POL4431 South and Eastern European PoliticsBahçeşehir UniversityDegree Programs PSYCHOLOGYGeneral Information For StudentsDiploma SupplementErasmus Policy StatementNational QualificationsBologna Commission
PSYCHOLOGY
Bachelor TR-NQF-HE: Level 6 QF-EHEA: First Cycle EQF-LLL: Level 6

Course Introduction and Application Information

Course Code Course Name Semester Theoretical Practical Credit ECTS
POL4431 South and Eastern European Politics Fall 3 0 3 6
This catalog is for information purposes. Course status is determined by the relevant department at the beginning of semester.

Basic information

Language of instruction: English
Type of course: Non-Departmental Elective
Course Level: Bachelor’s Degree (First Cycle)
Mode of Delivery: Hybrid
Course Coordinator : Prof. Dr. EBRU ŞULE CANAN SOKULLU
Course Lecturer(s): Dr. BYRON MATARANGAS
Recommended Optional Program Components: None
Course Objectives: This course describes, discusses and contrasts patterns of change in the Southeastern Europe (SEE) using case-studies, furthermore shows the main challenges of political and cultural transitions for the SEE.

Learning Outcomes

The students who have succeeded in this course;
1. Analyze topics within the area of Southeastern Europe by taking into consideration different disciplinary perspectives;
2. Grasp the complexity, interaction and dynamics between political and cultural systems with regard to Southeastern Europe;
3. Apply their knowledge and scientific skills in inter-disciplinary teams on complex issues;
4. Examine a whole range of topics pertaining to the EU enlargement policies with a particular emphasis on the current wave of enlargement to the Balkan states;
5. Interpret aspects of culture and social relations from a historical and contemporary perspective, including media and film.

Course Content

Political transformation of the Southeastern European countries and their democratization experiences, break-up of the USSR and disintegration of Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Kosovo cases, EU enlargement process, key aspects of culture including media and film.

Weekly Detailed Course Contents

Week Subject Related Preparation
1) Introduction to the course
2) History of Southeastern Europe Paschalis Kitromilides, “’Imagined Communities’ and the Origins of the National Question in the Balkans”, European History Quarterly, vol. 19 (1989), pp. 149-192; Maria Todorova, Imagining the Balkans, увод под насловом “Balkanism and Orientalism: Are they Different Categories?”, pp. 3-20; Laura Silber and Allan Little, The Death of Yugoslavia, BBC Books, Penguin 1996; Ana Ljubojević, Changing Memoryscapes in post- Yugoslav Countries: Social (Re)construction of Places of Memory, Contemporary Southeastern Europe Special Issue, 2021, 8(2), 24-31.
3) Cultures and Societies of Southeastern Europe Vjekoslav Perica, Balkan Idols. Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States, New York: Oxford University Press, 2002; Eric Gordy, The Culture of Power in Serbia: Nationalism and the Destruction of Alternatives, University Park, Pa.: Penn State University Press, 1999); Andrew Wachtel, Making a Nation, Breaking a Nation, Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1998; Moritz Pfeifer, Neighbors: Where do Emir Kusturica and Slavoj Žižek meet in Underground (1995)? Vol 13: 2012, https://eefb.org/retrospectives/where-do-emir-kusturica-and-slavoj-zizek-meet-in-underground-1995/.
4) The economics of transition in Southeastern Europe: Open Balkans Saul Estrin, Grzegorz Kolodko, Milica Uvalic (eds) (2007), Transition and Beyond, Palgrave Macmillan; Milica Uvalic (2010, 2012), Serbia’s Transition/Tranzicija u Srbiji, Palgrave Macmillan and Zavod za udzbenike; M. Uvalic (2001), “Regional cooperation in Southeast Europe”, Southeast Europe and Black Sea Studies, vol. 1, no.1; M. Uvalic (2002), “Regional Co-operation and EU Enlargement – Lessons Learned”, International Political Science Review, 23/3. Gojko M. Rikalović; Dejan S. Molnar; Sonja N. Josipović. THE OPEN BALKAN AS A DEVELOPMENT DETERMINANT OF THE WESTERN BALKAN COUNTRIES. In: Acta Economica, Vol 20, Iss 36 (2022); University of Banja Luka, Faculty of Economics, 2022.
5) Social transformation in contemporary Southeastern Europe Alina Mungiu-Pippidi, “Deconstructing Balkan particularism: the ambiguous social capital of Southeastern Europe,” Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, 5:1 (2005), pp. 49-68; Kathleen M. Dowley and Brian D. Silver, “Social Capital, Ethnicity and Support for Democracy in the Post-Communist States,” Europe-Asia Studies, 54:4 (2002), pp. 505-527; Ruby Gropas, “Integrating the Balkans in the European Union: Addressing social capital, the informal economy and regional co-operation challenges in Southeast Europe,” ELIAMEP, 2006.; Joel Hellman, “Winners Take All: The Politics of Partial Reform in Post-Communist Transitions," World Politics 50:2 (January 1998), pp. 203-234; Luljeta Demolli, property rights, economic dependence and the glass ceiling for women in Kosovo, Perspectives Southeastern Europe #10: Women in Western Balkans - Rights and Fights, HEINRICH-BÖLL-STIFTUNG, 2020, ss. 77-80.
6) WRAP UP AND Q&A
7) Midterm Exam
8) European integration and enlargement Desmond Dinan, Europe Recast: History of European Integration, Palgrave-MacMillan, 2007; Dorian Jano, The Europeanization of the Western Balkans, VDM Verlag Dr. Müller; 2010; Heather Grabbe, The EU’s Transformative Power: Europeanization through Conditionality in Central and Eastern Europe, Palgrave Macmillan; 2006; Horvat, Srećko & Štiks, Igor. (2012). Welcome to the Desert of Transition!: Post-Socialism, the European Union, and a New Left in the Balkans. Monthly Review. 63. 38. 10.14452/MR-063-10-2012-03_4. Abdullah Sencer Gözübenli, and Nazli Tekeshanoska. “Europeanization of the Balkans vs. Balkanization of Europe: A Vision Limited by Realities.” 2018 UBT International Conference (2018).
9) EU Policy towards South-Eastern Europe (SEE) Sabrina Ramet (ed.). Central and Southeast European Politics since 1989, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010; Mieczyslaw P. Boduszynski, Regime Change in the Yugoslav Successor States, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010; Tamara Banjeglav, ‘We Were Refugees Ourselves!’ Discursive Framing of the ‘Refugee Crisis’ in Croatia and Collective Memories of the 1990s War Contemporary Southeastern Europe Research Articles, 2022, 9(1), 11-32; Eşref Yalınkılıçlı, FROM NEO-BALKANIZATION TO EUROPEANIZATION: INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE AND REGIONAL COOPERATION IN THE WESTERN BALKANS, Balkan Araştırma Enstitüsü Dergisi, Cilt/Volume 3, Sayı/Number 2, Aralık/December 2014, ss. 127-149.
10) Human rights and minority protection in Southeastern Europe Joseph Marko, „Ethnopolitics. The Challenge for Human and Minority Rights Protection“, in: C. Corradetti (ed.): Philosophical Dimensions of Human Rights. Some Contemporary Views, Springer Publisher 2012; J. Marko, „The Law and Politics of Diversity Management: A Neo-institutional Approach“, in: European Yearbook of Minority Issues, Vol. 6, 2007/08 (2008); Ch. Ingrao, Th. Emmert (eds.), Confronting the Yugoslav Controversies. A Scholars’ Initiative, Purdue UP, 2009; Boris Pavelić, a Croatian story: “an extraordinary EU Member” at the price of human rights, Perspectives Southeastern Europe #8: "Stabilocracy" and/or radicalisation, HEINRICH-BÖLL-STIFTUNG, 2019, ss. 40-45.
11) Presentations The Pre-accession strategy & The accession negotiations: Slovenia, Croatia
12) Presentations The Pre-accession strategy & The accession negotiations: Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Albania
13) Presentations The Pre-accession strategy & The accession negotiations: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo
14) WRAP UP AND Q&A

Sources

Course Notes / Textbooks: Weekly readings will be uploaded on ItsLearning at the beginning of the semester. Please note that all book chapters and articles listed on the syllabus are also accessible through the BAU Library.
The PPT files will be shared on ItsLearning following each class.

References: Videos on related subjects.

Evaluation System

Semester Requirements Number of Activities Level of Contribution
Quizzes 3 % 15
Presentation 1 % 15
Midterms 1 % 30
Final 1 % 40
Total % 100
PERCENTAGE OF SEMESTER WORK % 60
PERCENTAGE OF FINAL WORK % 40
Total % 100

ECTS / Workload Table

Activities Number of Activities Workload
Course Hours 10 30
Study Hours Out of Class 10 116
Presentations / Seminar 1 0.5
Quizzes 3 1.5
Midterms 1 1
Final 1 1
Total Workload 150

Contribution of Learning Outcomes to Programme Outcomes

No Effect 1 Lowest 2 Low 3 Average 4 High 5 Highest
           
Program Outcomes Level of Contribution
1) To develop an interest in the human mind and behavior, to be able to evaluate theories using empirical findings, to understand that psychology is an evidence-based science by acquiring critical thinking skills.
2) To gain a biopsychosocial perspective on human behavior. To understand the biological, psychological, and social variables of behavior.
3) To learn the basic concepts in psychology and the theoretical and practical approaches used to study them (e.g. basic observation and interview techniques).
4) To acquire the methods and skills to access and write information using English as the dominant language in the psychological literature, to recognize and apply scientific research and data evaluation techniques (e.g. correlational, experimental, cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, case studies).
5) To be against discrimination and prejudice; to have ethical concerns while working in research and practice areas.
6) To recognize the main subfields of psychology (experimental, developmental, clinical, cognitive, social and industrial/organizational psychology) and their related fields of study and specialization.
7) To acquire the skills necessary for analyzing, interpreting and presenting the findings as well as problem posing, hypothesizing and data collection, which are the basic elements of scientific studies.
8) To gain the basic knowledge and skills necessary for psychological assessment and evaluation.
9) To acquire basic knowledge of other disciplines (medicine, genetics, biology, economics, sociology, political science, communication, philosophy, anthropology, literature, law, art, etc.) that will contribute to psychology and to use this knowledge in the understanding and interpretation of psychological processes.
10) To develop sensitivity towards social problems; to take responsibility in activities that benefit the field of psychology and society.
11) To have problem solving skills and to be able to develop the necessary analytical approaches for this.
12) To be able to criticize any subject in business and academic life and to be able to express their thoughts.