24 oktober 2008

(Press release NIAS-KNAW) Wednesday 29 October 2008, 16.00 hours, NIAS Meijboomlaan 1, Wassenaar

The Rector of the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (NIAS) is pleased to invite you to a seminar by Robert Rohrschneider, NIAS Fellow 2008/09, and Sir Robert Worcester Distinguished Professor in Public Opinion and Survey Research at the University of Kansas, Lawrence.

Political parties serve as vital intermediaries between citizens and the state. In a disturbing trend, citizens in Western Europe and in new democracies in Central-Eastern Europe increasingly view parties negatively. Despite this fairly negative public image of parties, however, few analyses directly examine how well political parties actually perform their varied roles. This paper, in collaborating with Stephen Whitefield, examines one condition that must be met if parties are to provide an effective link between citizens and governments: parties need to provide coherent, programmatic alternatives for citizens. Our study focuses on the newer democracies of Central-Eastern Europe, although the presentation will also draw on available evidence from Western Europe to bolster the arguments. Contrary to the widely negative assessment of parties in public debates, we conclude that parties actually succeed remarkably well under fairly difficult conditions.

The NIAS Seminar series is a sequence of lectures set up each academic year by the Rector of the Institute. These seminars are meant to appeal to interested parties from a wide range of backgrounds. It is hoped that the series will encourage closer contact with the various Dutch academic institutions and advance public understanding of the research the Institute aims to stimulate and promote. The lectures are followed by an open discussion.

The seminar will take place in the Lecture Room (NIAS, Meijboomlaan 1, Wassenaar) at 16.00 hours, followed by drinks in the Common Room at 17.30 hours. Changes in the programme may occur, so, please let us know if you wish to attend.

For further information see website NIAS, Robert Rohrschneider or contact Johan Kwantes, NIAS, Meijboomlaan 1, 2242 PR Wassenaar, The Netherlands, Telephone (0)70-512 27 00 Telefax (0)70-511 71 62.