Populist forces in Europe are on the rise with parties like the National Rally in France and the Polish Law and Justice enjoying significant support of the population. While these parties often...Show morePopulist forces in Europe are on the rise with parties like the National Rally in France and the Polish Law and Justice enjoying significant support of the population. While these parties often focus on issues of immigration or security, their stance on LGBT rights is often less clear. Mudde's ideational approach describes populism as a “thin-centred ideology” dividing society into “the elite” and “the people,” implying that populists believe that there is no need for minority protection as the people are seen as “homogenous.” Populist parties in Western Europe, however, sometimes use LGBT rights to argue against immigration. As this trend seems to be absent from Eastern Europe, a “rainbow curtain” that divides LGBT-friendly and unfriendly populist parties could be drawn. This thesis challenges the assumption that Eastern European populism automatically opposes LGBT rights, focusing on the Czech populist movement Action of Dissatisfied Citizens (ANO). Using a discursive approach that does not assume that populists are against minority protection, the thesis examines ANO's attitudes towards LGBT rights on online news platforms and social media discourse from 2013 to 2024, with a focus on Prague Pride, same-sex adoption, and marriage, and ANO's relationship with Hungarian Fidesz. The analysis shows that ANO's attitudes are ambiguous, influenced by the politician asked (liberal vs. conservative members), timing (early enthusiastic support vs. later disregard or opposition), specific rights (same-sex unions vs. marriage and adoption), and platform (news vs. social media). Two main explanations follow from the primary source analysis. ANO's catch-all strategy to attract diverse voters and its use of LGBT rights to polarise and split the governing coalition.Show less
Literature on the effect of campaign spending by political parties mainly focuses on the US context. This thesis attempts to examine the effect of campaign spending by political parties on...Show moreLiterature on the effect of campaign spending by political parties mainly focuses on the US context. This thesis attempts to examine the effect of campaign spending by political parties on proportional systems in Western Europe, with a case study of the Netherlands. The Netherlands was chosen because of its proportional system and high electoral volatility and effective number of electoral parties compared to other Western European countries. This allows the effects of campaign spending to be more apparent relative to other Western European countries (Bekkouche et al., 2022; McAllister, 2002). This thesis focuses on campaign spending by Dutch political parties during national elections from 1998 to 2021. The results section indicates that higher campaign spending by political parties results in greater electoral gain compared to the polls two months before election day. Additionally, this thesis provides indications that campaign spending has a differentiated effect depending on the size of the party. However, it is important to interpret these findings with caution due to data collection limitations.Show less
Master thesis | European Politics and Society: Vaclav Havel Joint Master Programme
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This thesis aims to understand the reasons behind the increase in the duration of government formation negotiations in Western Europe. It argues that there is a gap in the existing scholarship on...Show moreThis thesis aims to understand the reasons behind the increase in the duration of government formation negotiations in Western Europe. It argues that there is a gap in the existing scholarship on this issue. On the one hand, scholars have noted that party systems in the region have undergone profound changes over the last decades, and particularly since the 2008 financial crisis. On the other, the effect this has had on the duration of government formation has not been as thoroughly researched. In order to explain this phenomenon, this thesis expands upon the survival analysis literature, by means of applying recent innovations to the Cox proportional hazards model, such as the Cox with Expected Durations package (Kropko & Harden, 2017, 2020). All in all, the results show that longer government formation processes can be attributed to two main phenomena: the rise in parliamentary fragmentation, and the rise in less stable legislative types as per the typology outlined by Laver and Benoit (2015). The findings of this thesis thus contribute to a better understanding of this crucial development in the Western European political landscape, which has wider implications for the stability of Western European democracies as a whole.Show less
This quantitative study investigated the relationship between the label assigned to a terrorist act and the fear of terrorism and consequent support for anti-terrorism policy in Western Europe....Show moreThis quantitative study investigated the relationship between the label assigned to a terrorist act and the fear of terrorism and consequent support for anti-terrorism policy in Western Europe. Previous research has linked the fear of terrorism and the support one has for policy tackling it. A survey experiment (N = 210) was conducted making use of vignette manipulations to evoke emotional responses within respondents. Next, a statistical analysis was performed making use of ANOVA tests. The results suggested that the label of jihadist terrorism incites incrementally more fear and support for anti-terrorism policy than the right-wing terrorism label; despite the tests not resulting in statistical significance. It is suspected that statistical significance could be reached if a larger sample were employed. It was further concluded that because of the European contextuality right-wing terrorism is not as feared, and support for anti-right-wing terrorism policy is not as high in comparison to its jihadist counterpart.Show less
Rising numbers of religious extremism are an increasing concern in Western Europe. As Western Europe is secular, and secular ideology seeks to diminish the influence of religion on society, this...Show moreRising numbers of religious extremism are an increasing concern in Western Europe. As Western Europe is secular, and secular ideology seeks to diminish the influence of religion on society, this rise is peculiar. It raises the question why religious extremism is on the rise in Western Europe despite its secular environment. Evidence suggests there is a causal link between religious extremism and secularism. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate such a causal relation between secularism and religious extremism in Western Europe. To rule out other explanations, this study identified two rival explanations: A cultural disconnect and geopolitical factors. The validity of all three explanations was tested through a case study analysis of France, the Netherlands and Belgium. The results concluded that the cultural disconnect and the geopolitical explanation are not correct. However, the study concluded that certain forms of secularism lead to a rise of religious extremism in Western Europe. The cases demonstrate the mechanism behind this: States enforce disproportionately strict secular policies through a strict separation between the public sphere and the private sphere, and a positive bias towards the pre-existing dominant religion. These two factors trigger reactive religiosity, leading to religious extremism. Conclusively, disproportionate secularism plays a pivotal role in the rise of religious extremism in Western Europe.Show less
In the last 20 years, populism has undoubtedly become a prominent political phenomenon in Europe, manifesting itself in almost every one of its states. Indeed, it has been observed how many...Show moreIn the last 20 years, populism has undoubtedly become a prominent political phenomenon in Europe, manifesting itself in almost every one of its states. Indeed, it has been observed how many populist parties in this region have transitioned from being labelled as “political outsiders”, to becoming among the biggest parties in their respective countries. But why has populism grown so much in such a limited period of time? Among other causes, populism is believed to be a symptom of a malfunctioning of liberal democracy. As modern societies have become increasingly complex and diverse, liberal democratic systems are perceived to be unable to conciliate its two main institutional guarantees, that is, the representation of a popular majority and the protection of minority rights. Populism upholds the representation of the popular will, which, according to populists, has been obscured by an excessive appeasement of different group and minority interests. However, scholars and political theorists have indicated how a populist style of politics can lead to the circumvention of constitutional checks and balances in order to achieve a more efficient representation of the vox populi. This thesis seeks to answer the following question: can populism be considered as beneficial or threatening to liberal democracy? To this end, it will start with an analysis of the nature of populism which will be followed by a theoretical discussion of its potential benefits and threats to liberal democracy. This theory will be put in practice through a case study that compares the Five Star Movement (M5S) in Italy and the National Rally (RN) in France.Show less
This paper talks about the influence of the Cultural Revolution in a global context. 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of a remarkable year: 1968, during which the Mai 68 events of France and the...Show moreThis paper talks about the influence of the Cultural Revolution in a global context. 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of a remarkable year: 1968, during which the Mai 68 events of France and the 68er-Bewegung of West Germany happened. In the 1960s, mobilised struggles evolved into new social movements, whose formation was largely influenced by the Maoist Cultural Revolution in China. This article analyses the role of Chinese Cultural Revolution in shaping the new social movements in 1960s Western Europe (France and West Germany) and the communications of the Cultural Revolution from China to the Western European recipients. The paper finds that the Cultural Revolution inspired the 1960s Western European social movement with new elements including a grass-roots approach, anti-authoritarian label and the students’ leadership. The Cultural Revolution reshaped the pattern of French social movement but brought inspiration to West German far-left terrorism.Show less
The thesis analyses the effect of the ‘balkanism’ discourse, and the associated representations, on the relationship between Western Europe and the Balkans in late modern and contemporary history....Show moreThe thesis analyses the effect of the ‘balkanism’ discourse, and the associated representations, on the relationship between Western Europe and the Balkans in late modern and contemporary history. The ‘balkanism’ discourse has been present for a long time and has strongly influenced Western European perceptions of the Balkan region in the 19th and 20th century. Due to the discourse, a certain distance had been created between the EU and the Balkans, in which the former named the latter the ‘other’ – mainly to indicate a cultural difference. The discourse and denigrating perceptions of the region, shaped over time, seem to be the main reason for the poor relationship between the EU and the Balkans in these two centuries. However, since the start of the 21st century, the EU has started to engage more with the region. In 2003, the first steps were taken to create stability and security in the EU and its neighbourhood by starting the integration process of the Western Balkans – that is, the remaining Balkan countries outside of the EU. The process includes several engagement and integration initiatives, compulsory accession criteria and (reform) programs in fields such as politics, economy and culture. Yet, the success of the integration process still remains to be seen. Apart from other issues related to the citizens’ opinions, the EU itself and the Balkan region, the historical perceptions still seem to influence this process as well. Hence, the effect of the ‘balkanism’ discourse and the associated representations seems to be significant, due to the fact that the discourse can be considered the key reason for the poor relationship of the past, and because it may still be affecting the relationship today.Show less
The thesis will propose an analysis of the social movement theory and a comparison of the political and social contexts of the two Green Movements in East and West Germany. The resemblances and...Show moreThe thesis will propose an analysis of the social movement theory and a comparison of the political and social contexts of the two Green Movements in East and West Germany. The resemblances and differences will then be linked to the social movement theory and be justified. As a matter of fact, the social movement theory will be used as a tool to explain the similar formation of the two Green Movements. This will allow studying the Green Movements in East and West Germany with an innovative sociological vision completing the already existing historical analysis of both movements. The formation of the movements that corresponds to the gathering of the core elements necessary for collective action to be qualified as a social movement, are the focus of the thesis.Show less
The present thesis aims at a better understanding of Islamophobia in Western Europe. For this purpose, it investigates how the issue is perceived from the Arabic and from the Western European...Show moreThe present thesis aims at a better understanding of Islamophobia in Western Europe. For this purpose, it investigates how the issue is perceived from the Arabic and from the Western European perspective, what both of these views have in common and where the differences between them. In the opening section, the results of a literature research are presented, which focuses on academic Arabic sources, articles on the Aljazeera website, and academic publications by West European authors. In this context, various aspects of the phenomenon such as the definition of the term, roots and causes, the role of media and of the political right, and its relation to the anti-Semitism are considered. As example of manifestation of Islamophobia the French head scarf ban is discussed. Comparing the Arabic and the Western European view on Islamophobia, one cannot detect specific differences concerning the definition of the term, albeit the latter appears contested and vague. In contrast, the identified reasons for Islamophobia and the role attributed to media and the political right are controversial and depend very much on the particular perspective involved. While the majority of the Western sources identifies the reason of Islamophobia as the perceived incompatibility of Islam with Western and European values, Arab authors mostly hold Western misunderstanding and lack of knowledge responsible for the phenomenon. They also attribute an essential role to media and the political right in its dissemination. While at least the majority of the Arab sources attribute a positive character to the headscarf, in Western Europe it is frequently understood as symbol of a radical Islam and gender discrimination, therefore justifying its ban. The comparison with anti-Semitism appears to be restricted to the Western European perspective, which is possibly due to the role this phenomenon has played in Europe's history.Show less
Lajos Kassák (1887-1967) was tijdens zijn verblijf in Wenen in de jaren twintig van de vorige eeuw een spil binnen het avantgarde netwerk. Hij maakte beeldende kunst, was aanvoerder van de...Show moreLajos Kassák (1887-1967) was tijdens zijn verblijf in Wenen in de jaren twintig van de vorige eeuw een spil binnen het avantgarde netwerk. Hij maakte beeldende kunst, was aanvoerder van de Hongaarse avantgarde, richtte het avantgarde tijdschrift MA op en had contacten met avantgarde kunstenaars in West-Europa, waaronder Theo van Doesburg en László Moholy Nagy. Kassák was een netwerker en had een neus voor wat er gaande was in de kunstwereld op dat moment; Buch neuer Künstler is daar een bewijs van. In Nederland werden eind 2013 twee werken Kassák tentoongesteld tijdens de tentoonstelling Utopia 1900-1940 Visies op een Nieuwe Wereld in de Lakenhal. Ook bezit het Gemeentemuseum Den Haag enkele stukken van Kassáks hand. Ondanks dat werk van Kassák enkele malen in ons land is tentoongesteld blijft hij hier vrij onbekend. In mijn ogen onterecht, want met zijn verdiensten binnen de historische avantgarde is een betere plaats voor Lajos Kassák in het tijdgewricht zeker gerechtvaardigd.Show less
