Im a political scientist. I just retired from the University of Siena (Italy). I keep working on theoretical and empirical aspects concerning the polity dimension of politis and the transformations of the European Union.
CIRCAP Occasional Papers, University of Siena, 2023
The paper discusses the notion of polity, a key concept to identify some crucial aspects of polit... more The paper discusses the notion of polity, a key concept to identify some crucial aspects of political life. It disusses the concept of polity in relationship to the concepts of politics and policy.
With Brexit the EU seemed bound to face an existential crisis. The book discusses the weaknesses ... more With Brexit the EU seemed bound to face an existential crisis. The book discusses the weaknesses but also the stremgths of the European Union and what needs to be done to provide a more assured future for this extrordinary political creation
Thi book provides a systematic analysis of the Italian political system and of its changes over t... more Thi book provides a systematic analysis of the Italian political system and of its changes over the last twenty years
The book provides an in depth analysis of the Italian government, its historical development, in... more The book provides an in depth analysis of the Italian government, its historical development, institutional features and functioning.
Research Handbook on Political Representation, 2020
The chapter provides an overview of classic and more recent debates about political representatio... more The chapter provides an overview of classic and more recent debates about political representation and the relationship between representation and democracy .
The 2018 elections in Italy were a great success for populist parties. It was less easy to form a... more The 2018 elections in Italy were a great success for populist parties. It was less easy to form a government as previous coalition patterns had shattered. A foirst coalition formula between Five Sytars Movement and the League of Salvini did not last for long and a new government was formed after nearly a year. The new coalition was wowever quite heterogeneous.
Research Handbook on Polititical Representation, 2020
Why authoritarian regimes use representative institutions and how they manipulate their functioni... more Why authoritarian regimes use representative institutions and how they manipulate their functioning. Can representative instiitutions in such regimes have some impact or are they simply a window dressing ?
M. Cotta and P. Isernia eds., The EU through multiple crises, Routledge, 2020
An analysis of public perceptions about the role of national and European institutions during th... more An analysis of public perceptions about the role of national and European institutions during the economic, migration and security crises of the last decade
M. Cotta and P. Isernia eds., The EU through multiple crises, Routledge, 2020
A discussion of the impact of the multiple crises of the 2008-2019 period on the the EU political... more A discussion of the impact of the multiple crises of the 2008-2019 period on the the EU political system and its representation mechanisms
CIRCAP Occasional Papers, University of Siena, 2023
The paper discusses the notion of polity, a key concept to identify some crucial aspects of polit... more The paper discusses the notion of polity, a key concept to identify some crucial aspects of political life. It disusses the concept of polity in relationship to the concepts of politics and policy.
With Brexit the EU seemed bound to face an existential crisis. The book discusses the weaknesses ... more With Brexit the EU seemed bound to face an existential crisis. The book discusses the weaknesses but also the stremgths of the European Union and what needs to be done to provide a more assured future for this extrordinary political creation
Thi book provides a systematic analysis of the Italian political system and of its changes over t... more Thi book provides a systematic analysis of the Italian political system and of its changes over the last twenty years
The book provides an in depth analysis of the Italian government, its historical development, in... more The book provides an in depth analysis of the Italian government, its historical development, institutional features and functioning.
Research Handbook on Political Representation, 2020
The chapter provides an overview of classic and more recent debates about political representatio... more The chapter provides an overview of classic and more recent debates about political representation and the relationship between representation and democracy .
The 2018 elections in Italy were a great success for populist parties. It was less easy to form a... more The 2018 elections in Italy were a great success for populist parties. It was less easy to form a government as previous coalition patterns had shattered. A foirst coalition formula between Five Sytars Movement and the League of Salvini did not last for long and a new government was formed after nearly a year. The new coalition was wowever quite heterogeneous.
Research Handbook on Polititical Representation, 2020
Why authoritarian regimes use representative institutions and how they manipulate their functioni... more Why authoritarian regimes use representative institutions and how they manipulate their functioning. Can representative instiitutions in such regimes have some impact or are they simply a window dressing ?
M. Cotta and P. Isernia eds., The EU through multiple crises, Routledge, 2020
An analysis of public perceptions about the role of national and European institutions during th... more An analysis of public perceptions about the role of national and European institutions during the economic, migration and security crises of the last decade
M. Cotta and P. Isernia eds., The EU through multiple crises, Routledge, 2020
A discussion of the impact of the multiple crises of the 2008-2019 period on the the EU political... more A discussion of the impact of the multiple crises of the 2008-2019 period on the the EU political system and its representation mechanisms
ABSTRACT A discussion of the meaning of citizenship in a multilevel polity. Citizenship and its d... more ABSTRACT A discussion of the meaning of citizenship in a multilevel polity. Citizenship and its dimensions
The economic debate on the determinants and the characteristics of local development in Italy has... more The economic debate on the determinants and the characteristics of local development in Italy has stressed the dualistic nature of this process (Lutz, 1962) both in terms of territorial heterogeneity (with a developed and rich North and a poor South with low growth rates) and also firm size heterogeneity (the co-existence of big enterprises, the most of them publicly owned, and small firms, normally seen as residual realities).
In the spring of 2004, following the latest enlargement of the European Union (EU), democratic pa... more In the spring of 2004, following the latest enlargement of the European Union (EU), democratic parliamentary elections have taken place, on the same day in twenty-five European countries, to elect representatives to the European Parliament. We can rightly consider this date, whatever the immediate practical effects of these elections, a crucial symbolic point in the political development of Europe.
Livre: Parliamentary representatives in europe 1848-2000 legislative recruitment and careers in e... more Livre: Parliamentary representatives in europe 1848-2000 legislative recruitment and careers in eleven european countries BEST Heinrich, COTTA Maurizio.
1. Parliamentary Representatives from Early Democratization to the Age of Consolidated Democracy:... more 1. Parliamentary Representatives from Early Democratization to the Age of Consolidated Democracy: National Variations and International Convergence in a Long-term Perspective Maurizio Cotta and Heinrich Best 1.1. A long-term perspective on the democratization of Europe: political representation and the great change of European societies 1.2. Research bases 1.3. Theoretical perspectives 1.4. Previous findings: variations and common trends in the long-term change of European parliamentary recruitment and careers 1.5.
The article discusses the consequences for the European political system, and more specifically f... more The article discusses the consequences for the European political system, and more specifically for its Elites, of the great recession of the years after 2008. After having defined the concept of European Elites System (EES) and specified its main components, the article analyses the differential impact of the crisis upon the different elite components. A special attention is paid to the difference between those European elite groups (domestic elites and members of the European Council and of the Council of the European Union), which are directly or indirectly accountable to national electorates and the other elite groups (such as the components of the Commission and of the ECB) who are much more protected against popular protest and dissatisfaction. This has produced a different degree of vulnerability and instability across these groups, but also important differences in the responses they have given to the problems arising from the crisis. These consequences are then analysed from the point of view of the democratic quality of the Union.
European identity: from the world of ideas to that of political organisations. Is there a Europea... more European identity: from the world of ideas to that of political organisations. Is there a European identity? which are the features of this phenomenon ? how is this identity produced and which are its consequences? As it is well known the topic of identity has played a major role within the framework of national states. With the development of the national perspective in the definition of modern polities, a shared identity came to be seen as an obvious and strong complement of nationhood. Nations are normally supposed to have their specific and unique identity (Gellner 1983), a set of elements (material and immaterial) which define positively what is a nation and " wo we are ". These elements concur also negatively to differentiate a nation (and " us ") from other nations (and " they "). It is sometimes difficult to establish to what extent the positive or the negative element have prevailed in the definition of national identities. This may depend also from the historical contingencies of nation building: it is well known to what extent a specific " other " (the big European powers for Switzerland, the Germans for the French, or the Austrian for the Italians in the XIX century) has in many cases played a catalysing role in overcoming internally conflicting identities and defining an embracing political identity. We know too well how much this has been a hot theme and what amount of political and cultural energies have been mobilised in the nation building processes to shape this component of nationhood. In the process of identity building symbols and materials of different types – from flags and national anthems to literary pieces, from geographical places with historical connections, to monuments, heroes, religious themes, special acts, etc. – have been emphasized to activate the identity feelings of the population. The result (with variable intensity) is the sharing of a diffuse we-feeling by large populations. Aside from the national realm, identity feelings are often attached to other sub-national territorial entities, such as regions and cities, or to non-territorial communities, such as religious, linguistic, ethnic groups, sport clubs, etc… In most cases such different identity feelings may coexist without great problems with national identities: they simply affect separate dimensions of social life. In other cases however they can become politically mobilized and compete more or less vigorously with national identities. Identities that are broader than the national one can also exist. For instance in the age of colonial imperialism the " white man " identity obviously played some role in shaping attitudes and solidarities in the colonial countries. During the Cold War the antagonism with the Soviet empire fuelled in the " Atlantic camp " a strong " Western " identity (Bonnet 2004) (but the idea of the West existed also before and played for instance an important role in the cultural debate in Russia during much of the XIX century). The idea of a European identity is not new and has recurrently surfaced in the intellectual discourse to compare this region of the world with other regions– Asia in particular. From Greek times to the more recent writings of authors, such as Enea Silvio Piccolomini, Machiavelli and Montesquieu, till Wittfogel (1957), the idea that Europe (European states, people) is different from Asia (from Asian countries and peoples) has often been associated to the contrast between freedom or rule of law and despotism. The idea of a common European identity has offered also the basis for political proposals of integration of the European states from the Abbé de Saint Pierre to Mazzini, to Coudenhove-Kalergi and his Pan-Europa movement. European identity has become a much more concrete topic after the Second World War when projects of a supranational organisation of European states began to circulate with greater intensity in academic and political circles, and even more when new international/supranational organisations were built bringing together some European states. The Council of Europe (1949), the European Coal and Steel Community (1951) and then the European Economic Community (1956) were the first significant international bodies resulting from this movement. At the same time however the division of Europe in two political-military blocks generated a major divide between two Europe: Western and Eastern.
The book provides the first comprehensive analysis of how the theme of European integration has p... more The book provides the first comprehensive analysis of how the theme of European integration has played in Italian Politics over the last decades
The first comprehensive handbook of elite studies covering theoretical, empirical and methodologi... more The first comprehensive handbook of elite studies covering theoretical, empirical and methodological aspects of this crucial domain in political science
This book explores the mechanisms of political representation and accountability in the European ... more This book explores the mechanisms of political representation and accountability in the European political system, against the backdrop of multiple crises in recent years in the economic, financial, security and immigration fields, which have triggered strong tensions and centrifugal drives inside the EU and among its Member states.
Exploiting a rich set of new ad hoc collected data covering elite and public opinion orientations and party positions, it investigates how the current politicization of European issues and the asymmetries among member states can challenge the sustainability of the European Union. It examines how existing policy tools were found largely unable to neutralize promptly the negative effects of these crises on the populations, economies and security of the Union and how this suggests the need to reconsider overarching theoretical frameworks and a more in-depth analysis of some crucial mechanisms of the European political system and to go beyond some of the dominant scholarly debates of the past decades.
The Handbook provides a broad coverage of the most important themes in the field of political rep... more The Handbook provides a broad coverage of the most important themes in the field of political representation. Theoretical debates, institutional forms and real life implementations of representation both in democratic and non-democratic regimes are widely discussed with the help of some of the leading scholars in the field.
This book provides an in-depth analysis of the ‘technocratic shift’ in ministerial recruitment, m... more This book provides an in-depth analysis of the ‘technocratic shift’ in ministerial recruitment, measuring its extent and variations over time in fourteen European countries. It addresses the question: who governs in European democratic regimes? Just a few decades ago, the answer would have been straightforward: party-men and (fewer) party-women. More recently, however, and in varying degrees across Europe, a greater proportion of non-politicians or experts have been recruited to government, as exemplified by the 2017 election of Emmanuel Macron to the French Presidency. These experts, frequently labelled “technocrats”, increasingly occupy key executive positions and have emerged as powerful actors in the decision-making process. This edited collection explores the contemporary debates surrounding the relationship between technocracy, democracy and political leadership, and will appeal to scholars and advanced students interested in these fields.
The chapter summarizes and discusses the results of the comparative study of the long term develo... more The chapter summarizes and discusses the results of the comparative study of the long term development of parliamentary elites in European countries and offers a typology of models of representatio
In the spring of 2004, following the latest enlargement of the European Union (EU), democratic pa... more In the spring of 2004, following the latest enlargement of the European Union (EU), democratic parliamentary elections have taken place, on the same day in twenty-five European countries, to elect representatives to the European Parliament. We can rightly consider this date, whatever the immediate practical effects of these elections, a crucial symbolic point in the political development of Europe. This point in time provides us with a challenging perspective over the approximately 150 years of European history that have ...
Einstellung zur EU. Europäische Integration. EU-Erweiterung. Nationale und europäische Identität ... more Einstellung zur EU. Europäische Integration. EU-Erweiterung. Nationale und europäische Identität und Staatsbürgerschaft. Inhalt: Beurteilung der Entwicklung der allgemeinen wirtschaftlichen Lage im Land im letzten Jahr; Politikinteresse; Demokratiezufriedenheit im eigenen Land; Personenvertrauen (Skalometer); Institutionenvertrauen (Skalometer: nationales Parlament, EU-Parlament, nationale Regierung, EU-Kommission, kommunale Verwaltung); politische Wirksamkeit (Efficacy); EU-Mitgliedschaft des eigenen Landes als gute Sache (Serbien und Türkei: EU-Beitritt des Landes als gute Sache); Vorteilhaftigkeit der EU-Mitgliedschaft für das eigene Land und für den Befragten; Europäer zu sein beeinflusst den Alltag; Verbundenheit mit dem Wohnort, der Region, dem Land und mit Europa; Identität als Landesbürger, Landesbürger und Europäer, Europäer und Landesbürger oder nur als Europäer; wichtigste Elemente zur Bildung einer nationalen Identität (Christ zu sein bzw. türkischer Muslim, nationale kulturelle Traditionen, Geburt im Land, Eltern mit der eigenen Nationalität, Respektieren nationaler Gesetze und Institutionen, Nationalgefühl, Kenntnisse der Landessprache, Wahrnehmen von Bürgerrechten); wichtigste Elemente zur Bildung einer europäischen Identität (Christ zu sein bzw. europäischer Muslim, europäische kulturelle Traditionen, Geburt in Europa, europäische Eltern, Respektieren von EU-Gesetzen und EU-Institutionen, sich als Europäer fühlen, Kenntnisse einer europäischen Sprache, Wahrnehmen von Bürgerrechten); Einstellung zu einer EU-Erweiterung; Teilnahme bei der Europawahl als Bürgerpflicht; persönlich empfundene Auswirkungen durch das Geschehen in Europa; Rezeptionshäufigkeit von Fernsehnachrichten und politischen Zeitungsberichten; Selbsteinstufung auf einem Links-rechts-Kontinuum; Meinung zur Europäischen Integration; Präferenz für eine europäische Armee oder Beibehalten der nationalen Armee; Vertrauen in ausgewählte Personengruppen (Menschen der eigenen Nationalität, Menschen in anderen europäischen Ländern sowie Men [...]
The chapter elaborate a theoretical framework for the analysis of the long term transformations o... more The chapter elaborate a theoretical framework for the analysis of the long term transformations of parliamentary elites in a comparative perspectiv
The book provides a systematic comparative and diachronic analysis of parliamentary elites recrui... more The book provides a systematic comparative and diachronic analysis of parliamentary elites recruitment in Europe. The main European countries are investigated for a period of approximately 150 years of democratic life thus providing an in depth empirical anlysis of the transformations of democratic representation
Una analisi complessiva del sistema politico italiano in prospettiva diacronica con particolare a... more Una analisi complessiva del sistema politico italiano in prospettiva diacronica con particolare attenzione alle principali istituzioni politiche e al loro funzionament
Technocratic Ministers and Political Leadership in European Democracies, 2017
This book proposes to analyse, in a sample of European countries, the weight of technocracy in go... more This book proposes to analyse, in a sample of European countries, the weight of technocracy in governments with the ambition of providing, in the first place, an accurate mapping of the phenomenon and, secondly, to explore some of the potential explanatory factors of its growing presence in Political Leadership. Our study concentrates its attention on Europe for three main reasons: First, this is the region of the world where party government has found its fullest development, but also where the party systems generated by the recent waves of democratization have been considered as substantially weaker. Secondly, Europe is the region where the parliamentary form of government is the most diffuse, but also where, in recent times, semi-presidential forms of governments have proliferated. Thirdly, Europe has seen with the EU, the development of a particularly strong form of multi-level governance. There are thus good reasons for an in-depth exploration of cabinet recruiting patterns in this area of the world.
Einstellung zur EU. Europäische Integration. EU-Erweiterung. Nationale und europäische Identität ... more Einstellung zur EU. Europäische Integration. EU-Erweiterung. Nationale und europäische Identität und Staatsbürgerschaft. Inhalt: Beurteilung der Entwicklung der allgemeinen wirtschaftlichen Lage im Land im letzten Jahr; Politikinteresse; Demokratiezufriedenheit im eigenen Land; Personenvertrauen (Skalometer); Institutionenvertrauen (Skalometer: nationales Parlament, EU-Parlament, nationale Regierung, EU-Kommission, kommunale Verwaltung); politische Wirksamkeit (Efficacy); EU-Mitgliedschaft des eigenen Landes als gute Sache Vorteilhaftigkeit der EU-Mitgliedschaft für das eigene Land und für den Befragten; Europäer zu sein beeinflusst den Alltag; Verbundenheit mit dem Wohnort, der Region, dem Land und mit Europa; Identität als Landesbürger, Landesbürger und Europäer, Europäer und Landesbürger oder nur als Europäer; wichtigste Elemente zur Bildung einer nationalen Identität (Christ zu sein, nationale kulturelle Traditionen, Geburt im Land, Eltern mit der eigenen Nationalität, Respektieren nationaler Gesetze und Institutionen, Nationalgefühl, Kenntnisse der Landessprache, Wahrnehmen von Bürgerrechten); wichtigste Elemente zur Bildung einer europäischen Identität (Christ zu sein, europäische kulturelle Traditionen, Geburt in Europa, europäische Eltern, Respektieren von EU-Gesetzen und EU-Institutionen, sich als Europäer fühlen, Kenntnisse einer europäischen Sprache, Wahrnehmen von Bürgerrechten); Einstellung zu einer EU-Erweiterung; Teilnahme bei der Europawahl als Bürgerpflicht; persönlich empfundene Auswirkungen durch das Geschehen in Europa; Rezeptionshäufigkeit von Fernsehnachrichten und politischen Zeitungsberichten; Selbsteinstufung auf einem Links-rechts-Kontinuum; Meinung zur Europäischen Integration; Präferenz für eine europäische Armee oder Beibehalten der nationalen Armee; Vertrauen in ausgewählte Personengruppen (Menschen der eigenen Nationalität, Menschen in anderen europäischen Ländern sowie Menschen außerhalb von Europa); Responsivität von Entscheidungsträgern in der EU und im eigenen Land (Skala); Dem [...]
Parliaments in the Modern World. Changing Institutions, Aug 1, 1994
Between 1991 and 1993 the Italian political system entered into a dramatic and to a great extent ... more Between 1991 and 1993 the Italian political system entered into a dramatic and to a great extent unexpected process of change. The new assertiveness of the judiciary in prosecuting corrupt practices in public life and the increasing independence of the electorate, shifting its support to new parties and rejecting through referendums some of the old rules of the game, are bringing into question the main features of the political regime that had ruled Italy since the Second World War. Parliamentary institutions are at the very center of this process of ...
Democratization In Eastern Europe: Domestic And International Perspective, ed. Geoffrey Pridham and Tatu Vanharen,(London: Routledge, 1994), Nov 2, 1994
When the crisis of a nondemocratic regime arises, and the transition to democracy starts unravell... more When the crisis of a nondemocratic regime arises, and the transition to democracy starts unravelling, two main questions are at stake. The first is whether democracy will succeed, ie whether the instauration of democratic institutions is followed by consolidation of the new regime. 1 The second is what type of democracy will be adopted and what will be the peculiar features of the new political system. This means on the one hand what type of institutional framework—parliamentary versus presidential, majoritarian versus consensus ...
Uploads
Books by Maurizio Cotta
Articles, book chapters by Maurizio Cotta
Exploiting a rich set of new ad hoc collected data covering elite and public opinion orientations and party positions, it investigates how the current politicization of European issues and the asymmetries among member states can challenge the sustainability of the European Union. It examines how existing policy tools were found largely unable to neutralize promptly the negative effects of these crises on the populations, economies and security of the Union and how this suggests the need to reconsider overarching theoretical frameworks and a more in-depth analysis of some crucial mechanisms of the European political system and to go beyond some of the dominant scholarly debates of the past decades.
Just a few decades ago, the answer would have been straightforward: party-men and (fewer) party-women. More recently, however, and in varying degrees across Europe,
a greater proportion of non-politicians or experts have been recruited to government,
as exemplified by the 2017 election of Emmanuel Macron to the French Presidency. These experts, frequently labelled “technocrats”, increasingly occupy key executive positions and have emerged as powerful actors in the decision-making process. This edited collection explores the contemporary debates surrounding the relationship between technocracy, democracy and political leadership, and will appeal to scholars and advanced students interested in these fields.