Research at the Chair

The research agenda investigates the political economy of development and governance across different world regions, with a particular focus on how political institutions, social structures and public policies shape and are shaped by processes of economic and political transformation. The research conducted at the chair spans multiple world regions, including Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, and engages with a wide array of substantive topics: international climate negotiations and carbon markets; the political consequences of cash transfer programmes; the evolution and transformation of local governance institutions; post-conflict reconstruction and state-building; the effects of international aid on political, economic and social outcomes; and the politics of anti-corruption and public service provision. Methodologically, members at the chair rely on many different research strategies that include original survey research, survey and conjoint experiments, quasi-experimental analyses using original or secondary data and in-depth ethnographic fieldwork.

 

Teaching at the Chair

The chair’s teaching portfolio offers a rigorous and diverse engagement with the political economy of development, democracy and public policy with a focus on diverse world regions. Core lectures introduce students to foundational analytical tools, including economic approaches to development, sustainability and public choice. Building on these foundations, the seminars offered by members of the chair delve into specialised thematic and regional domains: the political economy of far-right mobilisation in the Global South, the political economy of natural resource dependence, the dynamics of inequality under varying political regimes, and the interplay between democracy, representation and development in low- and middle-income contexts. Regional specialisations span Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, addressing topics such as governance and institutional evolution, the legacies of colonialism and structural transformation, natural resource politics, accountability, conflict, state capacity and public service provision. Together, these offerings equip students with conceptual, empirical and comparative tools to analyse how political and economic forces shape development trajectories and democratic outcomes worldwide.