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 166-022 Governance and Complexity

Note

Formerly available as 166-225/325. Students who have completed 166-225/325 are not eligible to enrol in this subject.

Credit Points

12.5

HECS Band

1

Coordinator

Mark Considine

Prerequisites

Usually 25 points of first year politics.

Semester

1 (view timetable)

Contact

30 contact hours per semester. One 2-hour lecture per week for 10 weeks and 1-hour tutorial per week for 10 weeks. The lecture and tutorial programs are staggered and cover the 12 weeks of semester

Subject Description

This subject explores the way interests, organisations and governments jointly produce policies and systems of power in contemporary societies. Governance is treated as a normative and empirical problem for officials, citizens, NGOs and corporations. The subject investigates the changes in the role of government since the mid-70s, the emergence of neo-liberal and Third Way regimes, and emergence of radical complexity in the activities and problems which governments face. Analysis will focus on the nature of governance regimes and the role of different types of actor (and actor-networks) in securing change or resistance. The method of the subject will be based on the theoretical interrogation of case studies of policies and organisational problems such as contracting-out, privatisation and 'third party government'. Students who complete this subject will have an understanding of theories of governance and the nature of contemporary institutional regimes.

Assessment

Written work totalling 4000 words.

Prescribed Texts

A subject reader will be available.

  • R A W Rhodes, Understanding Governance: Policy Networks, Governance, Reflexivity, and Accountability. Open University Press, 1997.
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