New book publication by AIAS Fellow Isabel Kusche
Clientelism and its role in democratic politics is discussed and conceptualized in Kusche’s 'Politischer Klientelismus. Informelle Macht in Griechenland und Irland'.
In connection with the crisis in Greece, politics and mass media have often referred to clientelism in recent years. Detailed descriptions of the phenomenon are however rare, as are in-depth discussions about the extent to which it actually poses a problem and is not just a part of normal democratic politics.
In her recent book Politischer Klientelismus. Informelle Macht in Griechenland und Irland (Frankfurt 2016: Campus), AIAS Fellow Isabel Kusche provides an overview of the international research on the topic and points out its theoretical deficits. Drawing on differentiation theory and early works of Niklas Luhmann the book conceptualizes clientelistic structures as a specific type of informal power. A comparison between Greece and Ireland renders the phenomenon comprehensible in a European context.
Read more (in German)
Short bio of Isabel Kusche
Isabel Kusche received a doctorate in sociology at the University of Bielefeld in Germany in 2008. Subsequently, she has worked as a lecturer and researcher at the University of Kiel and the University of Osnabrueck. She has been an AIAS Fellow since October 2015. Her research focuses on political communication and the (re-)production of political power in contemporary democracies.
Isabel Kusche's project at AIAS.
Contact
Isabel Kusche, AIAS Fellow
isabelkusche@aias.au.dk
Phone: +458715 3007
Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, AIAS
Høegh-Guldbergs Gade 6B
DK- 8000 Aarhus C