Course Description
The COVID-19 crisis has emphasized the urgency of the question whether to shift local decision-making powers to the national level. Many countries have been heavily criticized for their poor management of the crisis, which is partly blamed on their political structures. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, however, there has been a general trend towards centralization in many policy sectors in the European Union and beyond (Wolmann 1988; Leuffen et al. 2014; Hegele & Schnabel 2021). While these studies have made important contributions to understanding the developments of federal regimes, we know very little about the foundations and transformation of public preferences for or against centralization. Few studies address drivers of attitudes to federalism such as the historical genesis of regions (e.g., the historic nations of Catalonia and Scotland, see Henderson et al. (2013)) socialization in a federal system (Verhaegen 2021) and the role of elite discourses (Deputy et al. 2021). Whereas quite a few predictors have been analyzed at the macro level, explanatory models at the micro level seem scarce. Since attitudes to federalism are political attitudes, other influences apart from regional identity, such as ideological beliefs and values, should be tested as well. In addition, regional identity has so far only been measured based on one indicator – attachment to region. We know from research on national identity (Meitlinger 2018), however, that different aspects of a collective identity have a wide range of attitudinal consequences. In this course, we will deepen our understanding of consequences of regional identity and heritage, with a particular eye on their respective malleability (and stability).

Learning Outcomes
At the end of the course, students should …
• … analyze the historical and contemporary drivers of attitudes towards federalism, including socialization in a federal system, elite discourses, and regional identity formation.
• … evaluate the impact of globalization on regional identity and its implications for political decision-making at the local and national level.
• … assess the stability and malleability of regional identity and heritage, and the extent to which they can be shaped by political and social factors.
• … synthesize research on national and regional identity and their attitudinal consequences and apply this knowledge to real-world issues related to federalism and political decision-making.
• … develop critical thinking skills to evaluate the strengths and limitations of various theoretical frameworks used to study federalism, identity, and globalization, and apply these frameworks to the analysis of case studies and empirical evidence.

Teaching Approach
The approach for this course will be a combination of lectures, readings, and discussions. Each session begins with a lecture that introduces the topic and key concepts. After the lecture, students will discuss the assigned readings that explore the topic in greater depth, so students must come to class prepared to discuss the text. During the discussion of each session, students are encouraged to share their perspectives and engage in critical thinking and analysis of the readings and course materials. The professor will facilitate the discussion and provide additional context and insight as needed. The course will also include opportunities for small group work and collaborative learning. For example, students will be assigned to small groups to analyze and present a particular aspect of regional identity or federalism. Assessment in this course will be based on a combination of participation in class discussions, an essay, and a written exam.

Evaluation Methods
The students’ grade will be composed of three pillars:
1. Class participation (20%)
2. Research essay (30%)
3. Written Exam (50%)
A mid-term grade will be communicated on the basis of the essay and the class participation.

Course Plan
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Session 1: Introduction
• Pre-modern and early modern forms of political organization
• Historical transformation of nations
• The concept of hybridity
Compulsory Reading: Loughlin, J. (2013). Reconfiguring the nation-state: hybridity vs. uniformity. In: J. Loughin, J. Kincaid and W. Swenden (ed.): Routledge Handbook of Regionalism & Federalism. London and New York: Routledge: 3-18.
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Session 2: How to Govern?
• Federalism vs. unitarity
• Types of federal political systems
• Hybrids and variations
Compulsory Reading: Watts, Ronald L. (2013). Typologies of Federalism. In: J. Loughin, J. Kincaid and W. Swenden (ed.): Routledge Handbook of Regionalism & Federalism. London and New York: Routledge: 19-34.
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Session 3: What is Federalism?
• Political identity and federalism
• Federalism distinguished
Compulsory Reading: Feeley, M., & Rubin, E. (2009). Federalism: Political identity and tragic compromise. University of Michigan Press. Chapter 1: What is Federalism
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Session 4: Self-and Shared Rule
• Public preferences of regional government
• Self-rule and shared rule
Compulsory Reading: Schakel, A. H., & Smith, R. (2022). Unravelling the ‘devolution paradox’: Citizen preferences for self‐rule and for shared rule. European Journal of Political Research, 61(3), 642-659.
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Session 5: Horizontal Coordination
• Intergovernmental councils
• Ministerial conferences
Compulsory Reading: Hegele, Y., & Behnke, N. (2017). Horizontal coordination in cooperative federalism: The purpose of ministerial conferences in Germany. Regional & Federal Studies, 27(5), 529-548.
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Session 6: Indirect Rule
• Indirect rule
• Peripheral nationalism
Compulsory Reading: Siroky, D. S., Mueller, S., Fazi, A., & Hechter, M. (2021). Containing nationalism: Culture, economics and indirect rule in Corsica. Comparative Political Studies, 54(6), 1023-1057.
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Session 7: Regional Identity
• Institutional regionalization
• Political socialization by institutions
• Elite discourse
Compulsory Reading: Dupuy, C., Verhaegen, S., & Van Ingelgom, V. (2021). Support for Regionalization in federal Belgium: The role of political socialization, Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 51(1), 54–78.
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Session 8: Social Identity
• Affective polarization and opinion-based groups
• Social identity in the brexit vote
Compulsory Reading: Hobolt, S. B., Leeper, T. J., & Tilley, J. (2021). Divided by the vote: Affective polarization in the wake of the Brexit referendum, British Journal of Political Science, 51(4), 1476-1493.
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Session 9: National Identity
• Concepts of vationhood
• Emotions
• In and out-groups
Compulsory Reading: Wamsler, S., Freitag, M., Erhardt, J., & Filsinger, M. (2022). The pandemic and the question of national belonging: Exposure to covid‐19 threat and conceptions of nationhood, European Journal of Political Research, 62(4): 510-529.
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Session 10: European Identity
• Identity politics
• Politicization and crises
• Mobilization of identities
Compulsory Reading: Börzel, T. A., & Risse, T. (2018). From the euro to the Schengen crises: European integration theories, politicization, and identity politics. Journal of European Public Policy, 25(1), 83-108.
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Session 11: Regional Identity and the European Union
• Regional identity
• Support for EU-integration
• Exclusive and inclusive regionalism
Compulsory Reading: Brigevich, A. (2018). Regional identity and support for integration: An EU-wide comparison of parochialists, inclusive regionalist, and pseudo-exclusivists, European Union Politics, 19(4), 639-662
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Session 12: Secession Movements
• Secession and material interest
• Independence votes
Compulsory Reading: Hierro, M. J., & Queralt, D. (2021). The divide over independence: Explaining preferences for secession in an advanced open economy. American Journal of Political Science, 65(2), 422-442.
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Bibliography
Brigevich, A. (2018). Regional identity and support for integration: An EU-wide comparison of parochialists, inclusive regionalist, and pseudo-exclusivists. European Union Politics, 19(4), 639-662.
Bonikowski, B. (2016). Nationalism in settled times. Annual Review of Sociology, 42, 427-449.
Börzel, T. A., & Risse, T. (2018). From the euro to the Schengen crises: European integration theories, politicization, and identity politics. Journal of European Public Policy, 25(1), 83-108.
Dupuy, C., Verhaegen, S., & Van Ingelgom, V. (2021). Support for Regionalization in federal Belgium: The role of political socialization. Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 51(1), 54–78.
Feeley, M., & Rubin, E. (2009). Federalism: Political identity and tragic compromise. University of Michigan Press. Chapter 1: What is Federalism
Fitjar, R. D. (2009). The rise of regionalism: Causes of regional mobilization in Western Europe. Routledge.
Hegele, Y., & Behnke, N. (2017). Horizontal coordination in cooperative federalism: The purpose of ministerial conferences in Germany. Regional & Federal Studies, 27(5), 529-548.
Hegele, Y., & Schnabel, J. (2021). Federalism and the management of the COVID-19 crisis: Centralisation, decentralisation and (non-) coordination. West European Politics, 1–25.
Henderson, A., Jeffery, C., Wincott, D., & Wyn Jones, R. (2013). Reflections on the ’devolution paradox’: A comparative examination of multilevel citizenship. Regional Studies, 47(3), 303–322.
Hierro, M. J., & Queralt, D. (2021). The divide over independence: Explaining preferences for secession in an advanced open economy. American Journal of Political Science, 65(2), 422-442.
Hobolt, S. B., Leeper, T. J., & Tilley, J. (2021). Divided by the vote: Affective polarization in the wake of the Brexit referendum, British Journal of Political Science, 51(4), 1476-1493.
Leuffen, D., Malang, T., & Wörle, S. (2014). Structure, capacity or power? explaining salience in EU decision-making. Journal of Common Market Studies,52(3), 616–631.
Loughlin, J. (2013). Reconfiguring the nation-state: hybridity vs. uniformity. In: J. Loughin, J. Kincaid and W. Swenden (ed.): Routledge Handbook of Regionalism & Federalism. London and New York: Routledge: 3-18.
Meitinger, K. (2018). What does the general national pride item measure? Insights from web probing. International Journal of Comparative Sociology,59(5-6), 428–450.
Mueller, S., & Bundi, P. (2021). Political Culture(s) Under Threat? The Impact of Language on Political Values and Attitudes. Unpublished Working Paper. University of Lausanne.
Schakel, A. H., & Smith, R. (2022). Unravelling the ‘devolution paradox’: Citizen preferences for self‐rule and for shared rule. European Journal of Political Research, 61(3), 642-659.
Siroky, D. S., Mueller, S., Fazi, A., & Hechter, M. (2021). Containing nationalism: Culture, economics and indirect rule in Corsica. Comparative Political Studies, 54(6), 1023-1057.
Verhaegen, S., Dupuy, C., & Van Ingelgom, V. (2021). Experiencing and supporting institutional regionalization in Belgium: A normative and interpretive policy feedback perspective. Comparative European Politics,19(2), 248–275.
Wamsler, S., Freitag, M., Erhardt, J., & Filsinger, M. (2022). The pandemic and the question of national belonging: Exposure to covid‐19 threat and conceptions of nationhood, European Journal of Political Research, 62(4): 510-529.
Watts, Ronald L. (2013). Typologies of Federalism. In: J. Loughin, J. Kincaid and W. Swenden (ed.): Routledge Handbook of Regionalism & Federalism. London and New York: Routledge: 19-34.
Wolman, H. (1988). Understanding recent trends in central-local relations: Centralisation in Great Britain and decentralisation in the United States. European Journal of Political Research, 16(4),425–435.

Last updated: May 10, 2023