Democratic Principles in Public Policies

Abstract

The definition of democracy and its constitutive principles remains one of the core challenges of political research, as depending on delineating and framing of these principles, different public policies might be deemed legitimate from a democratic perspective. The panel adopts an inductive approach to this challenge by each of its papers examining the content, meaning, interpretation and/or limits of one or more principles generally considered to be intrinsically linked with democracy in politics. Some papers of this panel, put forward as a result of the work of Student Research Committees of the International Association for Political Science Students (IAPSS), look at various conceptualizations of human rights as a cornerstone of democratic politics at domestic level as well as the level of international intergovernmental and supranational organizations. Cases dealt with touch upon the approach to human rights in a particular EU policy and the influence of the approach of the Council of Europe to freedom of speech on its member states. Other papers focus on political representation in democracies, which is supposed to respect and support different forms of equality, including gender equality, or the expressions of governmental policy preferences in the judicial arena. Methodologically, the analyses adopt a range of political research methods, such as legal analysis, statistical analysis, QCA, semi-structured interviewing and contextual analysis. Broadening the understanding of how conceptualizations of peace, human rights, gender equality and policy preferences affect the exercise of democratic standards can provide a more nuanced view of selected challenges of modern democracies.

Title	Details
Regions as Spoilers of Peace Process	View Paper Details
The Counter-Piracy Policy of the European Union in Somalia: What Place for Human Rights?	View Paper Details
The Gentle Power of the Council of Europe: The Case of ‘Hate Speech’ in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary	View Paper Details
Evaluating how Legality in Corruption Affects Citizens’ Satisfaction with the Way in which National Democracies Work in the European Union	View Paper Details