Module POL2119 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POL2119: Transformations of Social and Political Realities through Smartphones
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
Smartphones are a cross-cutting issue that requires knowledge and input from a variety of literatures. This module will equip you with the latest knowledge on how smartphones transform our social and political realities. You will learn about how smartphones transform the ways different political actors mobilise and relate to their constituencies; how they embolden populism and polarisation; to which degree they limit your privacy; how they change the way we interact with one another, both as friends and as sex or love partners; how they affect self-esteem, and how they create addictive behaviour. A good understanding of these issues is critical for a smart usage of smartphones. We will look at these issues first by looking at some key theoretical concepts before we will apply those concepts to a range of case studies which you will be able to choose. You will also acquire key transferable skills through working in a group to prepare and moderate part of a class. With its applied focus, the module will also provide you with an opportunity to get involved in debates surrounding smartphones by means of creating a podcast.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. Show an understanding of how smartphones transform our lives and societies 2. Critically reflect on the usage of your smartphone |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. Deploy theoretical arguments and apply them to empirical case studies 4. Construct rigorous arguments |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. Critically evaluate ideas, debates and practices 6. Work independently and in collaboration with peers 7. Sharpen communication and presentation skills |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics.
Part 1 (weeks 2-6)
In part 1, we will look at central concepts for engaging with how smartphones transform our lives and societies, such democracy, privacy, gender, discrimination, and addiction.
Part 2 (weeks 7-11)
In part 2, you will apply the theories and concept studied in part 1 to empirical case studies and prepare a part of a class as a member of a team. These might relate to any of the following (or other) topics: how social media transform politics, the role of social media for political activism, how populism thrives on social media, how social media increase polarisation, surveillance and privacy, social inequality through smartphones, change of gender norms, dating and relationships through smartphones, self-esteem, addictive behaviour. The precise list of topics will depend on students’ choices as to which topics they would like to address in their case study.
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | 128 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching activities | 22 | 11 x 2 hours per week |
| Guided independent studies | 73 | Reading and writing the essay |
| Guided independent study | 15 | Preparing the podcast |
| Guided independent study | 20 | Preparing a class |
| Guided independent study | 20 | 10 x 2 hours of weekly readings |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Fullwood, C. (2019) Impression Management and Self-Presentation Online. The Oxford Handbook of Cyberpsychology, pp. 34-56.
Howard, N. (2020) Lie machines. How to save democracy from troll armies, deceitful robots, junk news operations, and political operatives. Grand Rapids: Yale University Press.
Keep, M., Janssen, A. and Amon, K. (2019) Image Sharing on Social Networking Sites: Who, What, Why, and So What? The Oxford Handbook of Cyberpsychology, pp. 348-369.
Larnier, J. (2019) Ten arguments for deleting your social media accounts right now. London: Vintage.
Veliz, C. (2020) Privacy is power. Why and how you should take back control of your data. London: Bantam Press.
Vogel, E. A., Rose, J. P., Roberts, L. R., & Eckles, K., 2014. Social comparison, social media, and self-esteem. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 3(4), pp. 206–222.
Zuboff, S. (2019) The age of surveillance capitalism. The fight for a human future at the new frontier of power. London: Profile books.
