GV4E2 Half Unit
Capitalism and Democracy
This information is for the 2025/26 session.
Course Convenor
Dr David Woodruff
Availability
This course is available on the MSc in Political Science (Conflict Studies and Comparative Politics), MSc in Political Science (Global Politics), MSc in Political Science (Political Science and Political Economy) and MSc in Political Theory. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process.
How to apply: to apply for a place on this course, please write a short statement of 200 words (max) outlining the specific reasons for applying and how the course will benefit your academic/career goals. Priority will be given to students on the programmes listed in the ‘availability’ section of the course guide. You should check that you meet any pre-requisites in the course guide before applying (where applicable). Places on capped courses cannot be guaranteed.
Deadline for application: The deadline for applications is 12:00 noon on Friday 26 September 2025. You can expect to be informed of the outcome of your application by 12:00 noon on Monday 29 September 2025. Any places remaining after this date will be allocated based on priority and written statement - up until course selection closes.
For queries contact: gov.msc@lse.ac.uk
Available as an outside option for students on other programmes with the teacher's consent. This course is capped.
Course content
Compatibility and incompatibility of capitalism and democracy; Constitutional restraints on economic policymaking in central banking and property rights; Democracy and economic crisis; Democracy and economic inequality. This course examines the uneasy interaction between the two dominant concepts underpinning political and economic institutions in advanced industrial societies. It addresses questions about the relationship of capitalism to democracy, both conceptually and empirically. We consider whether democracy undermines or supports capitalism, focusing on policies relating to central banking, redistribution, and property rights, as well as how inequality affects elections and policymaking. We also examine how capitalism may undermine or sustain democracy and what circumstances heighten the tension between democracy and capitalism.
Teaching
15 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the Winter Term.
1.5 hours of lectures in the Spring Term.
This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Winter Term.
Formative assessment
Essay
All students are expected to submit one non-assessed essay.
Indicative reading
Schumpeter, Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy. Holmes, 'Precommitment and the Paradox of Democracy'. Mill, Considerations on Representative Government. Lohmann, ‘An Information Rationale for the Power of Special Interests’. McNamara, ‘Rational Fictions: Central Bank Independence and the Social Logic of Delegation’. Beard, An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States. Kenworthy and Pontusson, 'Rising Inequality and the Politics of Redistribution in Affluent Countries'. Ferguson, ‘Deduced and Abandoned: Rational Expectations, the Investment Theory of Political Parties, and the Myth of the Median Voter’. Hopkin and Blyth, ‘The Global Economics of European Populism: Growth Regimes and Party System Change in Europe'.
Assessment
Exam (100%), duration: 180 Minutes in the Spring exam period
Key facts
Department: Government
Course Study Period: Winter and Spring Term
Unit value: Half unit
FHEQ Level: Level 7
CEFR Level: Null
Total students 2024/25: 26
Average class size 2024/25: 13
Controlled access 2024/25: YesCourse selection videos
Some departments have produced short videos to introduce their courses. Please refer to the course selection videos index page for further information.
Personal development skills
- Self-management
- Problem solving
- Communication
- Application of numeracy skills
- Commercial awareness