Radical right populist parties. This project aims to explain why some radical right-wing populists in Western democracies enter governmental alliances with mainstream parties while others remain isolated. The emergence, spread and electoral success of radical right populists is a problem facing liberal democracy in the twenty-first century. While these parties’ policies, ideologies and rhetoric are similar, their relationships with mainstream parties are different. By examining explanatory facto ....Radical right populist parties. This project aims to explain why some radical right-wing populists in Western democracies enter governmental alliances with mainstream parties while others remain isolated. The emergence, spread and electoral success of radical right populists is a problem facing liberal democracy in the twenty-first century. While these parties’ policies, ideologies and rhetoric are similar, their relationships with mainstream parties are different. By examining explanatory factors that Political Science studies have so far been neglected, this project seeks to explain this variation and explore its implications for coalition theory.Read moreRead less
Government Popularity, Political Responsiveness and Democracy in Australia. This project aims to understand what affects government popularity and how this shapes the health of democracy. What citizens are concerned about and how their concerns are satisfactorily addressed is central to an effective democracy and to responsible government. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the operation of democracy by identifying the factors that shape government popularity and how and in what ....Government Popularity, Political Responsiveness and Democracy in Australia. This project aims to understand what affects government popularity and how this shapes the health of democracy. What citizens are concerned about and how their concerns are satisfactorily addressed is central to an effective democracy and to responsible government. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the operation of democracy by identifying the factors that shape government popularity and how and in what ways governments respond to them. Expected outcomes include a comprehensive understanding of how democracy in Australia functions, which should provide the benefit of insight into how Australian democracy might be reformed to better meet the expectations of the public at a time of declining public trust in politics. Read moreRead less
Crowdsourcing political engagement. This project aims to examine the transformation of political activism and citizen-led campaigning in the digital age in Australia. Many arguments have been made concerning the way 21st century ‘digital disruption’ is transforming our everyday lives. The project plans to focus on how crowd-sourced forms of political engagement are facilitated by digital tools that let citizens share political information and calls to action. In particular, it aims to identify t ....Crowdsourcing political engagement. This project aims to examine the transformation of political activism and citizen-led campaigning in the digital age in Australia. Many arguments have been made concerning the way 21st century ‘digital disruption’ is transforming our everyday lives. The project plans to focus on how crowd-sourced forms of political engagement are facilitated by digital tools that let citizens share political information and calls to action. In particular, it aims to identify the extent and character of crowd-sourcing e-tactics: petitioning, boycotting, buycotting and micro-donations. The project intends to adjudicate on the proposition that crowd-sourced means of political engagement offer a qualitatively different type of political engagement.Read moreRead less
The organised interest system in Australian public policy: Size, focus, impact and transformation. Organised interest systems that seek to influence public policy-making are undergoing rapid transformation. Some researchers focus on the post-war professionalisation of advocacy; others suggest that the internet is positively (re)shaping the structure of such systems and their democratic capacities. This project adjudicates on such accounts through exploring the size and composition, through time, ....The organised interest system in Australian public policy: Size, focus, impact and transformation. Organised interest systems that seek to influence public policy-making are undergoing rapid transformation. Some researchers focus on the post-war professionalisation of advocacy; others suggest that the internet is positively (re)shaping the structure of such systems and their democratic capacities. This project adjudicates on such accounts through exploring the size and composition, through time, of the Australian system of organised interests. Using innovative methodologies, it assesses the presence and prominence of particular interests in legislative, administrative, print-media and ‘on-line’ arenas. Through a theoretically original, national case study, it will contribute to international scholarship in this important area. Read moreRead less
Public Interest Advocacy in Australian Policymaking. The project aims to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of public interest advocacy, via the media, in elevating the responsiveness of elected political elites. The project expects to generate new knowledge about how the advocacy and media agendas are set, examine the way elected elites access and ingest news media, and conditions under which advocacy groups access to news changes political priorities. It is expected that the project will pr ....Public Interest Advocacy in Australian Policymaking. The project aims to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of public interest advocacy, via the media, in elevating the responsiveness of elected political elites. The project expects to generate new knowledge about how the advocacy and media agendas are set, examine the way elected elites access and ingest news media, and conditions under which advocacy groups access to news changes political priorities. It is expected that the project will provide an evidence base for citizens and policy makers to assess the effectiveness of public interest advocacy, and deliver benefits such as strengthening the quality of Australia’s representative democracy, and offer scholars new theories on the role of public interest advocacy on policy priorities.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200101144
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$411,167.00
Summary
Gender, political parties and representation: A virtuous circle? The project aims to study how political parties represent women and men differently and the consequences this has on citizen political behaviour. By engaging in comparative analyses of gender, political parties and representation among established democracies, this project expects to generate new understandings about the complex relationships between what citizens want, what parties do, and how citizens feel about politics. This pr ....Gender, political parties and representation: A virtuous circle? The project aims to study how political parties represent women and men differently and the consequences this has on citizen political behaviour. By engaging in comparative analyses of gender, political parties and representation among established democracies, this project expects to generate new understandings about the complex relationships between what citizens want, what parties do, and how citizens feel about politics. This project seeks to identify specific contexts, actions, and policies that allow political parties to equally represent men and women in the political process to better understand how to eliminate gender inequalities in the representation process. Read moreRead less
Populism’s Heartlands: Place, Identity, and Localism in Populist Politics. This project aims to investigate how populism intersects with localism through systematic, comparative, and in-depth empirical study of three populist parties inextricably associated with ‘heartlands’ in Australia, Germany and Spain. This project expects to generate new knowledge about how populists utilise the language of localism and how people’s attachment to place shapes their support for populists. Expected outcomes ....Populism’s Heartlands: Place, Identity, and Localism in Populist Politics. This project aims to investigate how populism intersects with localism through systematic, comparative, and in-depth empirical study of three populist parties inextricably associated with ‘heartlands’ in Australia, Germany and Spain. This project expects to generate new knowledge about how populists utilise the language of localism and how people’s attachment to place shapes their support for populists. Expected outcomes of the project include a new understanding of how populism and localism affect one another; and identification of how right and left populist support are differently affected by community engagement and participation. Benefits include the identification of local interventions to lessen the appeal of exclusionary populisms.Read moreRead less
Confronting the devolution paradox: constitutional values, federal political culture and governance reform. Australia, like many countries, depends in part on devolutionary reform if its federal system of government is to adapt effectively to change. This project confronts a key barrier to reform; the ‘devolution paradox’, in which popular demands for decentralisation and diversity are confounded by conflicting political pressures for national policy uniformity and control. By mapping and compar ....Confronting the devolution paradox: constitutional values, federal political culture and governance reform. Australia, like many countries, depends in part on devolutionary reform if its federal system of government is to adapt effectively to change. This project confronts a key barrier to reform; the ‘devolution paradox’, in which popular demands for decentralisation and diversity are confounded by conflicting political pressures for national policy uniformity and control. By mapping and comparing the constitutional values and federal political culture of Australian citizens, citizens in Canada, USA and UK, and Australian reform policymakers, in more detail than ever before, it will give insights into how this key paradox might be resolved, helping unlock reform potential and restore adaptive capacity to our political system.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130101265
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$374,009.00
Summary
Asian Australian political identities and participation across communities: comparisons with the United States. The number of Asian Australians as a percentage of the Australian population is steadily rising. This project will provide the first major comprehensive study of Asian Australian political behaviour.
Political participation and electoral representation among first and second generation migrants to Australia. How far migrants integrate politically is a concern for governments around the world. This project identifies the factors that affect the representation of migrants in Australian politics and their levels of political participation. The results will have major implications for the settlement policies that governments develop for new migrants.