Democracy and Public Policy (912N1)

30 credits, Level 7 (Masters)

Spring teaching

This module examines the theory and practice of democracy and its role in development. The first part discusses theories of democracy, from classical to modern, mapping their core concepts and establishing clear analytical relations between frameworks of democracy and their historical contexts. The second part relates these theoretical discussions to empirical concerns and case studies around the notion of development and social change, including the relationship between democracy and economic development, the impact of religion and culture, the relationship between formal and informal institutions, citizen participation and democracy promotion. The final session discusses the future of democracy and its dilemmas in contemporary times.

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 300 hours of work. This breaks down into about 44 hours of contact time and about 256 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2023/24. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum. We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.