The aim of the course is to provide students with adequate knowledge of EU institutions and actors and to develop an understanding of the EU political process dynamics and peculiarities. The goal is to promote the comprehension of the nature of EU politics and of the issues that characterize it, and to develop critical skills to evaluate the debates surrounding it.
Course Prerequisites
Familiarity with basic concepts in Political Science
Teaching Methods
Lectures. Possible lectures by guest lecturers on specific issues.
Assessment Methods
Written exam: multiple choice and open ended questions.
Texts
Power point presentations available on KIRO. Marco Brunazzo e Vincent Della Sala, La politica dell'Unione Europea, Milano, Mondadori, 2019 (Chapters 1 to 10). Neill Nugent, Governo e politiche dell'Unione europea 1: Storia e teorie dell'integrazione, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2008 (Capitoli 1 e 9).
As an English language alternative: Neill Nugent, The Government and Politics of the European Union, London, Palgrave, 2017 (Chapters 1 to 5; 9 to 13; 24 and 25).
Contents
The course starts with an introduction of the origins and trajectories of development of EU integration, and subsequently develops on the main theoretical paradigms explaining the process of EU integration and the EU policy process. After that, the course moves to an in depth analysis of EU main institutions (Commission, Council of Ministers, European Council, Parliament and European Court of Justice), the EU decision making process, EU elections, and the multiple crisis that affected the EU in last decades.
Course Language
Italian
More information
Power point presentations and further and optional readings are posted on the course website on the KIRO Platform. Erasmus and international students may have an alternative reading list in English and write the exam in English.
