8. Political Parties

2021 ◽  
pp. 132-154
Author(s):  
Catherine E. De Vries ◽  
Sara B. Hobolt ◽  
Sven-Oliver Proksch ◽  
Jonathan B. Slapin
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Cultural Dimension ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Cleavage ◽  
Over Time

This chapter looks at the nature and evolution of political parties in a number of European democracies. It analyses the important functions of political parties. It charts how they have developed over time. Starting with the social cleavage approach, the chapter addresses the origins of European party families and party systems. It then turns to the transformation of European party families and systems. It considers this both nationally and within the European Union (EU). It provides evidence of the ‘unfreezing’ of European party systems and thinks about whether a dealignment of traditional cleavage patterns can currently be witnessed. It asks: is there also a realignment along a new ‘cultural’ dimension of politics? Finally, the chapter addresses the evolution of party types from cadre over catch-all to modern entrepreneurial challenger parties.

6. Electoral Systems and Direct Democracy

2021 ◽  
pp. 89-111
Author(s):  
Catherine E. De Vries ◽  
Sara B. Hobolt ◽  
Sven-Oliver Proksch ◽  
Jonathan B. Slapin
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Party System ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
The European Union ◽  
View Point ◽  
Institutional Differences ◽  
Over Time

This chapter starts off with an overview of the institutions that decide how citizens cast ballots, firstly, in elections, and secondly, directly for policy. The former is related to electoral systems and the latter to direct democracy. The chapter considers the implications of these institutions for party systems and political representation from the view point of the principal–agent framework. There is a large variety of electoral systems used in Europe. Most elections are held using the system of proportional representation. However, there are important institutional differences that need to be remembered. The chapter then goes on to examine the effects of electoral systems on the party system. This is carried out with electoral change over time in mind. Finally, the chapter turns to direct democracy and analyses the use of referendums, specifically with regard to the question of the European Union (EU).

scholarly journals Resilience as a Public Object. A Longitudinal Press Analysis of the Press Representations of Resilience in Italy, Spain, and France

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 189
Author(s):  
Alessia Rochira ◽  
Terri Mannarini ◽  
Evelyn De Simone ◽  
Serena Verbena ◽  
Alessandra Manfreda
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Social Representations ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Object A ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Press ◽  
Over Time

The notion of “resilience” has spilled over from the field of science and entered the field of policy, turning into a public and political object. The current study explores the social representations of resilience produced by press discourses between 2001 and 2017 in three different national contexts (Spain, France, and Italy), and examines the degree to which such representations incorporate technical and scientific meanings or rather include new components. A total amount of 1,298 articles published in three national newspapers (La Repubblica, Italy; Le Monde, France; and El Pais, Spain) were collected and analyzed for themes using the T-LAB software. The findings revealed more similarities than differences among the countries. The interest towards the topic increased over time, with the representations of resilience becoming more and more diversified and multifaceted. The technical and scientific components remained in the background, while a “practical theory” of resilience emerged, echoing the use of the concept in policy making, specifically in the European Union institutions approach.

IMMIGRANT ‘SPACE’ IN ITALY: WHEN AN EMIGRANT SENDING BECOMES AN IMMIGRANT RECEIVING SOCIETY

Modern Italy ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 34-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Adler Hellman
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
The State ◽  
Economic Opportunity ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Italian Experience ◽  
Italian Case ◽  
The Social ◽  
Political Responses ◽  
The Church

This article examines the social and political responses to the new flow of immigrants to Italy from outside the European Union. First, the Italian experience is compared with the rest of Europe with respect to such questions as the characteristics of the immigrants themselves, and the response to them on the part of political parties, the church, the unions, and the state at local, regional and national levels. Next, broader comparisons are drawn between the Italian case and that of classic ‘societies of immigration’, particularly with regard to the structure of economic opportunity available to the extracomunitari in Italy.

scholarly journals Exitomania, the propaganda machine that can destroy the European Union

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 31-40
Author(s):  
Tanase Tasente ◽  
Mihaela Rus
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Google Trends ◽  
Opinion Poll ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Negative Sense ◽  
Over Time

Euroscepticism has worsened among the member countries, and an opinion poll conducted by the Pew Research Center, on a sample of 10,491 respondents from 10 EU countries and published shows that in 2 member countries - France and Greece - 61% and 71% of the citizens regard the European Union in a negative sense. This unfavorable perception regarding the future of the European Union has spread and was immediately exploited by political parties from different countries that have been voted in the European Parliament. Thus, we can see that the Euro-Parliamentary groups with Eurosceptic ideologies started to grow fast and according to the configuration of the 2019 European Parliament, we can see that the eurosceptics gain more strength. Through this research, we set out to analyze the degree of online interest regarding keywords related to EU leaving, in 8 countries of the European Union: The Netherlands (Nexit), United Kingdom (Brexit), France (Frexit), Greece (Grexit), Ireland (Irexit), Spain (Spexit), Italy (Italexit) and Sweden (Swexit). In order to reach the research objectives, we collected the data on the online interest from the Google Trends website (the evolution over time regarding Euroscepticism in the European Union, the maps regarding the regions of the 8 countries monitored with the highest degree of online interest for "EU leaving", and the most searched keywords in each country regarding leaving the European Union). The monitoring period is January 2004 – July 2019.

The Social and Attitudinal Basis of Political Parties: Cleavage Politics Revisited

2008 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 287-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zsolt Enyedi
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Party Politics ◽  
Social Embeddedness ◽  
Democratic Representation ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Relationship

As a result of various political and non-political developments, the socio-culturally anchored and well structured character of European party systems has come under strain. This article assesses the overall social embeddedness of modern party politics and identifies newly emerging conflict-lines. It draws attention to phenomena that do not fit into the trend of dealignment, and discusses the relationship between group-based politics and democratic representation.

scholarly journals Social Aspects of Tourism Policy in the European Union. The Example of Poland and Slovakia

Economies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleksander Panasiuk ◽  
Ewa Wszendybył-Skulska
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Economic Policy ◽  
Social Aspects ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Social ◽  
Low Incomes ◽  
Research Gap ◽  
Tourism Policy ◽  
Tourism Economy ◽  
Sectoral Policy

Since the beginning of the 21st century, the European Union tourism policy has been increasingly focused on initiatives in the field of social tourism, which are one of the ways of achieving sustainable development in the European tourism economy. Most of the research projects that have so far been conducted in the field have focused on the benefits for its participants (subjective one: Children and youths, seniors, disabled people, people (families) with low incomes and/or unemployed, big families). However, there is a lack of research on the analysis of the place of social aspects of tourism in the general socio-economic policy of the state and, in a detailed aspect, in the sectoral policy represented by tourism policy, as well as its potential impact on the development of the national economy and meeting tourism needs of the society. The authors tried to fill this research gap in this study. The aim of the study is to differentiate the issues related to the social aspects of tourism policy from the entire socio-economic policy pursued in the European Union and selected member states (Poland and Slovakia). The article is of a theoretical–analytical–conceptual nature. Empirical research, due to the nature of its issues, was conducted with the use of qualitative research methods. The results of the conducted research showed that activities in the field of social tourism policy are conditioned by organizational solutions for the entities that undertake them, as well as economic ones, especially in the field of financing. Moreover, they made it possible to propose the concept of a model social tourism policy with an indication of its place in the European policy on the basis of the past and future EU financial perspectives.

Instituting Europe: Germany, the Union, and the Legacy of the Short Century

2001 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Michael Werz
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Democratic Legitimacy ◽  
Social Changes ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Institutional Reforms ◽  
Crucial Question ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Federal Structure

Recent debates about the future of the European Union have focusedin large part on institutional reforms, the deficit of democratic legitimacy,and the problem of economic and agrarian policies. As importantas these issues may be, the most crucial question at the momentis not whether Europe will prevail as a union of nations or as a thoroughlyintegrated federal structure. What is of much greater concernis the fact that political structures and their corresponding politicaldiscourses have lagged far behind the social changes occurring inEuropean societies. The pivotal transformation of 1989 has not beengrasped intellectually or politically, even though its results areincreasingly visible in both the east and west.

State regulation of the social work profession: an example from Poland

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazimiera Wódz ◽  
Krystyna Faliszek
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Professional Autonomy ◽  
State Regulation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
New Members ◽  
The Social ◽  
Polish Government ◽  
And Control

This chapter examines how regulation from the state can shape conditions and practices for welfare professions. New members of the European Union, such as Poland, often lack a tradition of social work as an integral part of the welfare state. Challenges for these countries are both to educate social workers and to create legislative solutions stipulating the responsibilities and professional jurisdiction of the social work profession. In the chapter, it is argued that strong regulation and control from the Polish government has resulted in the standardisation of social work. This has curtailed professional autonomy in a manner that is unfavourable to social workers as well as to clients.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document