Description
This course provides an introduction to the interdisciplinary field of political psychology. It focuses on how people—voters and political leaders, individuals and groups—think about politics, make political decisions, and engage in political behaviours. The course introduces and explores important theories and concepts, reviews important research, and looks at classic and new methods used in psychological research.
Among the topics covered in the course are persuasion and attitude change, political knowledge, cognitions and emotions, motivated information processing, values and personality traits, stereotyping and racism as well as individual, group, and elite decision-making.
By becoming familiar with the psychological perspective and approach to political questions, students will have the tools to develop their own research hypotheses and to propose research designs to answer them. Students are expected to actively engage in class discussions, including a short presentation, and to write several short reaction papers in response to the assigned readings and a final research proposal.
Methods of instruction
Lectures, discussion, student presentations.
Study material
Literature (approx. 1000 pp):
1) Sears, David O., Leonie Huddy, and Robert Jervis. 2003. Oxford Handbook of Political Psychology. New York: Oxford University Press;
2) selected journal articles and book chapters.
Examination
Research proposal, short essays, short presentation, class participation.
Time table
Tuesday October 28, till December 16, 15.00 -17.00 p.m. Ch11 and
Friday October 31, till December 19, 13.00 – 15.00 p.m., in SA05