Political Sociology

The course introduces political sociology as a perspective that analyzes the interdependencies between politics and society, based on the assumption that political phenomena cannot be understood in isolation from the social, economic, cultural, and technological processes that shape them. Topics addressed include the historical and contemporary configurations of power; the meanings attributed to politics across different historical and geocultural contexts; the transformations of the state and of sovereignty; the processes of globalization, deglobalization, and re-globalization; and the trajectories of democratization and autocratization, examined in relation to the social and institutional contexts that enable or constrain them. Additional topics include citizenship, understood both as a legal status and as a form of social belonging; individual and collective forms of political action (such as voting or participation in social movements), with attention to social factors — such as gender, age, education, and class — that influence opportunities and modes of participation; the social and historical origins of political values, ideologies, and public opinion; and the processes of mediatization and the logic of digital platforms in contemporary political communication. During the course, attending students will work in small groups on thematic presentations that apply the concepts studied to empirical cases, using data from official sources, international surveys, or digital methods.

Upon completion of the course, students will have the theoretical knowledge to understand the fundamental relations between society and politics.
Students will also be able to access the main sources of empirical data that allow them to analyse political events in an independent and informed manner.
By taking part in classroom learning, students will also develop the soft skills to construct and present an empirically grounded argument on the topics addressed during lectures.