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Democracy in the European Union

Module description

Despite Brexit, the EU remains the most integrated regional bloc worldwide. As such, it can teach us important lessons about how democracy can work in a supranational setting, what enables it and what constrains it – lessons that we can also apply to other regional blocs. The EU, ever since discussions about its alleged democratic deficit began in the 1990s, has tried to accommodate the uneasiness of its many critics by incremental steps of democratisation. This module focuses on the relationship between democracy and supranational integration by tracking the developments of the different channels of representation within the EU, and their possible interaction – or lack thereof. It will also engage with key contemporary political debates in and about the EU, such the ‘democratic deficit’, the management of the Euro debt and financial crisis, the rise of Euroscepticism, and democratic backsliding.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module familiarizes you with core theories, debates and actors of political representation in the EU. It aims at providing you with the skills to engage in current debates on parliaments, parties, interest groups, and citizens, and to apply theories of representation and of EU integration to concrete instances of political representation, as well as to critically evaluate the usefulness of these theories. Furthermore, the module familiarizes you with current key debates in the EU and challenges you to develop your own position on those debates. In doing so, it aims to equip you with the analytical skills required to describe and explain the hybrid system of political representation in the EU and take an active part in related debates.  The first part of the module looks at theoretical foundations of democracy in the EU as well as at the different actors present in it. The second part engages with key contemporary debates that relate to the state of today’s democracy in the EU.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. demonstrate understanding of core concepts and approaches regarding democracy, political legitimacy and political representation and their application to the EU context;
• 2. give an account of the main institutions, actors and processes of governance in the EU;
• 3. show theoretical and practical knowledge of the debate on the ‘democratic deficit’ of the EU;
• 4. critically engage with on-going relevant debates about the state of today’s democracy in the EU.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. critically evaluate core concepts;
• 6. construct rigorous arguments which show an understanding of key theories;
• 7. deploy theoretical arguments and apply them to empirical case studies;
• 8. justify own choices of theory, research design and method.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 9. critically evaluate ideas and debates;
• 10. write clearly and coherently;
• 11. deploy the ability to communicate clearly and deliver presentations to peers;
• 12. work independently and in collaboration with peers; and
• 13. use IT for the retrieval and presentation of information.

Syllabus plan

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Basic reading:

Manin, Bernard, 1997, The Principles of Representative Government, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, Introduction, Chapter 2, 4-6, Conclusion.

Pitkin, Hanna, 1967, The Concept of Representation, Berkeley: University of California Press.

Richardson, Jeremy and Mazey, Sonja (eds.), 2015, European Union. Power and Policy-Making, 4^th edition. Abingdon: Routledge.

Moravcsik, Andrew, 2002, In Defence of the 'Democratic Deficit': Reassessing Legitimacy in the European Union, Journal of Common Market Studies 40 (4): 603-24.

Follesdal, Andreas and Simon Hix, 2006, Why there is a Democratic Deficit in the European Union. A Response to Majone and Moravcsik, Journal of Common Market Studies 44 (3): 533-62.

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

Core readings and lecture slides from presentations will be made available via ELE  http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/

Key words search

EU, democracy, representation, parliaments, parties, civil society, citizens, democratic deficit, democratic backsliding, Euroscepticism