Russian Politics in Transition (PO41009)
Module Convenor: Dr Cameron Ross
Credit Rating: 30 SCQF credits
Level: Level 4 optional module
Module Content
- Russia’s Transition in comparative perspective
- The battle over Russia's Constitution: parliament versus executive 1990-1993
- Economic reforms in Russia: from plan to market or plan to clan?
- The development of political Institutions: parties and elections
- The Russian parliament
- The development of a super-presidential system
- Federalism and regional politics
- Political culture
- Civil society
- Democratization in Russia: Is Russia a hybrid-regime?
Module Aims
- Provide students with a good grounding in the political science literature on Russian politics and the relevant academic debates
- To place the study of Russian politics within a comparative politics framework and the wider study of countries in transition
- To introduce students to a wide range of theoretical models and hypotheses drawn from the field of political science
- To encourage and facilitate student participation in seminar discussions and debates and advance the students essay writing and oral skills
Intended Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and understanding
- Develop understanding of a wide range of theoretical models and hypotheses drawn from the field of political science.
- Develop understanding of the key features and trends in Russian politics from Yeltsin to Medvedev.
- Develop understanding of the problems of democratization inRussia.
- Develop understanding of the comparative politics literature on ‘transitions from authoritarianism’.
Skills
- Students will be able to present and critically analyse, in both oral and written form, the main theoretical literature on democratic transitions and the standard works on Russian politics.
Teaching
This module consists of 11 lectures and 11 seminars, plus additional contact time for discussion of assessed essays where feedback will be given on a one to one basis.
Assessment
The module will place emphasis on developing writing skills and therefore the assessment will consist of two 4,000 word essays. There will be no exam.
Indicative Reading
- Catherine Danks, Politics Russia (Pearson, Longman, 2009)
- Daniel Herspring (ed.), Putin’s Russia (Rowman and Littlefield, 4th edition 2010)
- Richard Sakwa, Russian Politics and Society (Routledge, 4th edition, 2008)
- Richard Sakwa, Putin: Russia’s Choice (Routledge: 2nd edition, 2008)
- Stephen White, Henry Hale and Richard Sakwa, Developments in Russian Politics – 7 (Macmillan, 2010)
- Thomas Remington, Politics in Russia (5th edition, 2008)
- Michael Bressler (ed.), Understanding Contemporary Russia (Lynne Reinner 2008)
- Alex Pravda (ed), Leading Russia: Putin in Perspective (OUP: 2005)
- Edwin Bacon and Matthew Wyman, Contemporary Russia (Palgrave, 2006)
- Michael Waller, Russian Politics Today (MUP, 2005)
- Michael McFaul, Nikolai Petrov and A Andrei Ryabov, Between Dictatorship and Democracy (Carnegie, 2004)
- Cameron Ross, Russian Politics under Putin (MUP: 2004)
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