Module POL3278 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POL3278: Public Opinion in Europe: Political Influencers, Followers and democracy
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
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:
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The nature of political attitudes
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Understanding quantitative research
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Theories of opinion formation
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Political sophistication and heuristics
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Political contestation I: left/right conflicts
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Political contestation II: cultural conflicts
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Models of voting behaviour
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The rise of populism
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The role of emotions
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Filter bubbles, misinformation, and social media
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Public support for democracy
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Tolerance
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The public divide over the EU and Brexit
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Identity politics I: cosmopolitanism and European identity
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Identity politics II: Anti-immigrant sentiments
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Identity politics III: far right parties
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Attitudes towards the redistribution of resources within and across nations
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Attitudes towards gender equality
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 |
---|---|---|
44 | 256 |
...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 | 44 | 2 hour weekly seminars with a mix of short formal lectures, student led seminar, and collective discussion |
Guided Independent Study | 98 | Preparing for seminars: reading and research |
Guided Independent Study | 158 | Completing assessment tasks: reading, research and writing |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
---|---|---|---|
Presentation of paper outline at end of term 1 | 6 minutes | 1-9 | Written |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
---|---|---|
100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
---|---|---|---|---|
Essay 1 | 40 | 2500 words | 1-9 | Written feedback |
Essay 2 | 40 | 2500 words | 1-9 | Written feedback |
Presentation (individual) | 20 | Presentation (individual) | 1-9 | Written feedback |
0 | ||||
0 | ||||
0 |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
---|---|---|---|
Essay 1 | Essay (2,500 words) | 1-9 | August/September re-assessment period |
Essay 2 | Essay 2500 words | 1-9 | August/Sept reassessment period |
Individual Presentation | Written report covering the topic of presentation (900 words per missed presentation) | 1-9 | August/September reassessment period |
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.
Dalton, Russel J (2014). Citizen Politics: Public Opinion and Political Parties in Advanced Industrial Democracies. London: Sage.
Duffy, B. (2018). The Perils of Perception. Glasgow: Atlantic Books.
Flynn, D., B. Nyhan and J. Reifler (2017). The nature and origins of misperceptions: understanding false and unsupported beliefs about politics.?Political Psychology?38 (S1): 127–150.
Ford, Robert, and Will Jennings. The changing cleavage politics of Western Europe.?Annual Review of Political Science?23 (2020): 295-314.
Jerit, Jennifer, and Yangzi Zhao. Political misinformation.?Annual Review of Political Science?23 (2020): 77-94.
Kahnemann, D. (2012). Thinking, Fast and Slow. London: Allen Lane/Penguin Books.
Norris, P. and R. Inglehart, 2018. Cultural Backlash: Trump, Brexit, and the Rise of Authoritarian Populism. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Noury, Abdul, and Gerard Roland. Identity Politics and Populism in Europe.?Annual Review of Political Science?23 (2020): 421-439.
Risse, T. (2010). A Community of Europeans? Ithaca: Cornell University.
Zaller, J. (1992). The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press