In this course you will study the historical, political and cultural development in East and Central Europe with a focus on the formation of democracy and civil society, as well as the problems associated with this process in the 20th and 21st centuries.  The course provides you insight into issues connected with the creation of different identities and values, as well as the historical processes that have driven nationalism's growth, internationalisation, Europeanisation and globalisation. 

The course is divided into different components that cover the East and Central European region as a whole, as well as selected problems from different parts of the region. Based on both theory and empiricism, studies focus on the similarities and differences, as well as continuity and discontinuity, in the development of Eastern and Central Europe as a whole and as different smaller regional units and nation states.

You will also learn about the extent to which the historical, political and cultural development in the region can be regarded as different from the rest of Europe, as well as distinctive cultural features and normative positions that are considered to be specific to the region. The course also addresses the issue of why East and Central Europe's democratisation processes have become more complicated and problematic in recent decades.