Universität Wien

400018 SE Relational Theories of Politics: Navigating the Political in Times of Crisis (2025W)

Theorieseminar

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 40 - Doktoratsstudium Sozialwissenschaften
Prüfungsimmanente Lehrveranstaltung
VOR-ORT
Moodle
Mo 15.12. 09:45-14:45 Seminarraum 19, Kolingasse 14-16, OG02

An/Abmeldung

Hinweis: Ihr Anmeldezeitpunkt innerhalb der Frist hat keine Auswirkungen auf die Platzvergabe (kein "first come, first served").

Details

max. 15 Teilnehmer*innen
Sprache: Englisch

Lehrende

Termine (iCal) - nächster Termin ist mit N markiert

  • Montag 06.10. 13:15 - 15:45 Seminarraum 5, Kolingasse 14-16, EG00
  • Montag 10.11. 09:45 - 14:45 Seminarraum 8, Kolingasse 14-16, OG01
  • Montag 19.01. 09:45 - 14:45 Seminarraum 19, Kolingasse 14-16, OG02
  • Montag 26.01. 13:15 - 14:45 Seminarraum 9, Kolingasse 14-16, OG01

Information

Ziele, Inhalte und Methode der Lehrveranstaltung

Lecturer: Anna Pospech-Durnova

This seminar explores relational approaches to politics, emphasizing the interconnectedness of social, political, and cultural forces in shaping political realities. In an era marked by multiple and overlapping crises-climate change, social inequality, health emergencies, and geopolitical instability-the course investigates how the political manifests in diverse and often unexpected forms.

Central to this inquiry is a focus on making visible marginal voices and uncovering the relational dynamics that sustain power structures, resistance, and transformation. Participants will critically engage with theoretical frameworks and case studies that highlight the importance of relationships, networks, and context in political processes. Themes such as soft skills in politics, grassroots movements, coalition-building, and the role of affect, empathy, and care in governance will be explored.

The seminar seeks to:
Challenge conventional notions of politics by centering relational and intersectional perspectives.
Examine how power operates through everyday practices and relationships, beyond institutionalized politics.
Highlight the agency of marginalized actors and communities in reshaping political landscapes.
Bring forward the understanding of the soft skills-such as negotiation, empathy, and listening-that enable relational politics.
Through interdisciplinary readings, discussions, and projects, students will grapple with the complexities of relational politics in contexts of crisis, drawing from sociology, political science, international development, and related fields. This course aims to equip participants with a nuanced understanding of how relational theories can inform research and practice, fostering approaches that are inclusive, dialogical, and transformative.

Art der Leistungskontrolle und erlaubte Hilfsmittel

Regular attendance & active participation in class
Development and presentation of own research project (max 50 points)
Commenting (orally and/or in writing) on other participants' research projects (max 50 points)

Mindestanforderungen und Beurteilungsmaßstab

Regular attendance & active participation in class
Development and presentation of own research project (max 50 points)
Commenting (orally and/or in writing) on other participants' research projects (max 50 points)

Prüfungsstoff

The texts assigned to the sessions

Literatur

Alexander, J. C. (2018). The Societalization of Social Problems: Church Pedophilia, Phone Hacking, and the Financial Crisis. American Journal Of Sociology, 83(6), 1049-1078. https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122418803376

Bacchi, C. (2005). Discourse, Discourse Everywhere: Subject "Agency" in Feminist Discourse Methodology. NORA - Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research, 13(3), 198-209. https://doi.org/10.1080/08038740600600407

Durnová, A., & Hejzlarová, E. (2017). Framing policy designs through contradictory emotions: The case of Czech single mothers. Public Policy and Administration, 33(4), 409-427. https://doi.org/10.1177/0952076717709524

Elbe, S., Vorlícek, D., & Brenner, D. (2023). Rebels, vigilantes and mavericks: heterodox actors in global health governance. European Journal of International Relations, 29(4), 903-928. https://doi.org/10.1177/13540661221146533

Fraser, N. (2021). Rethinking the public sphere: A contribution to the critique of actually existing democracy. In Public Space Reader (pp. 34-41). Routledge.

Hajer, M. (2005). Rebuilding ground zero. The politics of performance. Planning Theory & Practice, 6(4), 445-464.

Horgan, M. (2012). Strangers and Strangership. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 33(6), 607-622. https://doi.org/10.1080/07256868.2012.735110

Howarth, D. (2010). Power, discourse, and policy: articulating a hegemony approach to critical policy studies [doi: 10.1080/19460171003619725]. Critical Policy Studies, 3(3-4), 309-335. https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171003619725

Jasanoff, S. (2003). Ordering Knowledge, Ordering Society. In States of Knowledge (pp. 155- 180). Routledge.

Linke, G. (2011). The public, the private, and the intimate: Richard Sennett's and Lauren Berlant's cultural criticism in dialogue. Biography, 34(1), 11-24.

McGoey, L. (2016). An Introduction to the Sociology of Ignorance: Essays on the Limits of Knowing. Routledge.

Orsini, M. (2021). Feeling critical: navigating the emotional worlds of COVID-19. Critical Policy Studies, 15(3), 387-397. https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2021.1963793

Paterson, S., & Larios, L. (2021). Emotional problems: policymaking and empathy through the lens of transnational motherhood. Critical Policy Studies, 15(3), 273-291. https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2020.1752760

Smith, P., & Howe, N. (2015). Climate change as social drama: Global warming in the public sphere. Cambridge University Press.

Zerilli, L. M. G. (2015). The Turn to Affect and the Problem of Judgment. New literary history, 46, 286. https://doi.org/10.1353/nlh.2015.0019

Zuordnung im Vorlesungsverzeichnis

Letzte Änderung: Mo 22.09.2025 09:47