Thomas Bernauer: Catalogue data in Spring Semester 2025 |
| Name | Prof. Dr. Thomas Bernauer |
| Field | Internationale Beziehungen |
| Address | CIS ETH Zürich, IFW C 45.1 Haldeneggsteig 4 8092 Zürich SWITZERLAND |
| thbe0520@ethz.ch | |
| Department | Humanities, Social and Political Sciences |
| Relationship | Full Professor |
| Number | Title | ECTS | Hours | Lecturers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 170-0002-00L | International Environmental Politics  This course unit is part of a joint ETH Master's program with Ashesi University Ghana. Enrollment takes place at Ashesi University. | 2.5 credits | 5G | T. Bernauer, C. Fournier De Lauriere, J. Freihardt | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | This course deals with how and why international cooperation in environmental politics emerges, and under what circumstances such cooperation is effective and efficient. Based on theories of international political economy and theories of government regulation various examples of international environmental politics are discussed: the management of international water resources | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | The objectives of this course are to (1) gain an overview of relevant questions in the area of international environmental politics from a social sciences viewpoint; (2) learn how to identify interesting/innovative questions concerning this policy area and how to answer them in a methodologically sophisticated way; (3) gain an overview of important global and regional environmental problems. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 857-0004-00L | Political Economy | 8 credits | 3S | T. Bernauer, V. Koubi | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | This seminar focuses on the interplay of political and economic factors in shaping policy outcomes at local to global levels. It concentrates on the application of economic logic to political questions and the influence of political processes and institutions on economic activity. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | This seminar focuses on the interplay of political and economic factors in shaping policy outcomes at local to global levels. It concentrates on the application of economic logic to political questions and the influence of political processes and institutions on economic activity. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | This course focuses on the interplay of political and economic factors in shaping policy outcomes at local, national, and global levels. To this end, it focuses on the application of economic concepts, arguments and models to political questions, and the influence of political processes and institutions on economic activity. The course draws on a wide range of theoretical perspectives from comparative and international politics, positive political theory, public choice, and economics. These different theoretical perspectives and models from political science and economics will be used to investigate a number of specific areas of interest: e.g., the effects of interest groups, civil society, and mass public opinion on government regulation of economic activity, the determinants of government spending, the determinants of economic growth and sustainable development, the politics of international trade and investment, monetary and fiscal policy, the welfare state, and globalization. Ultimately, this course not only seeks to make students familiar with the theoretical and methodological approaches used in these areas of study, but also with important research topics in comparative and international political economy. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lecture notes | see http://www.cis.ethz.ch/education/macis/courses | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literature | See Moodle for this course | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prerequisites / Notice | Core course in the MA CIS program. Restricted to students of MA CIS. 8 ECTS credit points upon successful completion. The overall grade for the course will be based on a review essay, a presentation in class, participation in class, and written mid-term and final exams. Details on each of these can be found in the syllabus. If the overall grade is below 4.0, the entire course, including all graded components thereof, can be retaken. This requires re-registration for the course in the following spring semester. The resulting overall grade constitutes the second chance to pass the course. Individual graded components of the course cannot be re-taken as such even if the grade for them is below 4.0. Once the first graded component of the course has been completed de-registering from the course is no longer possible, and participation in the course counts as the first attempt, irrespective of whether the remaining graded components of the course are completed or not. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Competencies |
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| 860-0005-01L | Colloquium Science, Technology, and Policy (FS) | 1 credit | 1K | T. Schmidt, T. Bernauer, E. Tilley | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | The colloquium consists of presentations by guest speakers from academia and practice/policy. Students are assigned to play a leading role in the discussion and write a report on the respective event. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Students meet guest speakers from academia and practice/policy. Students are assigned to play a leading role in the discussion and write a report on the respective event. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | See program on the ISTP website: http://www.istp.ethz.ch/events/colloquium.html | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 860-0009-00L | Policy Debate | 1 credit | T. Bernauer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | In this seminar, students engage in a critical assessment of and debate on contemporary policy issues, drawing upon scientific literature presented in other courses of the MSc STP programme. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Through active engagement in policy-related discourse, students enhance their capacity to assess and engage with academic literature that addresses contemporary policy challenges. Additionally, they also enhance their presentaton and debating skills. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | Before the semester starts, students form teams of two to four people. Each team proposes a topic for one of the seminar meetings. At the meetings, each team prepares and presents their topic and questions for debate. These topics and questions are based on the readings from the courses entitled "Concepts, Theories and Methods for Public Policy Analysis" and "Public Institutions and Policy-Making Processes”. Then, the students will lead a discussion about this topic. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 860-0100-00L | Doctoral Colloquium in Public Policy Open to doctoral students from all departments. Permission from lecturers is required. | 1 credit | 1K | L. P. Fesenfeld, T. Schmidt, T. Bernauer, B. Steffen | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | In this colloquium, doctoral students present their research plan within the first year of their doctorate, which is reviewed by three professors affiliated with the ISTP and commented on by the peer students registered in the colloquium. We recommend attending the colloquium for two semesters and presenting the research plan in the second semester. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Doctoral Students obtain feedback on research ideas for the doctoral research plan and have the research plan approved by three faculty members, as required by ETH Zurich. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | Doctoral students (typically affiliated with the ISTP or groups of ISTP members) attend this colloquium for one to two semesters. During the first (voluntary) semester they present their preliminary research ideas. During the second (obligatory) semester, they present their research plan, which is reviewed by three professors affiliated with the ISTP. The research plan should not be longer than 20 pages (references excluded). The second semester will be credited with 1 ECTS. All students are supposed to read and comment on their peers’ research ideas and plans throughout both semesters. The results of the review are submitted to the doctoral committee of D-GESS or other ETH departments where ISTP-affiliated doctoral students intend to graduate. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 860-0101-00L | Designing Public Policy Research Open to doctoral students from all departments. Permission from the lecturers is required. | 2 credits | 2S | B. Steffen, T. Bernauer, Y. Borofsky, G. Sansavini, T. Schmidt | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | PhD students in public policy (or related fields) get an introduction to epistemology and an overview of different methodological approaches. The course will help them design their own (interdisciplinary) research and create meaningful and policy-relevant insights. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Students should be able to understand how (policy-relevant) knowledge can be created and what the potentials and limits of different research designs and methodologies are. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Content | After an introduction to epistemology and the philosophy of science, students will gain insights into different research approaches, including qualitative and quantitative empirical designs, computational modelling, and conceptual and analytical approaches. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 877-0101-00L | Technology, Society, Markets and the State | 6 credits | 5G | T. Schmidt, T. Bernauer, C. Freudlsperger | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | Technological innovation is seldom entirely market-driven but often requires policy intervention. This module will introduce the participants into the literature that aims to understand technology and the underlying markets and its interaction with policy and its underlying politics. Besides an academic perspective, it will introduce practitioners working at the technology-policy interface. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Introduction: Participants understand (1) what public policy and policy analysis are, (2) why policy analysis is important for evidence-based policy-making, (3) how policy analysis is undertaken in a consulting firm. Technology, Society, Markets, and the State: Participants understand (1) what the key technological innovations in history have been, (2) how technological innovation unfolds and what factors drive it or slow it down, (3) what role the state (public policy, regulatory frameworks), markets (consumers, firms), and other stakeholders play in this regard. Political Institutions and Policy-Making Processes: Understand (1) how electoral systems, legislatures, government, public administrations, the judiciary, and interest groups function and shape policy choices, (2) the role of law, law-making, and law enforcement in modern societies, (3) how the European Union and international organisations decide on and implement policies. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literature | Course materials can be found on Moodle. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 877-0121-00L | Public Sphere and Stakeholders in Policy-Making | 6 credits | 4G | T. Bernauer, D. Kaufmann, M. Stauffacher | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | Citizens, consumers, firms, and other stakeholders play an important role in designing and implementing policies that affect and/or are affected by technology. This module enables participants to understand what role public opinion and behavioural approaches play in policy design and implementation, and to systematically design and analyse citizen and stakeholder participation in policy-making. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Public Opinion Research for Public Policy: Participants understand (1) what role public opinion plays in policy design and implementation processes, (2) how public opinion surveys are designed, (3) how public opinion data is collected and analysed. Citizen and Stakeholder Participation in Policy-Making: Participants understand (1) what forms of citizen and stakeholder participation can be used when policy interventions are designed and implemented, (2) how such participation can influence decision processes, policy choices, and policy outcomes, (3) what the pitfalls of particular participation forms are and how they can be avoided. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literature | Course materials can be found on Moodle. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 877-0141-00L | Communication and Negotiation | 3 credits | 2G | T. Bernauer | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | This module enables participants to understand and assess political communication and information-processing techniques, strategies and activities. It also enables them to identify different negotiation situations and apply respective negotiation approaches. These are important skills in order to effectively co-design policies through collaboration between scientists and political practitioners. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Political Communication: Participants (1) understand key communication and information-processing principles and techniques, (2) are able to assess political communication strategies and activities, and (3) are able to identify appropriate creative solutions to political communication challenges. Negotiations: Participants (1) understand and are able to identify different negotiation situations, (2) analyse specific cases, and discuss respective negotiation approaches based on important negotiation methods. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literature | Course materials can be found on Moodle. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 877-0231-00L | Policy-Making in Practice Does not take place this semester. | 4 credits | 3G | T. Bernauer, D. N. Bresch | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abstract | Effective management of risks and uncertainty as well as communication of scientific evidence to stakeholders and policy-makers are essential for successful policy-advice and policy-making. Hence, this module conveys the fundamentals of risk analysis/management and of writing for policy-makers. Besides an academic perspective, it features practitioners working at the technology-policy interface. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Risk Analysis and Risk Management: Participants understand (1) the role risk and uncertainty play in decision- and policy-making, (2) common approaches to risk management, (3) how to apply methods of quantitative risk analysis, (4) how to communicate risk information clearly and effectively. Writing for Policy-Makers: Participants understand (1) particular prerequisites for successful dissemination of scientific results to policy-makers and the wider public, (2) expectations and needs of different target groups and audiences, (3) how to effectively write policy briefs for stakeholders and policy-makers. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literature | Course materials can be found on Moodle. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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