 'Partisan Dealignment and Voting Choice', in Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., pp.57-77
- Simon Green. (2014) 'Citizenship, Migration and Cultural Pluralism', in Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., pp.262-278
- Schmidt, Manfred G. (2003) 'Continuity and Discontinuity in the Federal Republic of Germany', in Political institutions in the Federal Republic of Germany, Oxford: Oxford University Press., pp.201-235
- Schmidt, Manfred G. (2003) Political institutions in the Federal Republic of Germany, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Green, Simon; Hough, Dan; Miskimmon, Alister. (2012) Politics of the new Germany, London: Routledge.
- Christian Stecker; Klaus H. Goetz. (2014) 'Government at the Centre', in Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., pp.16-34
- Simon Green; Dan Hough; Alister Miskimmon. (2012) The politics of the new Germany, Abingdon: Routledge.
- Schmidt, Manfred G. (2003) 'Governing a Semi-Sovereign State: Germany’s Executive and its Institutional Context', in Political institutions in the Federal Republic of Germany, Oxford: Oxford University Press., pp.26-73
- Alister Miskimmon. (2012) 'Parties and voters: The Path to Fluid Party Politics?', in The politics of the new Germany, Abingdon: Routledge., pp.94-114
- Russell J. Dalton. (© 2020) 'Citizens and the Democratic Process', in Citizen politics: public opinion and political parties in advanced industrial democracies, Los Angeles, California: SAGE, CQ Press., pp.255-277
- Georg Vanberg. (2005) 'The Federal Constitutional Court in Comparative Perspective', in The politics of constitutional review in Germany, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press., pp.61-94
- D. Hawkins. (2009) 'Case Studies', in The SAGE handbook of comparative politics, Los Angeles: SAGE., pp.50-65
- Klüver, Heike. (2015) 'Interest Groups in the German Bundestag: Exploring the Issue Linkage between Citizens and Interest Groups', in German Politics. vol. 24 (2) , pp.137-153
- Schmitt-Beck, Rüdiger; Partheymüller, Julia. (2012) 'Why Voters Decide Late: A Simultaneous Test of Old and New Hypotheses at the 2005 and 2009 German Federal Elections', in German Politics. vol. 21 (3) , pp.299-316
- Schmidt, Manfred G. (2003) 'Against “Leviathan” and “Behemoth”: The Anti-Totalitarian Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany', in Political institutions in the Federal Republic of Germany, Oxford: Oxford University Press., pp.9-25
- Russell J. Dalton. (© 2020) 'Elections and Political Parties', in Citizen politics: public opinion and political parties in advanced industrial democracies, Los Angeles, California: SAGE, CQ Press., pp.133-154
- Alister Miskimmon. (2012) 'Germany and the Wider World: A New Role in the Twenty-First Century?', in The politics of the new Germany, Abingdon: Routledge., pp.196-216
- Alister Miskimmon. (2012) 'A blockaded system of government?', in The politics of the new Germany, Abingdon: Routledge., pp.72-94
- Alister Miskimmon. (2012) 'Conclusion: Three themes reassessed', in The politics of the new Germany, Abingdon: Routledge., pp.217-223
- Reimut Zohlnhöfer. (2014) 'Economic Policy', in Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., pp.149-165
- (2014) Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Roberts, Geoffrey K. (2016) 'Germany and Europe', in German politics today, Manchester: Manchester University Press., pp.189-205
- Max Kaase. (2000) 'Germany: A Society and a Media System in Transition', in Democracy and the media: a comparative perspective, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press., pp.375-401
- Schmidt, Manfred G. (2003) '“Governing with Judges”: The Judiciary, the Court System, and Judicial Review', in Political institutions in the Federal Republic of Germany, Oxford: Oxford University Press., pp.106-130
- Margret Hornsteiner; Thomas Saalfeld. (2014) 'Parties and Party System', in Developments in German politics 4, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., pp.78-102
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course. The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students. Further reading can be obtained from this module's reading list.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
| Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
| Coursework |
Essay 1 |
|
50% |
| Coursework |
Essay 2 |
|
50% |
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Ms Sarah Wagner, email: smwagn@essex.ac.uk.
Sarah Wagner
Sarah Wagner E: smwagn@essex.ac.uk
Administrator: Edmund Walker, govquery@essex.ac.uk
Yes
Yes
No
Dr Arzu Kibris
University of Warwick
Associate Professor
Available via Moodle
Of 531 hours, 0 (0%) hours available to students:
531 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s).
Government
Disclaimer: The University makes every effort to ensure that this information on its Module Directory is accurate and up-to-date. Exceptionally it can
be necessary to make changes, for example to programmes, modules, facilities or fees. Examples of such reasons might include a change of law or regulatory requirements,
industrial action, lack of demand, departure of key personnel, change in government policy, or withdrawal/reduction of funding. Changes to modules may for example consist
of variations to the content and method of delivery or assessment of modules and other services, to discontinue modules and other services and to merge or combine modules.
The University will endeavour to keep such changes to a minimum, and will also keep students informed appropriately by updating our programme specifications and module directory.
The full Procedures, Rules and Regulations of the University governing how it operates are set out in the Charter, Statutes and Ordinances and in the University Regulations, Policy and Procedures.