Basic Divisions:

Political Sciences Department of the Faculty of History and Political Science; Laboratory of Political Identity Research at Political Sciences Department of the Faculty of History and Political Science; Scientific Educational Centre of European Integration, Informational Centre of the EU.

 

Brief Description of Research Activities

The trend has been forming as part of Historical-Institutional Comparative Political Science, including the researches devoted to political and cultural context of a political process and institutions in Russia and abroad. Regional policy, electoral processes and political parties, inter-elite and inter-sectoral interactions are explored in the aspect of politics as a dynamic and changeable phenomenon. This idea is developed in the annual journal published by the Political Sciences Department from 2000 to 2006 – “Political Almanac of the Perm Region” which is a result of mutual efforts of the Perm Region researchers of Political Sciences development. Since 2007 the Department has been publishing the scientific journal “Perm University Herald”, Series “Political Science” (Editor-in-Chief – Professor L. Fadeeva). This journal is entered the list of the leading scientific published works approved by the HAC.

 

The research interests of the trend representatives differ: political order, regional political regimes, political communities and problems of political identity. However, that does not demolish the trend’s integrity. The specificity of the trend is an analytical combination of institutional and sociocultural aspects of the policy. Particularly, the researchers pay much attention to study of institutionalization, reproduction and transformation of the political order as a phenomenon, based on the shared common concepts about social ontology of the participants of the politics.

 

Such a combination of research problems presupposes and demands to broaden an epistemological field of Political Science by including in it the phenomena which formerly were not considered as political, but now they are. Over the last few years the researchers have been focusing on the analysis of political communities and political identities in contemporary conditions. Political identities are considered in their relation to the practice of collective sense production and support, system-forming and regulating the group interaction, giving symbolic support to the group. The tool of the identity research is the social-constructivist approach.

 

The research proved that in the process of globalization (glocalization), characterized by blurring and weakening of the sovereignty “nation-state”, political domination of the national identity in the structure of the identification matrix significantly decreases; the “filling” of political identity by sense and meaning becomes more problematic; the structure of the matrix of the identification system becomes dynamic. It was proved that political identity may be based on different grounds – from reference to associative groups (for example, gender aspect) to professional roles of a person. It was shown that the key way of the struggle for identity is the actors’ actualisation and articulation of potential or real identification the matrix components, which is actualized due to realisation of particular senses in social communication.  

 

The significant results of the research work are the institutional sites:

- an expert network for identity research (http://identity.ucoz.ru/) in assistance with  the Sector of Applied Social and Political Researches of the Centre of Comparative Social, Economic and Political Research of the IMEMO Russian Academy of Sciences, and the Institute of Law and Philosophy of the Ural Department of the Russian Academy of Sciences;

- All-Russian Assembly of Young Political Scientists held annually by the Political Sciences Department since 2007;

- “Perm University Herald, series “Political Science”.

Students and post-graduate students are actively involved in research due to competitions, projects and publications. Three doctoral and 18 candidate dissertations have been done within the trend.

 

 

Selected Publications Characterising Scientific Research Trend

1. Identity as a subject of political analysis. The symposium based on the proceedings of the All-Russian Theoretical and Practical Conference  (21-22 October 2010, the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences) / Edited by I. S. Semenenko, L.A. Fadeeva  – Moscow, the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 2011. 299p. (In Russian)

2. Panov P.V. Institutions, Identities, Practices: theoretical model of political order. Moscow: Russian Political Encyclopedia (RPE), 2011. – 230p. (In Russian)

3. Panov P.V. Institutional foundations of stability and fragmentation of political order in Post-Soviet Russia. Perm. 2008. 245p. (In Russian)

4. Panov Р. Russian Political Parties and Regional Political Processes: The Problem of Effective Representation // Ross C., Campbell A. (eds.) Federalism and Local Politics in Russia. London, New York: Routledge, 2009. P.150-183. (In English)

5. Communities as a political phenomenon / [N.V. Borisova et al]; edited by P.V. Panov, K.A. Sulimov, L.A. Fadeeva Moscow: Russian Political Encyclopedia (RPE), 2009. – 248p. (In Russian)

6. Fadeeva L.A. In the light of political culture: nation, class and region. Perm, 2006. 304p. (In Russian)

7. Borisova N. Perm. A Local Regime in a Large Russian City // Russian Politics and Law. – 2011. - Vol.49. - № 4. (In English)

8. Panov Р. Electoral Practices at the Sub-National Level in Contemporary Russia // The Politics of Sub-National Authoritarianism in Russia / Ed. by V. Gel’man, C. Ross. – Burlington: Ashgate, 2010. - P.151-170. (In English)

9. Fadeeva L. The Political Communication and the Political Mobilization in the Russian Internet Space// Terrorism and the Internet. Threats, Target Groups, Deradicalisation Strategies. Ed. By H.-L.Dienel, Y.Sharan, Ch.Rapp, N.Ahituv. IOS Press. Amsterdam, Berlin, Tokyo, Washington. 2010. P.143-153 (In English)

10. Belyaeva N.M. Young European or young citizens of European countries? (On the problem of the unified value system of the European young people) // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue 4(12). P. 65-76

11. Borisova N. V. Perm: local regime in a big Russian city // Reserve Stock. 2010. Issue 2 (70). (In Russian)

12.  Borisova N.V. Urban Regimes and Symbolic Policy Space// Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue 4(12). P. 48-55. (In Russian)

13. Borisova N.V.  Urban Region Theory and its Application for Analysis of Russian Local Policy // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue 2 (10). P. 5-12. (In Russian)

14. Borisova N.V. Sulimov K.A., with assistance of O.V. Kovina  Coalitions in the Perm Region cities: Factors of Urban Regime Formation and Transformation // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2011. Issue 1 (13). P. 5-14. (In Russian)

15. Bulgakov M.A. The problem of migration and migrants in Russian cyberspace // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue  2(10). P. 105-119. (In Russian)

16. Bulgakov M.A. The Problems of Ethnic Migration in Contemporary Russia// Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue 4(12). P. 88-100. (In Russian)

17. Lektorova  Yu.Yu. Information space: on the way of virtualization of political communication // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue 3(11). P.22-30. (In Russian)

18. Lektorova Yu.Yu. Political communication in information space: an experience of theoretical and methodological reflection // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2011. Issue 1(13). P. 71-80. (In Russian)

19. Nazukina M.V. Variants of regional identity construction in the North-Caucasian Federal District // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue 3(11). P.5-21. (In Russian)

20. Nazukina M.V. The concept of “Identity” in Political Science: theoretical and methodological review // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2007. Issue 2. P. 48-57. (In Russian)

21. Nazukina M.V., Panov P.V., Sulimmov K.A. Constructing of political selfness on local level // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2007. Issue  2. p. 19-36. (In Russian)

22. Nazukina M.V., Podvintsev O.B. Russian North as the second historical centre of Russia // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Special issue p. 9-39. (In Russian)

23. Panov P.V. Political community: construction and institutionalization // Polis – 2007. Issue 1. p. 94-103 (In Russian)

24. Panov P.V. Regional political processes in the RF in the “Putin’s Epoch”: unification or diversification? // POLYTEX. 2006. Issue 4. (In Russian)

25. Panov P.V. Governor recruitment phenomenon in conditions of uncertainty: “Perm case” // Political Science. 2007 – issue 2. p. 148-171. (In Russian)

26. Panov P.V. Regional electoral systems reform and development of political parties in the regions of Russia: Cross-regional Comparative Analysis // Polis. 2005. Issue 5. p. 102-117. (In Russian)

27. Panov P.V. Electoral practices: problems of conceptualization and variants of institutionalization // Power in Russia: elites and institutions / edited by A.V. Duka St. Petersburg: Intersocis, 2009. p.36-56. (In Russian)

28. Panov P.V. Electoral Particularism: where and how to find “traces”? // Russian governement institutions and elites in the epoch of transformation: Proceedings of the VIIIth All-Russian Seminar “Sociological problems of Government Institutions in the context of Russian transformation” / Edited by A.V. Duka,  St. Petersburg: Intersocis, 2011. 326p. p.117-144. (In Russian)

29. Panov P.V., Punina K.A. Resource distribution in the Perm Krai and political process on local level // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue  1 (13). p. 15-29. (In Russian)

30. Panov.P.V., Sulimov K. A. Region’s image forming in political aspect: struggle for identity in the Perm Region // Proceedings of All-Russian Theoretical and Practical Conference “Region’s image as a strategy of integration of Russia and the Asia-Pacific Region in the XXIth century” Ulan-Ude, 2010. p.122-125. (In Russian)

31. Podvintsev O.B, Nazukina M.V. Specificity of Ural regions’ positioning in the present // Annual edition of Russian Association of Political Sciences. Moscow, 2010. (In Russian)

32. Punina K.A., Romashova M.V. In search of the City identity: visualization of urban landscape // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue  4 (12). p. 56-64. (In Russian)

33. Semenova D.M. Image of “Enemy” in Russian political identity construction by the Russian Orthodox Church in the 2nd half of the 2000th years // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2010. Issue  2(14)  p. 64-70. (In Russian)

34. Sulimov K.A. Symbolic representation of local political communities: the Perm Region and Sverdlovsk Oblast // Political Science: Collection of papers of Russian Academy of Sciences. Institute for Scientific Information for Social Sciences. Centre of Social Scientific and Informational Researches. Political Science; Edited by Yu.S. Pivovarov. Moscow, 2008, issue 3. Local policy, local self-government: Russian and foreign experience. Edited by L.N. Verchenov, V.A. Kovalev, P.V. Panov (co-author). (In Russian)

35. Fadeeva L.A. Struggle for regional identity construction: Perm case // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2011. Issue 2 (14). p. 43-51. (In Russian)

36. Fadeeva L.A. Problem of identity in comparative political science // Polis (political studies) – 2011, issue 1, p. 134-139. (In Russian)

37. Fadeeva L.A. Public intellectuals in struggle for identity // Political Regionalism and researches in Russia’s regions. Political Science: Annual edition 2010 of Russian Association of Political Sciences. – Moscow, 2011. p. 176-193. (In Russian)

38. Fadeeva L.A. Cross-temporal analysis of Russia’s image created by the intellectuals // Images of states, nations and leaders / edited by E.B. Shestopal Moscow, 2008, p. 79-86. (In Russian)

39. Fadeeva L.A. The problem of corruption in the focus of Russian Political Science / Democracy and Governance. Information Bulletin of Research Committee of Russian Association of Political Science on Comparative Political Science – CP-RAPS. 2008. issue 1. p.93-94. (In Russian)

40. Fadeeva L.A. Intellectuals’ responsibility: Is it a cornerstone or a stumbling block of intellectual сommunity? // Perm University Herald. Political Science. – 2007. Issue 2. P.11-18. (In Russian)

41. Fadeeva L.A. Perm Politological community / Political Science in Russia: problems, trends, studies (1990-2007). Moscow, 2008. p. 247-365. (In Russian)

 

The Most Significant Fundamental and Applied Research Projects

1. 2011 till now – project “Institute of Successor: the model of Politics reproduction and Modernization Perspectives in the Contemporary World” (Russian Humanitarian Sciences Foundation, № 11-03-00-198a). Supervisor – N.V. Borisova

2. 2010 till now – project “Struggle for Identity and New Communications’ Institutions” (MacArthur Foundation № 09-95275-000-GSS). Supervisor – L.A. Fadeeva

3. 2010 till now – project “City Coalitions and Local Government of Contemporary Russia” ” (Russian Humanitarian Sciences Foundation, № 10-03-82305а/U). Supervisor – K.A. Sulimov

4. 2010 till now – “Civicism, particularism, clientelism? Variant of institutionalization of electoral practices in the Perm Krai depending on the formal characteristics of elections and political context” (Russian Humanitarian Sciences Foundation, № 10-03-82311а/U). Supervisor – P.V. Panov

5. 2009-2010 – project “Resource Distribution in the Perm Krai and Political Process on local level” (Russian Humanitarian Sciences Foundation, № 09-03-82301а/U). Supervisor – K.A. Punina

6. 2007-2008 – project “Institutional bases of stability and fragmentation of political community in Post-Soviet Russia: Conceptual and Empirical Analysis” (Russian Humanitarian Sciences Foundation, № 0703-00251). Supervisor – P.V. Panov

7. 2007-2008 – project “Political communities in civil, political and scientific perspectives” (MacArthur Foundation №06-86349-000-GSS). Supervisor – L.A. Fadeeva

 

Training of Researchers

Post-graduate programme in specialty 23.00.02 – Political  Institutions, Processes and Technologies (Political Sciences)

 

International Research and Educational Activities

The Department collaborates with the following universities:

- the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium)

- the NEXUS Institute for Cooperation Management and Interdisciplinary Research (Germany)

- Yale University, Monterrey Institute, Emory University (the USA)

- The University of British Columbia (Canada)

 

Academic trainings of foreign researchers are regularly organised by the Political Sciences Department. Paull Good from Oxford (the UK), Catrin Muller (Dusseldorf University), Douglas Rogers (Yale University) trained at the Department.

The Department collaborates with the following foreign foundations: F.Naumann Foundation (Germany), John D. and Catherin T. MacArthur Foundation (the USA), and the Centre of Political Education of Baden-Wurttemberg (Germany).