860-0001-00L Public Institutions and Policy-Making Processes
| Semester | Autumn Semester 2018 |
| Lecturers | T. Bernauer, S. Bechtold, F. Schimmelfennig |
| Periodicity | yearly recurring course |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Comment | Number of participants limited to 25. Priority for Science, Technology, and Policy MSc and MAS students. |
| Abstract | Students acquire the contextual knowledge for analyzing public policies. They learn why and how public policies and laws are developed, designed, and implemented at national and international levels, and what challenges arise in this regard. |
| Learning objective | Public policies result from decision-making processes that take place within formal institutions of the state (parliament, government, public administration, courts). That is, policies are shaped by the characteristics of decision-making processes and the characteristics of public institutions and related actors (e.g. interest groups). In this course, students acquire the contextual knowledge for analyzing public policies. They learn why and how public policies and laws are developed, designed, and implemented at national and international levels, and what challenges arise in this regard. The course is organized in three modules. The first module (Stefan Bechtold) examines basic concepts and the role of law, law-making, and law enforcement in modern societies. The second module (Thomas Bernauer) deals with the functioning of legislatures, governments, and interest groups. The third module (Frank Schimmelfennig) focuses on the European Union and international organisations. |
| Content | Public policies result from decision-making processes that take place within formal institutions of the state (parliament, government, public administration, courts). That is, policies are shaped by the characteristics of decision-making processes and the characteristics of public institutions and related actors (e.g. interest groups). In this course, students acquire the contextual knowledge for analyzing public policies. They learn why and how public policies and laws are developed, designed, and implemented at national and international levels, and what challenges arise in this regard. The course is organized in three modules. The first module (Stefan Bechtold) examines basic concepts and the role of law, law-making, and law enforcement in modern societies. The second module (Thomas Bernauer) deals with the functioning of legislatures, governments, and interest groups. The third module (Frank Schimmelfennig) focuses on the European Union and international organisations. |
| Lecture notes | Reading materials will be distributed electronically to the students when the semester starts. |
| Literature | Baylis, John, Steve Smith, and Patricia Owens (2014): The Globalization of World Politics. An Introduction to International Relations. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Caramani, Daniele (ed.) (2014): Comparative Politics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Gilardi, Fabrizio (2012): Transnational Diffusion: Norms, Ideas, and Policies, in Carlsnaes, Walter, Thomas Risse and Beth Simmons, Handbook of International Relations, 2nd Edition, London: Sage, pp. 453-477. Hage, Jaap and Bram Akkermans (eds.) (2nd edition 2017): Introduction to Law, Heidelberg: Springer. Jolls, Christine (2013): Product Warnings, Debiasing, and Free Speech: The Case of Tobacco Regulation, Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics 169: 53-78. Lelieveldt, Herman and Sebastiaan Princen (2011): The Politics of European Union. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Lessig, Lawrence (2006): Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace, Version 2.0, New York: Basic Books. Available at http://codev2.cc/download+remix/Lessig-Codev2.pdf. Schimmelfennig, Frank and Ulrich Sedelmeier (2004): Governance by Conditionality: EU Rule Transfer to the Candidate Countries of Central and Eastern Europe, in: Journal of European Public Policy 11(4): 669-687. Shipan, Charles V. and Craig Volden (2012): Policy Diffusion: Seven Lessons for Scholars and Practitioners. Public Administration Review 72(6): 788-796. Sunstein, Cass R. (2014): The Limits of Quantification, California Law Review 102: 1369-1422. Thaler, Richard H. and Cass R. Sunstein (2003): Libertarian Paternalism. American Economic Review: Papers & Proceedings 93: 175-179. |
| Prerequisites / Notice | This is a Master level course. The course is capped at 25 students, with ISTP Master students having priority. |