IP39420 - ELECTIONS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM

Module Identifier	IP39420
Module Title	ELECTIONS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
Academic Year	2001/2002
Co-ordinator	Dr Dafydd Trystan-Davies
Semester	Intended for use in future years
Next year offered	N/A
Next semester offered	N/A
Course delivery	Lecture	12 Hours 12 x 1 hour
	Practical	6 Hours 3 x 2 hours (2 computing practicals and one survey design workshop)
	Seminar	5 Hours 5 x 1 hour
Assessment	Report of student	Individual analysis of the survey results (1,000 words)	25%
	Group project	Group project (survey design, data set, achievement of aims and objectives)	25%
	Essay	1 x 3,000 word essay	50%

Brief description

Elections are interesting and fun to watch - but difficult to explain! This module aims to give students an introduction to the theory and practice of elections in the UK. Students will be introduced to major theories of voting behaviour, the collection and analysis of data, and will complete group based survey work as part of the assessment.

Aims

The aims of this module are :-

To give students a thorough understanding of competing explanations of voting behaviour in the UK

To evaluate differing methods of campaigning and their effectiveness in recent UK elections.

To introduce students to survey based work and quantitative data analysis.

To develop team-working and communication skills through in-depth group project work.

10 ECTS Credits

Reading Lists

Books
** Recommended Text
David Denver. Elections and voting behaviour in Britain.
Butler, David & Kavannagh, Dennis. The British general election of 1997.