italian-studies: Scholarly discussions in any field of Italian studies
CALL FOR PAPERS: 62nd ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE PSA, BELFAST, 3 - 5 APRIL 2012
Title: Long-lost brothers? Italy and the UK in comparative perspective
Convenors: Arianna Giovannini (Leeds Metropolitan) and James Newell (Salford)
Often thought of as a democratic anomaly or outlier, the Italian case is too often overlooked in comparative work, and too often studied as if it were a sui generis phenomenon. Yet, as one would expect, the country's politics are marked by a number of the same issues and difficulties as those of other parliamentary democracies - though often with very different consequences and outcomes in each case. This makes the country a valid comparator in, among others, paired comparisons based on the 'most similar systems' design. From this point of view we are struck by the potential fruitfulness of comparing Italy with the UK, two countries where the similarity of the issues high on the political agenda is remarkable. One thinks here of: regional policy and the challenges of decentralisation; issues of probity in public life; reform of the legislature and other institutions; scandal and the growth of anti-political sentiments; changes in voting behaviour; the challenge of immigration - among many others. This raises the question of what lessons the two countries might have for each other in these various areas, and how successful, relatively speaking, the policy response has been in the two cases. With this in mind we are keen to attract paper proposals offering to explore a significant political topic in either country while drawing out the comparative significance of the conclusions (in other words, papers offering case studies). And we are particularly keen on paper proposals offering to explore a significant political topic in both countries, while, again, drawing out the comparative significance (in other words, papers offering paired comparisons). In this way we hope that collectively, the contributions will offer some ideas about what policy makers in the two countries might have to learn from each other, as well as providing a more informed understanding of the quality of democracy both in Italy and the UK.
Paper abstracts (circa 250 words) should be e-mailed by 7 October to: Arianna Giovannini ([log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> ) and Jim Newell ([log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> )
For more information visit the conference website at: http://www.psa.ac.uk/2012/ <http://www.psa.ac.uk/2012/>
James L. Newell
Professor of Politics
School of Humanities, Languages & Social Sciences (HuLSS)
Crescent House
University of Salford
Salford M5 4WT
UK
tel: +44 (0)161 295 5660
http://jlnewell.com <http://jlnewell.com/>
Editor, Bulletin of Italian Politics
http://www.gla.ac.uk/bip
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