166-413 Network Society

Formerly available as 166-481 & 166-066. Students who have completed 166-481/166-066 are not eligible to enrol in this subject.

Admission to the postgraduate diploma or fourth-year honours in political science, public policy and management or sociology or postgraduate coursework programs in political science.

This subject critically examines claims that network is the emergent form of contemporary social organization, paying particular attention to how the spheres of politics, economics, and culture are reconfigured. The various claims will be questioned in two ways. Firstly, we will explore how they deal with issues of identity formation, social cohesion and cultural integrity in the wake of shifting social patterns and technological innovation. Secondly, we will investigate how they tally with recent theorisation on planetary society and resurgent nationalisms. The types of issues and themes considered include governance, economic action, cultural flows, mobility, media democracy, and the new 'spirit' of capitalism. On completion of this subject students should have a critical understanding of key configurations of contemporary social organization.