Institute for Political Science (TU Chemnitz)

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Institute for Political Science at the TU Chemnitz
Facility location TU Campus Thüringer Weg 9
Type of research applied basic research
subjects Political science
Basic funding Free State of Saxony
management Alexander Gallus
Homepage https://www.tu-chemnitz.de/phil/politik/institut/institut.php
Building view IfP Thüringer Weg 9

The Institute for Political Science (IfP) was founded in 1993 as part of the Philosophical Faculty of the TU Chemnitz . The IfP is divided into four professorships and one junior professorship. In addition to the chairs for political theory and the history of ideas ( Alexander Gallus ), political systems ( Eric Linhart ), international politics (Kai Oppermann) and comparative government theory ( Gerd Strohmeier , represented by Christian Schweiger ), the junior professorship for political science research methods ( Tom Mannewitz ). Political science in Chemnitz enables practical and research-oriented training in professional courses. The five professorships correspond to the recommendations for a core curriculum of the board and advisory board of the DVPW and cover the subject. In addition to the bachelor's degree in political science, the institute also offers a master's degree of the same name. In the Master’s Political Science, in the complexes Intellectual History, Political Systems in the Past and Present, Power Shifts and Security Policy Challenges as well as Political Consulting, depending on the choice, political science segments are combined with elements from the subjects of sociology , literary studies , European history, English / American studies, European studies or media communication .

Research priorities

Political theory and history of ideas

Political theory and the history of ideas asks about the foundations of political thought, about the authors and their works: What do we understand by politics and the state ? What does power and domination or freedom and justice mean? How can state order be legitimized and when is it illegitimate? One focus of the professorship is the exploration of the figure of the intellectual in the history of political thought, their role as producers, mediators and contenders for political ideas. The focus is therefore on political thinkers and texts such as their public function and reception. The professorship is currently researching an intellectual history of the 20th century in Germany with a special emphasis on the Weimar Republic and the Federal Republic.

Political Systems

The “Political Systems” area examines the political systems of individual states as a whole, but also the systems of sub-state units such as the German federal states. The core institutions, the political processes taking into account the role of political actors and the resulting policy results are examined. The fields of work include electoral systems, elections , parties, coalitions and interest groups. The area “Political Systems” deals with both democracies and autocracies and also deals with questions of system transformation .

International politics

International politics deals with the structures and actors of the international system. This includes the foreign policy of individual states in interaction with domestic political structures as well as regional networks of relationships between several states, e.g. B. in Europe , the Middle East or the transatlantic relations. In addition to national actors, non-state actors (NGOs) and supranational cooperation structures are examined, as they are expressed in international or supranational organizations. Striking examples are NATO or the EU, whose historical development, current function and future significance are of particular interest.

European systems of government in comparison

According to the institute, comparative analyzes of political systems are playing an increasing role in political science. At the professorship “European systems of government in comparison”, the functionality and development of national and supranational political systems, as well as economic and social models, are examined comparatively in an expanded European context. The focus is particularly on the analysis of the behavior and interaction of central constitutional organs, including economic and social interest representatives and civil society actors. The professorship attaches great importance to current, practice-relevant issues as well as research contracts from political practice and third-party funded projects as well as numerous Erasmus collaborations.

Political science research methods

Although not a classic sub-area of ​​the subject, the political science research methods are omnipresent in research and teaching, and no empirical study can do without them. They include all methods of social science data collection (such as content analysis, expert interviews, survey studies) and evaluation (such as descriptive and inferential statistics , QCA ) from the qualitative, quantitative and macro-qualitative spectrum, as well as research logic bases (such as epistemological theories and quality criteria of measurement) and specifically political science instruments (e.g. peculiarities of comparing nation states, political science typologies and indices). The main focus of the professorship includes the application of epistemological principles to the analysis of political extremism , macro-qualitative evaluations and the evaluation of indices .

Founding professors of the institute

  • Eckhard Jesse from 1993 to 2014 holder of the chair “Political Systems, Political Institutions” at the TU Chemnitz
  • Beate Neuss 1994 to 2018 holder of the chair “International Politics” at the TU Chemnitz
  • Alfons Söllner 1994 to 2012 holder of the chair “Political Theory and History of Ideas” at the TU Chemnitz

Former Employees

Alumni and PhDs

Projects and research assignments of the institute

Yearbook for Extremism and Democracy

The yearbook promotes the scientific examination of political extremism and debates about modern democracy. In addition to the founders Uwe Backes and Eckhard Jesse as well as Alexander Gallus (from 2009), the circle of editors has expanded to include Tom Thieme from the 30th volume onwards. In the three main categories (“Analyzes”, “Data, Documents, Dossiers”, “Literature”), various phenomena in the area of ​​tension between extremism and democracy are examined. The literature section includes reviews and annotations on more than 300 German and international publications (primarily from political science and contemporary history) that were published in 2017.

Publication series Extremism & Democracy

National Model United Nations (NMUN) - a student project of the Professorship of International Politics

The annual NMUN conference in New York City is one of the largest and most professional simulations of the work of the United Nations (UN). In this context, student delegations act in the role of diplomats and represent the positions and interests of a country assigned to them in selected committees. Under the motto "UNI goes UNO", delegations from Chemnitz - so far the only university in Saxony - take part in the NMUN simulation conference every year and discuss current issues and challenges in world politics. They draft resolutions and try to represent the interests of the country assigned to them in the best possible way. Here diplomatic sensitivity, decisiveness, quick reactions and the ability to compromise are of decisive importance.

Doctoral colleges funded by

Konrad Adenauer Foundation

  • "Security and Development in the 21st Century"
  • "The time of the division of Germany: experience of dictatorship, intra-German relations, European dimensions"

Hanns Seidel Foundation

Erasmus cooperation
Belgium Estonia France Ireland
Italy Greece Croatia Norway
Poland Portugal Romania Spain
Czech Republic Turkey Hungary

Web links