Why do governments in different democratic countries spend most of their attention on quite similar topics? What is the relationship between institutional structure and policy output? What role do actors outside the government, such as interest groups or policy experts, play in determining political priorities? These and further challenging questions will be at the core of the course Comparative Policy Agendas. The goal is to provide Master students with a deep understanding of the formation of political agendas and the consequences thereof for the policy process in a comparative perspective. The course presents a behavioural model of political institutions, which is underpinned by cognitive and institutional constraints on information processing. In order to disentangle the dynamics behind issue selection and prioritisation, a comprehensive approach will be undertaken, incorporating multiple venues within and outside governing bodies and factors influencing problem portrayal (focusing events, indicators and feedback loops). Both quantitative and qualitative approaches to studying policy agendas comparatively will be discussed, and some examples of particular methods will be reviewed and replicated. The students will have the opportunity to work on a small project with empirical data, which can serve as a pilot study for their Master thesis. Leistungsanforderungen: - Studienleistung: Participation in in-class discussions and presentation (Referat) of draft research paper - Prüfungsleistung: Research paper (Hausarbeit), deadline: 21.08.2016
selected journal articles and book chapters - Jones, B. D. & Baumgartner, F. R. (2005). The Politics of Attention: How Government Prioritizes Problems. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. - Kingdon, J. W. (2010). Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies. 2nd edition. London: Pearson. Politikwissenschaft, Master of Arts M IV Universität Hannover SoSe 2016 Dr. Alexandrova Petrova Petya
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