Presentation

Voting remains a central act in the process of appointing representatives, so much so that elections are formally held even in political regimes that had and have little to do with democracy. But the act of voting also relates to the logics that structure society or divide it along persistent fault lines or more ephemeral issues. In this respect, voting, a theoretically personal and secret act, is also a "social act". Through changes in voting rationales, we can take the full measure of the changes taking place in advanced Western societies. The objective, in this class, will be to take stock of the debates in the field of electoral sociology, on issues related to voting behavior, its meanings, its rationales, and transformations. For this purpose, we will try to cover both the classics of voting behavior by studying the « great classics » of political science,  but also more contemporary debates, particularly around the new electoral divides, the "cultural war" and the media effects on the electorate.

Recommended Prerequisite(s)

Students are required to have attended at least one class of introduction to political science or political sociology.

Form of assessment

The number of ECTS credits and the assessment methods are likely to be different for students in credit exchange programmes.

Bibliography

• Déloye Y., Mayer N. (dir.), Analyses électorales, Bruylant, 2017.
• Evans J., Voters and voting : An introduction, London, Sage, 2003.
• Lehingue P., Le vote : approches sociologiques de l’institution et des comportements électoraux, Paris, La découverte, 2011.
• Mayer N., Sociologie des comportements politiques, Paris, A. Colin, 2010.