B2 Contexts for Democratic Governance: Political Institutions
Research Area B2 addresses the role of institutions such as political parties, parliaments and governments as key (collective) actors that structure the contexts and processes of democratic governance.
Research projects are dedicated to two overarching subjects: (1) party competition in the electoral, parliamentary, and government arenas and (2) changing roles of parties and their representatives in parliaments and governments in Western and Eastern Europe. However, contexts for democratic governance are not limited to parties, parliaments, and governments—they are also affected by courts and their decisions. Furthermore, projects in Area B2 do not just consider parties, parliaments, governments or countries as unitary actors, but they also focus on processes within these bodies in order to obtain more general explanations for the impact of contextual structures on democratic governance.