Workshop „Crisis, Depoliticization and the Rule of Law"
Date: June 6th and 7th, 2024
Location: Kiel University
Crises and an increase in demand for de-politicized governance are two
poles of contemporary policy making and current political debate. On the
one hand, crises necessitate swift reactions from governments and state
bureaucracies. On the other hand, citizens in advanced, rich democracies
increasingly rely on the provision of a broad range of public goods that
are awarded on the basis of a "rules-rather-than-discretion" logic.
This workshop asks how governments, state bureaucracies and societies
are transforming under these conditions. Specifically, we are interested
in an apparent shift that changes the logic of legitimate government,
namely the transformation from input to output legitimatization.
This shift pressures governments and state bureaucracies to react
quickly in the face of crisis, answering to urgent demands from its
citizenry. This may undermine legal standards and established policy
making procedures. On the other hand, the de-politicized provision of
public goods has become an expected standard from which governments
cannot easily deviate.
Building upon these dual developments, the workshop "Crisis,
Depoliticization, and the Rule of Law" seeks to address, inter alia, to
the following questions:
* How do states with depoliticized societies respond to crises?
* Does the impact of these crises result in increased civic
participation, or does it foster disengagement?
* In depoliticized societies, do crises pose a threat to the
functioning of the rule of law and the acceptance of established
procedures?
* Can depoliticization function as a catalyst of crises by compelling
politicians to react in an unlawful manner?
* How are fake news, disinformation and radicalization related to
crises response in de-politicized societies?
We invite scholars across all disciplines to contribute their insights
on this complex and multifaceted subject. We welcome submissions
political science, as well as from legal, economic, administrative,
sociological, and historical perspectives. The workshop is open to both
qualitative and quantitative empirical methodological approaches.
The workshop will take place on June 6th and 7th at Kiel University.
Limited funding is available in order to facilitate the participation of
early-career researchers (doctorate or PhD).
Proposals for contributions are requested by April 15, 2024, and can be
submitted to jdombrowski@politik.uni-kiel.de. Please direct all
questions to Jacqueline Dombrowski at the same email address. The
workshop is hosted by the Chair of Comparative Politics at University of
Kiel, Prof. Dr. Christian Martin.