Course content

This course provides an introduction to the field of comparative politics, one of the major sub-disciplines of political science.

Comparative politics is the study of political phenomena that occur primarily within states and other political systems. It focuses on internal political structures, actors and processes, and analyze them empirically by describing, explaining and predicting their variety across systems - be they national, regional, local, or even supra-national. The course has three major goals: 1) to introduce you to the major theories and questions in comparative politics, 2) to present you with the empirical answers to these questions and 3) to give you tools to reflect critically on these answers. It focuses on the national level of politics and will present you with competing theories and evidence from recent original research.

The course is organized thematically and covers the following topics:

  • The sub-discipline as such and its historical context
  • The concept and types of political regimes
  • Transitions between dictatorship and democracy
  • Political institutions in democratic political systems
  • Voters, parties and interest groups
  • Social movements and collective protest
  • Revolutions and civil war
  • Policy outputs and feedback

Examples of questions the course addresses are:

  • What is "democracy" and how do we measure it?
  • Why are some countries democratic whereas others are authoritarian?
  • How do governments form and how does their composition differ?
  • How do interest groups organize and try to exert political influence?
  • When do ordinary citizens turn to protest and political violence?
  • How do elections and resulting governments shape public policy?

Learning outcome

Knowledge

Students will:

  • Become acquainted with key questions, concepts and theories from comparative politics
  • Learn what the major differences between different regime types and forms of government are, and how such differences matter
  • Acquire basic knowledge about how and why institutions and actors in democratic political systems around the world differ and change, and with what consequences

Skills

Students will:

  • Get a coherent understanding of national political systems
  • Be able to compare different elements of political systems across countries
  • Be able to describe and explain the rise and variation in different regime types, forms of government and political institutions
  • Be able to describe and explain variation in different forms of participation and organized collective political action
  • Be able to assess the various effects of such differences within and across countries

Competences

Students will be trained in:

  • Using their general analytical skills
  • Synthesizing and comparing theoretical arguments
  • Critical evaluation of empirical evidence
  • Application of conceptual and theoretical knowledge on empirical cases
  • Discussing analytical questions based on multiple sources
  • Discussing key questions of comparative politics with fellow students

Admission to the course

Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.

If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.

Overlapping courses

  • 10 credits overlap with STV1300P.
  • 10 credits overlap with STAGH.
  • 10 credits overlap with STV103.
  • 10 credits overlap with STV103.

Teaching

  • Lectures, some with interactive elements
  • Guidance on how to read and write reading memos
  • Access to student resources associated with textbooks

Voluntary activity

Compulsory activity

  • Two compulsory multiple-choice tests (in Canvas) that must be passed to get access to the exam (one half-way through the teaching period, and one at the end of the teaching period).
  • The tests will cover all key topics of the course. You will have more than one attempt to pass.

Students who have taken STV1300 prior to spring 2023 and want to retake the exam must pass the compulsory activity before taking the exam.?

The lectures in this course will be recorded. Before the recordings are made available to the students, the recordings are subtitled. Because of this, it will take some time before the recordings are published. Lecture recordings do not replace attendance at live lectures, however can be used for exam preparations.

A student who has completed compulsory instruction and coursework in spring 2023 or later and has had these approved, is not entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework, and does not have to redo the compulsory activity to retake the exam.?If a student have only partially approved compulsory activities, they must complete those again to take a new exam, along with any other compulsory activities they haven't yet passed. A student who has been admitted to a course, but who has not completed compulsory instruction and coursework or had these approved, is entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework, depending on available capacity.

Examination

4-hour written exam

  • You must have passed the compulsory activities in order to sit the exam

Previous exams and examination guidelines

Examination support material

Students may use dictionaries at this exam. Dictionaries must be handed in before the examination. Please read regulations for dictionaries permitted at the examination.

Language of examination

You may write your examination paper in Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or English.

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.

More about examinations at UiO

You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.

Last updated from FS (Felles studentsystem) Apr. 8, 2026 5:24:41 AM

Facts about this course

Level
Bachelor
Credits
10
Teaching
Spring
Examination
Spring
Teaching language
English

Contact

SV-info