Course name: “Interest Groups in Decision-making”
Faculty: Department of Applied Political Science, National Research University Higher School of Economics
Level of education : Bachelor level
Author: Anna Tarasenko, PhD in Political Science, Lecturer (Department of Applied Political
Science, National Research University Higher School of Economics)
Prerequisites
Students who plan to attend the course “Interest groups in decision-making” are expected to possess basic knowledge on the main categories of political science such as power division, federalism, political parties and elections, representative democracy as well as basic facts about contemporary Russian political system. Students are to have analytical skills, should be ready to implement analytical frameworks for the analysis of given empirical situations, phenomena.
Despite the fact that the course itself aims at developing English language academic skills, students need to be able to read and understand academic language, formulate and express their opinion in a clear way. Therefore intermediate and upper-intermediate level of English skills is required for successful attendance and passing of the course.
The course aims at studying the patterns of interest groups’ development and their role in decision-making process in contemporary societies. The course is focused on such interest groups as business, trade unions, nonprofit organizations and bureaucracy. The topic is to be studied on that basis of empirical evidences from Russia, Western and Eastern Europe. Students are expected to learn theoretical approaches which will allow them to conduct analysis of empirical phenomena from different social and political contexts. The range of theoretical and analytical concepts include the following: Mankur Olson’s “dilemma of collective action”, the concept of rent-seeking activity derived from economics, pluralist and neocorporatist perspectives of interest groups intermediation with the state, interrelation between functional and political representation in democracy, concepts of negotiation in multi-level governance.
Goals and benefits of the course:

To extend and shape a systematic knowledge about the role of interest groups in contemporary society and built it in common knowledge on political system functioning;
 To introduce up to date theories on interest groups’ emergence and development drawing on recent researches in political science and economics;

To train academic skills to define interest groups, analyze their particularities and their role in decision-making relying on acquired theoretical and empirical knowledge.
Competencies:
Common competencies
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Skills
A skill to clearly understand and be able to use contemporary methodology and theoretical conceptions
Educational methods
Reading analytical papers and academic literature and conducting analytical tasks
(homework, individual tasks)
A skill to built argumentation and explicitly express own position in English language
A skill of making generalizations and represent ideas coherently in English language
A skill to effectively work in small groups and represent results of collective discussion
Reading analytical papers and academic literature, making presentations, work in groups
Introduction of theoretical approaches, learning of the main notions and terms (work in groups and individual tasks)
Arrangement of discussions in small groups which are to complete short tasks and represent the results
Special competencies
Skills
A skill to understand and being able to apply contemporary theoretical and methodological approaches
A skill to conduct analysis of empirical data based on methodology of political and social sciences
A skill of complex estimation of political and social situation from different theoretical and methodological perspectives
Educational methods
To learn theoretical approaches and methodology of their application for the empirical situations though studying contemporary academic literature on a given topic
To explore empirical data (using internet resources) and conduct analysis (preparation of final analysis of the interest group in Russia)
To arrange discussion in small groups with the task to represent argumentation from various theoretical and methodological perspectives (techniques of critical thinking)
Course content and distribution of hours:
№ Theme
1.
Lecture: Interest groups: definition and classification.
Strategies and resources of interest groups in decision making. The definition and measurement of common good. Mancur Olson. The Logic of Collective Action
2.
Lecture: The dilemma of collective actions and the problem of selective incentives
Seminar: Budget bargaining as a case of collective action
(Shirikov, Olson)
Interest groups in Russian political system: federal and regional level. Cross-sectoral conflicts and contention between federal and regional level of governance. Rentseeking activity and redistributive coalitions
3.
Lecture: Transformation of the welfare system and rentseeking activity of interest groups (welfare stakeholders).
Principal – agent problem (agency dilemma)
Seminar: The intermediation of the main interest groups
(federal and regional) in the process of the social system transformation in contemporary Russia
4.
Lecture: Administrative reform and political regime as
Class hours Self-study
2
4
2
4
2
4
5
5
10
10
2

specific settings for interest groups activity in contemporary Russia. Neo-corporatist approach for analysis of state – society relations: possibilities and limitations. The definition of clienteles
Seminar: Business associations and consultative bodies as neo-corporatist entities in contemporary Russia
(Peregudov, Zudin, Petrov)
5.
Lecture: Pluralist perspective in political science and the concept of democracy. Dahl: who governs? Theodore
Lowi’s interpretation of interest group’s role
Seminar: The analysis of decision making process civic movement in contemporary Russia from the point of collective action?
6.
Test in LMS. To choose interest groups for the analysis
2
4
2
10
Lecture: Interest groups in European Union. The particularity of decision making and the role of interest groups
7.
Movie and discussion “Functional and political interest representation and performance of political system”.
Nondemocratic regimes with interest represented can be sustainable and effective in providing common goods
(basic social rights). Colloquium
8.
Final discussion, preparation for project presentations
9.
Project presentations
Total hours: 108
2
2
2
2
3
10
5
10
5
38 70
Pedagogical methods
In order to train analytical skills a special method of work with academic notions and terms is introduced. Work on the following definitions: rent-seeking activity, selective incentives, common good, redistributive coalitions, free-rider problem involve two main methods.

To introduce a complex definition (for example, neo-corporatism, poliarchy)
Please, read the hand-out and reflect on the question by yourself and take notes (10 minutes).
Built groups of 2-3, exchange your results and discuss them. Each group presents results in plenum. Results will be noted and clustered in form of a Mind Map (different definitions of the notion).

To remember definitions and keep the differences
Pick a notion and give 3 main characteristics which define it. Share these characteristics with your partner and ask to guess what notion it describes.
Assessment
Type of testing Form of testing Parameters
3

Current Individual brief presentations on the basis of reading materials during the seminars
Test in LMS
Students are to show their understanding and critical evaluation of the reading materials
Intermediate
Final test Analysis of given interest group
The test includes main categories and concepts have been studied and is to evaluate the knowledge and understanding of the main topic of the course
The final task for the course is to conduct analysis of interest group from the point of theoretical and methodological approaches which were studied. This task includes main spots of analysis and implies individual work as well as work in groups (maximum 3 students in a group). The analysis is to be represented by each student on the final class.
Particular intermediate estimation is planed during the course: intermediate test (in the middle of the course) and short tasks on classes which will allow monitoring of the knowledge and skills acquired.
The reading materials:
1.
Зубаревич Н. Регионы и города России: сценарии-2020. Pro et Contra. 2011 № 1-2
(Январь - Апрель). С. 57 - 71
2.
Петров Н. (2011). Региональные элиты-2010: двадцать лет спустя, в: 20 лет падения
Берлинской стены: прорыв к свободе / под ред. Н.Бубновой. Моск. Центр Карнеги.
– М.: Российская политическая энциклопедия (РОССЭПН), 291 с.
3.
Голосов Г. (2001). Сравнительная политология. Изд. Европейского университета
4.
Олсон М. (1995). Логика коллективных действий: общественные блага и теория групп. Пер. с англ. / М. Олсон. М.: Фонд Экономической Инициативы, 1995. 165 с.
5.
Шириков А. (2010). Анатомия бездействия: политические институты и конфликты в бюджетном процессе регионов России. Изд-во Европейского университета
6.
Cook L. (2007). Postcommunist welfare states: reforms and politics in Russia and
Eastern Europe. Cornell University Press, 2007
7.
Interest Groups. Pluralism versus Corporatism. Chapter 9. Patterns of Democracy.
Government forms and Performance in Thirty-Six Countries. Arend Lijphart. Yale
University Press, 1999. P. 171 – 184
8.
Olson M. (1982). The Rise and Decline of Nations: Economic Growth, Stagflation and
Social Rigidities. Yale University Press
9.
Urbinati Т., Warren M. (2008). The Concept of Representation in Contemporary
Democratic Theory. The Annual Review of Political Science, 2008, 11: 387 – 412
10.
Schmitter Ph. Still the Century of Corporatism? // The New Corporatism. Social-political
Structures in the Iberian World. / F. Pike and T. Stritch (eds.). London: University of
Notre Dame Press, 1974. P. 85 – 131
Contact person : Anna Tarasenko, anjatarasenko@gmail.com
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