University of the West of England

MODULE SPECIFICATION

Code: UPPNGW-30-3 Title: Political Psychology Version: 3

Level: 3 UWE credit rating: 30 ECTS credit rating: 15

Module type: Standard

Owning Faculty: HLSS Field: Politics

Valid from: September 2009 Discontinued from:

Contributes towards: Awards up to BA/BSC (Hons)

Pre-requisites: None

Co-requisites: None

Excluded combinations: None

Learning outcomes:

At the end of the course the student should be able to:

1. Demonstrate a thorough and critical understanding of psychoanalytic and other psychological theories of identity and the emotions (Assessment component A, and B elements 1 and 2).

2. Demonstrate an ability to effectively apply such theories to understanding a variety of forms of political behaviour (Assessment component B, elements 1 and 2).

3. Analyse the implicit or explicit models of human agency in some key traditions within political science (Assessment component A)

4 Demonstrate an ability to pursue an interdisciplinary method of political investigation (Assessment component B, elements 1 and 2).

5. Demonstrate a critical awareness of the issues that surround the contemporary uses of psychology in the practices of governments and political parties (Assessment component A).

Syllabus outline:

1. Assumptions about the self in political theory

2. Theories of group emotion and identity

    • Freud and Simmel

    • Klein, Bion and Zizek

    • Honneth, Benjamin, Butler

3. Leaders and followers

    • Resentment, Charisma & Political Leadership

    • Psychological Perspectives on Political Leadership

    • The Psychology of Followership (trust, dependence, apathy)

4. Social and political mobilisation

    • the affective bases of mobilisation

    • the psychology of activists and activism

    • the formation of group identities

5. Hatred, conflict and violence

The role of the emotions in:

    • intergroup conflict

    • populism, fascism and fundamentalism

    • conflict management

6. Democracy and the emotions

    • group emotions and political deliberation

    • understanding and misunderstanding the other

7. Contemporary politics and the (ab)uses of psychology

    • therapeutic culture and therapeutic state

    • `political marketing’: constructing the political consumer

Teaching and learning methods:

There will be a combination of formal lectures, seminars and workshops. In seminars students will be expected to demonstrate a familiarity with guided reading sources and to be able to present this material using oral and visual media. The course is organised around a core text, written by the Module leader.

There will be a strong emphasis on student presentations including presentations of project proposals. All students will be required to lead a seminar - prepare materials, support their presentation using visual or other methods, and structure a follow-up discussion. Workshops will include simulations of small group political processes illustrating, for example, the dynamics of trust and representation.

Reading Strategy:

Core text:

Hoggett, P. (2009), Politics, Identity and Emotion, Boulder,Colorado: Paradigm Publishers

Indicative Reading List:

Alford, C.F. (1994), Group Psychology and Political Theory. New Haven, Con: Yale University Press.

Clarke, S., Hoggett, P. & Thompson, S. (eds) Politics, Emotions & Society. Basingstoke: Palgrave.

Goodwin, G., Jasper, J. & Poletta, F. (2000) Passionate Politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Hoggett, P. (2000), Emotional Life and the Politics of Welfare. Basingstoke: Macmillan.

Nolan, J. (1998), The Therapeutic State: Justifying Government at Century’s End. New York: New York University Press.

Sennett, R. (1976), The Fall of Public Man. London & New York: Faber and Faber.

Stryker, S, Owens,T. & White, R. (eds) Self, Identity & Social Movements. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

Scammel, M. (1999), `Political Marketing: Lessons for Political Science’, Political Studies, XLVII, 4: 718-739

Volkan , V. (1994), The Need to Have Enemies and Allies: From Clinical Practice to International Relationships. Northvale New Jersey: Jason Aronson.

The following journals will also be useful sources: Constellations, Free Associations, Organisational and Social Dynamics, Political Studies and opendemocracy.net

Assessment

Weighting between components A and B (standard modules at levels 0-3 only) A: 40% B: 60%

ATTEMPT 1

First Assessment Opportunity

Component A

Description of each element Element weighting

1. Exam (2 hours) 40%

Component B

Description of each element Element weighting

1. Student Presentations

Seminar presentation 10%

Project proposal (500 words) 15%

2. Project (3,000 word investigation of contemporary psycho-political phenomenon) 35%

Second Assessment Opportunity (further attendance at taught classes is not required)

Component A

Description of each element Element weighting

1. Exam (2 hours) 40%

Component B

Description of each element Element weighting

1. Essay (4000 words) 60%

SECOND (OR SUBSEQUENT) ATTEMPT Attendance at taught classes is not required.

Specification confirmed by …………………………………………………Date ……………………………

(Associate Dean/Programme Director)

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