News archive
Publications by staff members
Vis, Barbara (2011 forthcoming), Under which conditions does spending on active labor market policies increase? An fsQCA analysis of 53 governments between 1985 and 2003, European Political Science Review.
Vis, Barbara, Woldendorp, Jaap & Keman, Hans (2012 forthcoming), 'Economic performance and institutions: Capturing the dependent variable', European Political Science Review.
Peters, Dirk and Wagner, Wolfgang (2011) Between Military Efficiency and Democratic Legitimacy. Mapping Parliamentary War Powers in Contemporary Democracies, 1989-2004, Parliamentary Affairs 64 (1): 175-192.
Graaff, Naná de (2011) A Global Energy Network? The Expansion and Integration of non-triad National Oil Companies’, GlobalNetworks 11(2): 262-283.
Crum, B. (2011) Learning from the EU Constitutional Treaty. Routledge.
Seminar on Climate Change and Conflict by the Amsterdam Global Change Institute
The Amsterdam Global Change Institute has organised an interdisciplinary seminar on Climate Change and Conflict on Monday 19th March.
The speakers at the seminar were Professor Halvard Buhaug (Peace Institute Oslo), Professor Wolfgang Wagner (VU) and dr. Laurens Bouwer (VU). Amongst others, they will address the following questions: Can climate wars be prevented? How do climate change and conflicts relate? What is the state-of-the-art in climate-conflict research? What are avenues for future research?
The Annual Convention of the International Studies Association
Bastiaan van Apeldoorn and Naná de Graaff have organised a panel at the Annual Convention of the International Studies Association in San Diego, California 1-4 April 2012. The topic of the panel was Corporate Elite Networks in World Politics.
Two Awards for Political Science
Both the JohannesVan der Zouwen Masterthesis Award and the FSW Research Award are rewarded to Political Scientists. Trineke Palm received the Johannes Van der Zouwen Masterthesis Award for her thesis called Normative Power and Military Means. A study of the EU’s involvement with the FYR Macedonia. The department of Political Science had nominated Trineke Palm for her excellent design and qualitative analysis.
Frank Biermann received the FSW Research Award for the conceptualization of "Earth System Governance". The quality of his conceptual work is reflected in its international impact in the scientific community on environmental politics.
Wolfgang Wagner obtains a grant from the Berghof Foundation
Professor Wolfgang Wagner has obtained a grant from the Berghof Foundation for a research projrect on elections in postwar societies. The aim of the project is to identify which electoral system is most appropriate under which context conditions in post war societies.
The Berghof Foundation funds peace and conflict studies. The foundation particularly funds projects with practical value. That is, projects that might result in pragmatic solutions in conflict situations.
Dissertation Gijs Schumacher: Modernize or Die?
On 10 January 2012 Gijs Schumacher defended his dissertation called Modernize or Die? Social Democrats, Welfare State Retrenchment and the Choice between Office and Policy.
Why did social democrats such as Schröder in Germany, Kok in the Netherlands and Blair in the United Kingdom enact welfare state retrenchment measures? As representatives of the working-class and protagonists of the expansion of the welfare state, it is difficult to see what motivates social democrats to enact these measures, especially because welfare state retrenchment entails electoral hara-kiri.
In his dissertation Gijs Schumacher tackles this puzzle by applying a general theory of party change. Demonstrating that the intra-party balance of power moderates parties' responsiveness to different environmental incentives, this dissertation explains why under similar economic and electoral conditions some social democrats enacted welfare state retrenchment measures and others did not (from Modernize or Die? back cover).
Marlies Glasius succeeds Mient Jan Faber
As of 1 January 2012 Marlies Glasius is the new Professor of Citizens Involvement in War Zones and Post Conflict Zones at the Faculty of Social Sciences at VU University. The chair is a cooperation between the VU and the peace movement IKV and resides at the department of Political Science. Mient Jan Faber was Professor of Citizens Involvement in War Zones and Post Conflict Zones from 2004 until his retirement in 2011.
Marlies Glasius will focus on the activities of civilians in war zones, specifically on civilians providing security where the state and international organizations fail to provide security to citizens. Marlies Glasius will remain associate professor in International Relations at the UvA.
The VU has again the best bachelor programme Political Science
According to Professors and university lecturers the bachelor degree Political Science at VU University is again the best in the country. The journal Elsevier has revealed this in its yearly test on the performance of higher education in the Netherlands.
Booklaunch: Learning from the EU Constitutional Treaty
On 30 November, the book Learning from the EU Constitutional Treaty Democratic Constitutionalization beyond the Nation-State by VU political scientist Ben Crum is published by Routledge. This research monograph provides a comprehensive analysis of the making of the Constitutional Treaty and the subsequent Treaty of Lisbon. It uses this analysis to develop an original political theory of democratic constitutionalisation beyond the nation-state, which maintains that international organizations can be put on democratic foundations, but only by properly engaging national political structures.
Two public presentations of the book have been scheduled:
On Monday 5 December, Crum presents Learning from the EU Constitutional Treaty at the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. Richard Corbett, Member of the Cabinet of Herman Van Rompuy and former Rapporteur on the Constitutional Treaty and on the Lisbon Treaty, will act as a discussant; a second discussant is to be confirmed.
Please register your attendence at the Centre for European Policy Studies.
On Tuesday 13 December, from 5 until 7PM, the Europe-fund of the Wiardi Beckman Stichting organizes a presentation of Learning from the EU Constitutional Treaty in The Hague (location: Dudok, Hofweg 1a) – IN DUTCH. Discussants at this occasion are Frans Timmermans, former member of the European Convention on behalf of the Dutch Lower House, and Tom de Bruijn, former permanent representative of The Netherlands at the EU. The meeting is chaired by Jan Marinus Wiersma, board member of the WBS-Europe fund and former Member of the European Parliament.
The department of Political Science welcomes Moira Nelson
As of 1 September Moira Nelson is a postdoctoral researcher at the department of Political Science. As a researcher interested in the social and economic implications of social policies, she takes part in the project ‘In surge of a new welfare state’ which is funded by Institute GAK and she also joins the NEUJOBS project. Within NEUJOBS she focuses on the implications of innovation for production and employment and welfare transformation. In both projects PhD students and permanent staff members are involved as well.
For further information on NEUJOBS, please visit their website.
Professor Peter Mair (1951-2011)
Last monday 15 August, Dr. Peter Mair, Professor of Comparative Politcs and Government at the EUI (Florence) has suddenly and unexpectedly passed away at the age of 60. He leaves behind his wife and 3 children. The political science community in Europe and beyond grieves this loss of an outstanding academic, journal editor and teacher.
Peter Mair was a native of Sligo (Ireland) and a graduate of University College Dublin and enjoyed a distinguished academic career and was the author of a large number of books, chapters and articles on comparative and European politics. It is a sad loss to European political science.
He graduated in 1974 and began his career as an assistant professor at the University of Limerick. He subsequently lectured at the universities of Strathclyde and Manchester before moving to the European University Institute of Florence in 1979. He moved to the University of Leiden in the Netherlands in 1987 and was appointed professor of comparative politics in 1994. In 2005 he returned to Florence and was appointed head of the department of political and social sciences in 2007.
Prof Mair specialised in the study of party and party systems and has written a number of books on the subject. He was co-author of Representative Government in Modern Europe , the fifth edition of which was published this year. He was also co-author of Identity, Competition and Electoral Availability, which was awarded the prestigious Stein Rokkan prize. Peter Mair served the comparative political science community by editorships of the internationally reputed European Journal of Political Science and of West European Politics.
Peter was a person of great charm, a congenial colleague and always encouraging students. We grieve over his loss and sympathize with his family he left behind too early and too soon.
On behalf of the department of Political Science
Prof. Hans Keman (VU University)
Chair in Comparative Political Science
Student assistent Trineke Palm publishes Working Paper
Trineke Palm, student assistant at the Department of Political Science, has published a working paper in the double-blind refereed Compasss Working Paper Series. The title of the article is ‘Embedded in social cleavages: An explanation of the variation in timing of women’s suffrage’ and can be found here.
Launch Amsterdam Global Change Institute
On Thursday 16th June 2011 the faculty of Social Sciences together with the faculties of Earth and Life Sciences, Economics and Business Administration will present the Amsterdam Global Change Institute (AGCI). This new venture at VU University will carry out excellent interdisciplinary research on global change, sustainability and the environment. Through more integrated research AGCI will contribute to informing and shaping societal choices and innovations.Daniel Heinsiusaward 2010 for Political Science Graduate Tom Hylands
The Department of Political Science proudly announces that Tom Hylands, graduate of the Social Research Master, track Political Science, has won the Daniel Heinsiusaward 2010 for the best thesis in political science written in the Netherlands and Flanders. The award for his thesis entitled 'Fat Government, Thin Populace? The Role of Social Policy in Obesity Outcomes' was conferred at the Politicologenetmaal on 9 June 2011. Barbara Vis supervised Tom and Hans Keman was the second reader.Lectures by staff members
Naná de Graaff is invited to speak at the seminar event - 'Geographies of Energy Transition' - at the Royal Geographical Society, London on Friday 17th June 2011.
Wolfgang Wagner organised a session on “Domestic Politics and International Security“ for the 10th Belgian-Dutch Political Science Conference to be held on June 9 and 10 in Amsterdam, together with Tomas Baum (Flemish Peace Institute)
On 28 May, 2011, Barbara Vis has given a talk about whether the welfare state will survive the crisis at the VU Alumniday 2011. This talk is followed by responses from and discussions with among others Wouter Bos (former party leader of the Social Democratic Party) and Ab Klink (former minister of Health).
Bastiaan van Apeldoorn has given a guest lecture entitled ‘From Lisbon to Europe 2020: Neoliberal European Governance in Crisis or Phoenix Arising?’ at the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence at the Copenhagen Business School, Copenhagen, Denmark, May 18 2011
Wolfgang Wagner presented a paper on “Positive and Negative Integration in European Criminal Law cooperation” at the European University Institute on May 12th.
Ben Crum presented a paper on the question “Is there a role for political parties in international politics?” at the Match Points seminar in Aarhus 12-14 May.
Workshop ‘Transnational Social Justice in the European Union and its Implications for Global Justice’, Amsterdam 10 and 11 June.
In the framework of the EU RECON-program, the VU Department of Political Science organizes a two-day international workshop on transnational social justice in the EU and its implications for global justice. The workshop departs from the observation that duties of social redistribution have traditionally been limited within the confines of the nation-state and that any transnational redistributions were considered as forms of charity or aid rather than arising as political obligations. However, cosmopolitans have challenged this division by insisting that we do have pressing socio-economic obligations to the global poor. Indeed, in an era of expanding global governance, one can argue that such duties become ever more compelling. At the same time, in the European Union, socio-economic conditions have increasingly become interdependent across borders, as is highlighted by the current financial crisis. Even if there is no pan-European welfare state, the European involvement with for instance Greece clearly goes beyond mere charity or aid.
This workshop brings together political scientists, philosophers, sociologists and lawyers to reflect upon the possible implications of these developments for the emergence of social obligations across national borders.
Special issue Journal International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economices
Philipp Pattberg (with Michelle Betsill and Elini Dellas) just published a special issue for the Journal International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics on “Agency in Earth System Governance”.
Frank Biermann appointed to UNEP's High Level Expert Panel
Professor of Environmental Policy and Political Science at the VU University, Frank Biermann, has been appointed to the High-Level Expert Panel in a new foresight initiative of the United Nations Environment Programme.
This panel shall inform the UN system and the greater policy community about the global environmental issues that need most attention over the next years. The process shall influence UNEP's programme of work as well as that of other UN agencies. Most importantly, the results of the foresight initiative will provide a significant input to the "Rio+20" UN Conference on Sustainable Development scheduled to take place in May 2012. The Expert Panel consists of 20 distinguished scientists from around the world, chaired by the UNEP Chief Scientist.
NWO grant for research in distributive effects of global environmental governance
Markets may be effective in solving environmental problems – but are their outcomes also fair?
Prof. Dr. Frank Biermann has been awarded an Open Competition grant by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO). The project “Markets as Solution to Transnational Public Policy Problems? An Analysis of the Problem-solving and Distributive Effects of Market-based Governance Mechanisms” will receive a grant of 208,000 euros. It will be conducted in close collaboartion with the international research programme “Earth System Governance Project”.
Distributive effects of global environmental governance
In many areas of international environmental policy, the creation of international markets has been strongly promoted. Examples include global emission trading, voluntary carbon markets, regional markets in fishing rights, or the financial and tradable compensation for the non-use of natural resources and the protection of forests. Professor Frank Biermann and PhD student Eleni Dellas and will now study whether, and how, transnational market-based governance mechanisms can help address global environmental challenges, such as global warming. Their research will not only look at the effectiveness of market-based governance, but also at the distributive effects. Markets may be effective in solving environmental problems – but are their outcomes also fair?
New PhD students and guest in the department
As of 1 September, the department of political science has four new PhD students, Jeanine Bezuijen, Benjamin Neudorfer, Michal Onderco and Jerome Schaefer. Moreover, in the first semester 2010/2011, Natascha Neudorfer is an official guest in the department as well as a fellow in the ERC Advanced Grant project 'Causes and Consequences of Multilevel Governance' of Liesbet Hooghe and Gary Marks.Kees van Kersbergen, Henk Overbeek and Matthias Stepan at EU Workshop in Chengdou
Kees van Kersbergen, Henk Overbeek and Matthias Stepan have been invited to a workshop in Chengdou, 'The European Union after the Lisbon: Opportunities and Challenges', 7-9 May 2010.
The workshop has brought together the leading scholars in European Studies in China and a number of distinguished European scholars in the field.
Kees van Kersbergen discussed European Social Governance, Henk Overbeek the Political and Economic Diplomacy of the EU, and Matthias Stepan presented research on the Open Method of Coordination.
The week following the workshop, they gave lectures on European Integration and visited the Graduate Forum providing comments and suggestions to the PhD candidates in European Studies of Sichuan University who presented their research.
PhD Workshop Democracy in Transformation, 18/19 June 2010 in Amsterdam
Gijs Schumacher is organising a PhD workshop on 'Democracy in Transformation', 18/19 June 2010 in Amsterdam.
Confirmed speakers include Kris Deschouwer (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Liesbet Hooghe (UNC/Chapel Hill & VU Amsterdam), Ingrid van Biezen (Universiteit Leiden) and Mark Bovens (Universiteit Utrecht).
PhD students are invited to submit paper proposals (DL is 31 March). Papers should be related to our topic Democracy in Transformation. Broadly, we invite papers about the representative side of politics, namely elections, electoral systems and party behavior and parties and papers about the governance side of politics, namely public policy outputs. Specifically, some of the papers of PhDs who have signed up already are about populism, media effects, campaign strategies, the new politics of the welfare state and democratic legitimacy.
Clifton van der Linden guest doctoral researcher in the department
The department welcomes Clifton van der Linden as guest doctoral researcher for the next eight months.
Cliff is a PhD candidate in International Relations in the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto. 
He is the past-chair of the G8 Research Group at the Munk Centre for International Studies and outgoing editor-in-chief of the Journal of International Law and International Relations at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law. Cliff is examining how European integration has contributed to the manifestation of a new brand of nationalism in Western Europe over the past two decades. He is particularly interested in how and why certain practices in Western Europe have become securitized under the auspices of a liberal nationalist sentiment. His research is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Council of Canada.
Admissions open for MSc Specialisation Global Environmental Governance after successful start of new programme
Our new master specialisation Global Environmental Governance has seen a successful start this academic year 2009/10. This new programme is a unique combination of broad training in political science with intense specialised lectures and seminars on global environmental governance.
The admission procedure for new students is now open. For more information, download here the flyer and the programme for the specialisation in our MSc in Political Science, and have a look at the admissions website for the master programme.
Laura Horn wins FSW Dissertation Prize 2009
Laura Horn has won the annual faculty dissertation prize with her PhD dissertation 'The Transformation of Corporate Governance Regulation in the European Union - Towards a Marketisation of Corporate Control'. The jury recommended her dissertation for the clear theoretical framework, clear and elegant argumentation and wide range of sources. Horn's dissertation will be published in 2010 by Palgrave. For more information, see the faculty website (in Dutch).
Elsevier Ranking 2009 - Political science again voted best POL programme in the Netherlands
According to the Elsevier university ranking 2009, the BA Political Sience at the VU has been voted the best political science programme by Political Science Professors in the Netherlands for the second time in a row.
EU Profiler wins e-Democracy Award
For the past five years, the World e-Democracy Forum has rewarded those who have made a commitment to carry out meaningful political change through use of the Internet and new technologies. Together with the other 9 finalists, EU Profiler, developed by the European University Institute, will receive its trophy at the ceremony to be held during the French National Assembly on Thursday, October 22nd, in partnership with the American web portal PoliticsOnline, the Politech Institute of Europe and Blog Territorial.
At the international level, this is the most renowned award in the field of e-democracy.
The European University Institute (Florence, Italy) and its technical partners (the Swiss NCCR Democracy and the Dutch Kieskompas) developed EU Profiler at the beginning of this year. Its objective was to help EU citizens make their choice for whom to vote at this year’s European Parliament elections, as well as to analyse the political preferences and voting behaviour of the European electorate. In replying to thirty simple questions pertinent to the main issues of this electoral campaign, EU citizens could, for the first time ever, express their opinion on the most important topics relevant to the future of Europe – immigration, energy, social policies, global warming, security, unemployment and European integration. By doing so, they were able to easily identify the party that best corresponded to their expectations and ideas on the future of the European Union.
For more information on the award: http://www.edemocracy-forum.com/2009/09/the-world-edemocracy-forum-announces-finalists-of-the-2009-edemocracy-awards.html#more
Introduction programme Master in Political Science
From August 31 till September 4, the introduction of the VU Master in Political Science takes place. The full programme can downloaded as a pdf file.Annemarie van Elfrinkhof Visiting Scholar at UNC Chapel Hill, Fall Semester 2009
Annemarie van Elfrinkhof has been invited by Prof. dr. Hooghe to spend a semester at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill as a visiting scholar, starting August 25, 2009. UNC is an excellent venue for advanced training in political methodology and comparative and European Politics. It is the home of an important method for party positioning, the Chapel Hill expert survey, and is known for cross validating methods for party positioning. Annemarie is part of the CAMeRa project Text to Political Positions and her training at UNC will benefit the method that she is developing together with Isa Maks and Bertie Kaal (Faculty of Arts) to extract the positions of political parties from texts.
Annual Report 2008 of the Department of Political Science now available!
The annual report of the Department of Political Science is now available for download here.
The report covers the profile of the Teaching Curriculum and gives an outline of the progress of our Research Programme 'Multi-layered Governance in EUrope and beyond'. Also, it provides an overview of the international co-operation, publications as well as Academic and Professional Activities of the members of the department.
Arjan Schakel awarded a Newton International Fellowship
The department congratulates Arjan Schakel, who has been awarded a Newton International 
Fellowship. This scheme is run by the British Academy, The Royal Academy of Engineering and the Royal Society. For the next two years Arjan will be working on a project at the Territorial Politics Groups at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.
The title of the research project is 'Regional reform and territorialization of party systems'. More information and the award can be found at the Newton International Fellowships website.
Transatlantic Master in European Politics
On May 12th, 2009, a meeting took place at the Department at which the cooperation between our Department and the Center for European Studies of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (the ‘other’ home of our colleagues Liesbet Hooghe and Gary Marks) was sealed with the signing of the official document by John Stephens, Director of the Center for European Studies, and Kees van Kersbergen, Head of Department of the VU Political Science Department. Under the terms of the agreement, up to 10 graduate students from the UNC Transatlantic Master in European Politics program will spend a full academic year at our Department taking part in the MSc Political Science program. In September 2009, the first group of five UNC students will arrive in Amsterdam to enrich our Master programme.
Model United Nations workshop, 4/5 June
Will you solve the conflict in Congo?
The department of Political Science, in cooperation with SAMUN and EOS, is organising a Model United Nations (MUN) workshop for all Political Science students on 4 and 5 June 2009. Led by experts from SAMUN, the UN simulation is free and open to ALL students (BA, PMC, MA, PhD, alumni).
This workshop is your chance to get first hand experience of how the UN system works, how countries can cooperate (or not) and why, despite all our theories and concepts, the bodies are still piling up. Each student will represent ONE country. The case we’ll be discussing and negotiating is the conflict in Congo, and how to react to it. All study materials and the rules of procedure will be provided.
If you want to register for the MUN, or would like more information, please send an email with your name, student number (if applicable) and a very short motivation on why you want to participate and which country you would want to represent to Naná de Graaff:na.de.graaff@fsw.vu.nl. The deadline for registration is 11 May 2009!
Dr. Ian Budge (Essex) International Research Fellow in our department
As of 1 April Dr. Ian Budge will be International Research Fellow in our department. Ian Budge is Honorary Research Professor at the University of Essex. His research focus is, broadly, on democratic theory from a comparative perspective.
He is the author or co-author of some twenty volumes and sixty monographs on democratic theory and practice, most recently Elections, Parties and Democracy (2006). He is the founder of the international Comparative Manifesto Research Project, to which Hans Keman and Paul Pennings have also contributed. Together with Hans Keman and Jaap Woldendorp he is managing the Party Government Data Set.
Workshop 'With or without Lisbon: continuous institutional change in the EU' 15-16 May 2009
Amsterdam, 15-16 May 2009
Venue: Felix Meritis, Amsterdam
This workshop is organised within RECON's WP 2 - The Constitutionalisation of the EU, the Europeanisation of National Constitutions, and Constitutionalism Compared.
After the demise of the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe and the rejection of the Lisbon Reform Treaty in the referendum in Ireland, the prospects for formal EU reform by Treaty revision look rather gloomy. Even if the Lisbon Treaty will eventually be passed, new Treaty negotiations are unlikely to be anticipated for the first time in 25 years.
Still, it would be too quick to conclude that the EU’s institutional evolution has come to a standstill. Scholarly analysis has pointed out how also in the absence of formal Treaty change, EU institutions and the norms governing them have been subject to ‘informal change’. A classical case in point is the jurisprudence of the ECJ that on some rather momentous occasions rather sought to elaborate the spirit of the Treaties than to follow them by the letter. In more recent years, in particular the European Parliament but also some elements in the Council of Ministers have separately and in collaboration been remarkably active in developing new modes of operation where the Treaties remain silent.
This workshop is to reflect upon the potential of institutional change that has emerged in the shadow of the attempts to move to a new Treaty. It does so by focussing on three sets of institutions: the European Parliament, the role of national parliaments in the EU architecture, and the European and national courts. The focus on these three institutions is motivated by a particular interest in the role that normative ideas may play in driving and justifying informal institutional change. Here we think in the first place of normative ideas like the idea of ‘popular sovereignty’ in the case of parliaments and the idea of ‘basic rights’ in the case of courts, but one might also think of the idea of ‘national sovereignty’.
Among the questions to be pursued are thus:
What institutional changes have taken place since the beginning of the Laeken process?And what potential for future changes has been opened up?
How do these changes relate to the proposals that have been part of the formal Treaty re-
negotiations? Do they, for instance, anticipate them or rather respond to them?What causes the opportunities for institutional change to arise and to be successfully carried through? And to what extent are normative ideas essential in providing them with a normative and practical justification?
What do these findings bode for the prospects of future Treaty change or even a renewed attempt to constitutionalise the Union on the basis of popular engagement and consent?
For more information, please contact Ben Crum (co-leader WP 2)
MSc Political Science - Global Environmental Governance track
From the academic year 2009/10 onwards there will be a third specialisation in our MSc programme. Whereas students until now had the choice between a specialisation in International Relations & Transnational Governance or Comparative & European Politics, students can now also choose to take modules in the Global Environmental Governance track. This consists of a course on Selected Issues in Global Environmental Governance and a Workshop in Governance for Sustainable Development. The new specialisation has been set up in cooperation with the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM), in particular Prof. Frank Biermann and Dr. Philipp Pattberg.
This new programme is a unique combination of broad training in political science with intense specialised lectures and seminars on global environmental governance. In the first part of the programme, students will get a solid foundation in political theory, methods of political science, and international relations. In the second part, they will specialise in global environmental governance, with emphasis on the new actors, mechanisms and interlinkages in this important field of international relations. Students will finalise their studies with an MSc thesis, which may be written in conjunction with the many large-scale international research projects already underway at the Institute for Environmental Studies of the VU University Amsterdam. The Institute's department on Environmental Policy Analysis was evaluated in 2007 as the top research department in the Netherlands in its field; students in this new MSc programme can also rely on the department's extensive international networks, such as the Europe-wide Global Governance Project (www.glogov.org) and the worldwide Earth System Governance Project (www.earthsystemgovernance.org).
The new MSc programme is demanding in its combination of a disciplinary focus on political science within a multidisciplinary field of study. It unites challenging academic work with the search for practical solutions and policy reform. It is targeted at students with both academic and practical career objectives, and it is decidedly international in approach. Moreover, as a one-year programme it can be particularly appealing to those who may prefer a shorter timeframe for their academic pursuits. Finally, it is located in one of the most fascinating cities in Europe, known not only for its vibrant cultural life and architectural beauty, but also for its strong environmental policies, with more bicycles per inhabitant than cars.
See this flyer (pdf) for more information on the MA specialisation. More information will be available on this website soon. Please contact us at info.fsw@vu.nl if you have any questions!
Kees van Kersbergen back in the department after research stay in Konstanz
Kees van Kersbergen, head of the department of Political Science, has returned from a research stay at the University of Konstanz. From January - October 2008, Kees has been working in the context of the 'Kulturwissenschaftliche Kolleg Konstanz'.
His work has mainly focused on finalizing the theoretical introduction to an edited volume titled “Religion, Class Coalitions, and Welfare State Regimes” and completing the manuscript of this edited volume and preparing it for publication. The aim of the book (edited with Philip Manow from the University of Konstanz) is to re-asses the role of religion in modern welfare state development. This is essential for understanding the historical causes of the marked institutional differences between Europe’s welfare regimes and for better understanding the present functioning logic of Europe’s different political economies. The work radically reviews established knowledge in comparative historical welfare state studies and introduces a new perspective on why and how religion shaped modern social protection systems.
Dr. Stuart Shields (Manchester) Guest Researcher in the Department
In November, January and March Stuart Shields will visit our department for a series of short research stays.
Stuart is Lecturer in International Political Economy at the University of Manchester. Stuart completed his PhD on the transnational dimension of regime transformation in Eastern Central Europe at Aberystwyth's Department of International Politics, in 2002, and joined Manchester in 2003. Stuart's research interests are in International Political Economy, Eastern Europe and post-communist transition, EU enlargement, neoliberalism, and globalisation. He has been secretary of the Critical Political Economy Research Network of the European Sociological Association, and is the current convenor of the British International Studies Association International Political Economy working group.
While visiting the Vrije Universiteit Stuart will be working on the following project connected to a new collaboration with members of the department on the Limits to Neoliberal Reform and the Reemergence of State Capitalism.
The limits to neoliberalism - Populism and the 'new' Europe This project engages in a theoretical critique of the postcommunist state's role in the contestation of neoliberalism in the `new' Europe. It asks why opposition to neo-liberalism so frequently takes the form of populist and regressive nationalist appeals to workers, as right-wing movements make greater headway than the traditional left.
The paper focuses on Poland and Hungary, contemporary examples of post-communist states in the global political economy that have pursued fundamental changes within national economic, political, and social spheres of life. Recent events in these countries have challenged the established neoliberal rolled back state. In 2006 the celebrations of the 1956 revolution provoked neo-Nazi demonstrations that were brutally put down by the Hungarian police. From 2005 to 2007, Poland's right wing populist government was actively involved in high-profile attacks on gay rights, favoured the reintroduction of the death penalty, and demanded a complete ban on abortion. The project seeks to explain the character of the rejection of neoliberalism in these cases, and the absence of a left alternative. By interrogating what has happened to labour in the new Europe since 2004 the project explores how and why the `genuine' anti-capitalist alternative has come from the right wing with the pro-welfare position now dominated by politically regressive nationalist forces.
Stuart's visit is funded under the British Council NWO UK-Netherlands Partnership Programme in Science jointly run and financed by the British Council and Platform Bèta Techniek.
International Research Seminar - Dr. Ian Bruff, Edge Hill University (UK)
International Research Seminar (IRS), Friday 28 November,
15.00 – 17.00 (Z009, Metropolitan Building).
'A Critical Analysis of the Dutch and German Varieties of Capitalism: Wassenaar, the Alliance for Jobs and post-2001 Developments'
Dr. Ian Bruff
The presentation will be based on Ian Bruff's recent book publication, Culture and Consensus in European Varieties of Capitalism: A "Common Sense" Analysis (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan).
A sample chapter of the book is available at the publisher's website. The paper on which the presentation is based will be distributed in time.
We welcome you to join us for the discussion and drinks afterwards.
Political Science at VU University voted best POL programme in the Netherlands
In a recent poll amongst Political Science professors, senior lecturers and students in the Netherlands, the political science programme at the VU University Amsterdam has been voted the best POL study programme in the country.In the Elsevier Faculty Rating, the quality of the members of staff and their academic work, as well as the BA and MA programmes have been assessed.
For more information (in Dutch), see this link to Elsevier Magazine.
The department is delighted by this recognition of its efforts to continually improve its study programme, and will of course remain committed to its high standards.
Guest researcher in the Department
In cooperation between the KNAW and the Chinese Academy for Social Sciences (CASS), Dr. MO Wei of the Institute of European Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing has joined our department for one month.
She is Associate Professor of the Institute of European Studies at CASS, the Editor of the Chinese Journal of European Studies and a part-time lawyer of the Bagui Law Firm. Her research, in the field of International Economic Law, focuses on the legal aspects of the EU trade system. Her current research project is concerned with the politics and legal frictions between the EU and China over anti-dumping policies.
Recent and forthcoming publications by members of the department
Dr. Barbara Vis (2009) 'Governments and unpopular social policy reform: Biting the bullet or steering clear?' forthcoming 2009 in European Journal of Political Research
Abstract
Under which conditions and to what extent do governments pursue unpopular social policy reforms for which they might be punished in the next election? This article shows that there exists substantial cross-cabinet variation in the degree to which governments take unpopular measures and argues that current studies cannot adequately explain this variation. Using insights from prospect theory, a psychological theory of choice under risk, this study hypothesises that governments only engage in unpopular reform if they face a deteriorating socio-economic situation, a falling political position, or both. If not, they shy away from the risk of reform. A fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fs/QCA) of the social policy reform activities pursued by German, Dutch, Danish and British cabinets between 1979 and 2005 identifies a deteriorating socio-economic situation as necessary for unpopular reform. It is only sufficient for triggering reform, however, if the political position is also deteriorating and/or the cabinet is of rightist composition. This study's findings further the scholarly debate on the politics of welfare state reform by offering a micro-foundation that helps one to understand what induces political actors aspiring to be re-elected to engage in electorally risky unpopular reform.
drs. Jasper de Raadt (2009) ‘Contestable Constitutions: Ambiguity, Conflict, and Change in East Central European Dual Executive Systems’ forthcoming 2009 in Communist and Post-Communist Studies
Abstract
This article investigates how ambiguous constitutional design affected president-cabinet relations, and constitutional change in post-communist Poland and Hungary. Constitutional provisions related to the prerogatives of presidents and governments were frequently subject to political conflict during the 1990s. The power struggle in the two cases developed and consolidated along two distinct patterns. In Poland, failed attempts to modify the constitution initially stirred up and extended intra-executive conflicts. With the adoption of a new constitution in 1997 the struggle over power between president and council of ministers was finally settled. In Hungary constitutional court rulings were instrumental in the settlement of president-cabinet conflicts.
See the latest newsletter
Newsletter 22 (07 August 2008)
Research Output 2007
For an overview of the department's research output in 2007, please see the document below.
Annual Report 2007
Bibliography Dutch Politics (1998-2008)
A bibliography of Dutch politics compiled by Dr. Jaap Woldendorp is now published on our website.
Bibliography Dutch politics
Workshop on the Politics of Change
The Department of Political Science at the VU Amsterdam and the Center for European Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill are hosting a two-day workshop on party politics, elections, and public opinion entitled "The Politics of Change." The event will take place on June 13-14 at the Felix Meritis in Amsterdam and is open to all NIG members. Further information about the workshop, including a detailed program, can be found by clicking on the link below. If you would like to attend, please feel free to contact the workshop organizers.
More information
Contact the organizers
Voting Advice Applications conference with Electoral Compass
On May 16 (Friday) the University of Antwerp and Electoral Compass will organise a conference under the title Voting Advice Applications (VAAs): between charlatanism and political science. For more information or to register for this conference, please do not hesitate to contact the organizers.
More information
Contact Electoral Compass
"The roots of China's Foreign Policy: Lessons for the future"
A group of students from the LLM “Law and Politics of International Security”, together with Kenneth Manusama from the Law faculty organise a conference on Chinese foreign policy which you are invited to attend. The conference takes place on 6 March 2008 15.00-18.30.
China conference flyer
More information
Installation of our Advisory Board
In the context of our continuous efforts to improve the quality of our teaching the Department of Political Science has set up an Advisory Board. The Advisory Board of Political Science has been installed and met for the first time November 26, 2007. The Department is very grateful to the members of the Advisory Board for their willingness to spend some of their valuable time to help us in improving our curricula. As the first meeting demonstrated, the advice of independent fellow academics as well as leading alumni of our Department can be a very valuable source of suggestions and ideas and thus play an indispensable role in monitoring the quality of our teaching. For more information on the Advisory Board and its members see under the new link Advisory Board.
Advisory Board
PhD Supervisor award for Bastiaan van Apeldoorn
Bastiaan van Apeldoorn has received the NIG PhD supervisor of the year award at the NIG conference at the Tilburg University. It was the first time the Netherlands Institute of Governance handed out such an award.
Bastiaan van Apeldoorn
Succesful VU Dissertations
On September 27, Catherine de Vries-Netjes defended her dissertation ‘European Integration and National Elections’ very successfully. She received her title with distinction (cum laude). Catherine is currently working at Leiden University.
Tanja Aalberts, who defended her dissertation ‘The Politics of Sovereignty’ at the VU university in 2006, received the John Blondel PhD Prize at the ECPR General Conference in Pisa. She already received the PhD prize of the Dutch political science association in May 2007. Tanja is also currently working at Leiden University.
More information on the ECPR PhD Prize
New working paper online
Marcus Taylor's paper 'Rethinking the Global Production of Uneven Development' is published in our working paper series. This paper argues that reconceptualising the relationship between production and uneven development is an important step in overcoming what have been termed ‘anachronistic approaches’ in contemporary development theory.
Marcus Taylor (Queens University, Canada)
Working papers
Sichuan University: VU Professors in China
Our department cooperates closely with the European Studies Center of Sichuan University in Chengdu (PRC). Hans Keman (left) and Kees van Kersbergen (right) have been teaching intensive two-week courses at Sichuan University in the period 14-25 May, and are here seen posing in front of the new main building of Sichuan University during a break between their lectures
Sichuan University
Summer School 2006: Report
The 2006 parties summer school 'Democracy in Europe: European Politics and Multi-level Governance' was organised by our department. All papers and a report by the local organisers are now available on the summer school website. The 2007 summer school will take place in Florence.
Summer school report 2006.pdf
