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Science of Democracy 2.0

October 3, 2025

🦋 The ‘Fourth Theorist’ and the future of democracy  

Rishiraj Sen A new book by this series’ founder introduced the radical idea of a yet-to-exist theoretician who can access and condense immense amounts of information. Rishiraj Sen looks at the advantages and pitfalls of this concept, arguing that the ‘Fourth Theorist’ risks becoming an authoritarian figure, undemocratic in their theorisation of democracy  Read more
September 25, 2025

🦋 On democracy’s 'Fourth Theorist' 

Dimitra Mareta This new phase in the Science of Democracy series posits the idea of a 'Fourth Theorist' – a still-to-exist thinker who may in future come to life. But, asks Dimitra Mareta, will that person, or thing, deliver on their promises? Or will it the Fourth Theorist prove a false idol?  Read more
September 8, 2025

🦋 Plain democracy: reclaiming fundamentals in an age of democratic erosion

Agnieszka Pawłowska In the current climate of populist narratives, citizens need a clear message about democracy. Agnieszka Pawłowska draws inspiration from the notion of plain language. Here, she proposes that citizens should be provided with plain democracy, which would empower them to recognise, understand, and use the fundamentals of democracy Read more
August 14, 2025

🦋 Shift happens: rethinking democracy research in times of crisis

Norma Osterberg-Kaufmann Democracy research must evolve. Citizens support democracy itself, but are growing disillusioned with democratic institutions. Christoph Mohamad-Klotzbach and Norma Osterberg-Kaufmann say we need to rethink our frameworks. Here, they argue for broadening the empirical paradigm – shifting focus from procedural checklists to people’s own understandings of democracy – to better grasp today’s crisis Read more
August 7, 2025

🦋 Democracy in academia: the not-so-wanted child

Max Steuer Of all domains of inquiry, the science of democracy is hit particularly heavily in non-democratic regimes. Max Steuer argues that non-democratic practices in academia complicate the issue. Here, he calls for a debate on more intra-academic democracy Read more
August 1, 2025

🦋 The Science of Democracy and the limits of an uncompromisingly pluralist approach

Jonas Wolff Democracy is in trouble, and so is democracy research. In response, the Science of Democracy 2.0 lays out an ambitious agenda. While applauding this endeavour, Jonas Wolff explores a fundamental tension: is a radically pluralist approach to democracy research a tool to defend democracy? Read more
July 24, 2025

🦋 What counts as democracy? A critical reflection on The Science of Democracy 2.0

Hong Do The Science of Democracy 2.0 offers a bold, innovative rethinking of democracy by embracing diversity and challenging Western-centric models. Hong Do acknowledges its ambition, but argues it risks romantic pluralism by celebrating traditions without fully addressing embedded inequalities and power hierarchies within them Read more
July 15, 2025

🦋 Science of Democracy 2.0

Jean-Paul Gagnon To kickstart another round of essays, Jean-Paul Gagnon recaps four years’ worth of discussions in The Loop's Science of Democracy series. He explains where this ever-growing community of scholars has got to so far – and where it aims to go next Read more

The Loop

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Advancing Political Science
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