Course Details in 2024/25 Session

Module Title	LM Democracy, Dictatorship and Development
School	Government
Department	International Development
Module Code	08 36014
Module Lead	Jonathan Fisher and Nic Cheeseman
Level	Masters Level
Credits	20
Semester	Semester 2
Pre-requisites
Co-requisites
Restrictions	None
Contact Hours	Lecture-10 hours Seminar-20 hours Guided independent study-170 hours Total: 200 hours
Exclusions
Description	The political systems and regimes which govern developing countries – and the ideologies, rationales and structures which underpin and sustain them – play a major role in shaping development. The relationship between democracy, authoritarianism and development has long been one of the most vibrant and important debates within political science and development studies. This module will be based around the two central questions that underpin these debates. The first question is whether democratic or authoritarian states perform better when it comes to development. This is an old and rich debate and will allow students to consider some of the most pressing issues of our time such as: Does political competition actually prevent governments from making important long-term decisions on a range of issues from climate change to pensions reform? Do new democracies enjoy higher economic growth than other states at a comparative socio-economic level? What explains the significant variation we see across authoritarian states in terms of developmental success? The second question is what determines the durability of democratic and authoritarian systems – and how far does development relate to this? This is an even older and richer debate, and one that taps into areas of continued academic and policy controversy: Does development promote democracy and undermine authoritarianism? Is it possible to build durable democracies in the context of poverty? Is the rise of the middle class in many developing countries going to promote democratization, or the reverse? What role do external actors – Western and non-Western – play? And, indeed, how important are ideas around legitimacy and political authority in determining the longevity of different political systems? This module introduces students to a range of issues at the heart of these debates, drawing comparisons between – and within - countries and regions across the developing world. The module is designed to introduce students to key concepts and arguments, and to enable them to appreciate the reasons why scholars and practitioners continue to disagree about the nature of the relationship between authoritarianism, democracy and development.
Learning Outcomes	By the end of the module students should be able to: Critically analyse core definitions, theories and measures of democracy and authoritarianism and how they apply rule in the developing world Critically analyse and explain the relationship between authoritarianism, democracy and development across a range of settings Set out the causal mechanisms that different theoretical frameworks rely on, and evaluate these against relevant empirical evidence. Apply theoretical and conceptual debates on authoritarian durability and democratization to practical contexts and scenarios, including contemporary debates about real world cases.
Assessment	36014-01 : Assignment 1 - 2500 words : Coursework (50%) 36014-02 : Assignment 2 - 2500 words : Coursework (50%)
Assessment Methods & Exceptions	Assessment: 1 x 2500 word essay (50%), 1 x 2500 word essay (50%) Reassessment: 1 x 2500 word essay (100%)
Other
Reading List