On 2 September 2021, Gert Jan Geertjes defended his thesis 'Staatsrecht en conventie in Nederland en het Verenigd Koninkrijk'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. L.F.M. Verhey and Prof. W.J.M. Voermans.

Never has good policy been so important. From unemployment and a lack of affordable housing to regulating cryptocurrencies and protecting against cybersecurity threats, the challenges we face are complex and global. The text explains how policymaking works: from the emergence of policy ideas to deciding…

Political scientist Maurits de Jongh (Leiden University/Sciences Po) argues that political liberalism is self-defeating as a framework of justification for liberal conceptions of justice. He explores how the framework's self-imposed criterion of acceptability in the eyes of all reasonable citizens leads…

Are you thinking about studying Management van de Publieke Sector: Bestuur en Advisering?Learn more and watch the videos. Please note that this programme is taught in Dutch.

Are you thinking about studying Management van de Publieke Sector: Politiek, Beleid en Management? Learn more and watch thevideos. Please note that this programme is taught in Dutch.

Are you thinking about studying Encyclopedie en filosofie van het recht? Learn more and watch the videos. Please note that this programme is taught in Dutch.

In the Surveillance and Security Threat Monitor 2022-2023, the research project thematically examined threat developments.

Why obey the state? Dorota Mokrosińska presents a fresh analysis of the most influential theories of political obligation and develops a novel approach to this foundational problem of political philosophy, an intriguing combination of the elements of natural duty and associative theories.

How did parties as political organizations emerge?

Our research regularly receives attention in the (Dutch) popular media. Here is an overview.

Dutch book about pesticides and waterquality

Netwerk en projecten duurzaamheid verduurzaming green office en green team

A study into the use of strategies in listening to French news reports

Are you interested in an economics programme that takes a multidisciplinary approach? The bachelor’s degree Economics and Society combines economics with political science and law, allowing you to understand the most pressing economic and societal challenges from various perspectives.

On 3 November 2021, Lucas Noyon defended the thesis 'Strafrecht en publieke opinie'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. J.H. Crijns and Prof. J.W. de Keijser.

Inaugural lecture

Encyclopedie en Filosofie van het Recht is a specialisation of the master’s programme Rechtsgeleerdheid (Law) at the renowned Leiden Law School of Leiden University. This unique programme considers the philosophical issues and concepts upon which law is founded, in the broadest sense.

This paper written by Vydra and Kantorowicz answers the research question ‘What policy-relevant information does Twitter contain?’ as well as the research question ‘How does this information change between a period of normalcy and a period of crisis?’

The availability of indicators based on social media has opened the possibility to track the online interactions between social media users and scholarly entities.

Over the course of the 20th century, politicians increasingly came to rely on experts. Their language was peppered with terms like ‘policy pathways’ and ‘evaluation frameworks’. This made debates more abstract and less ideological.

Orange the World 2025

This dissertation offers a reconstruction of the propositional contents of the writings of Karl Popper, Leo Strauss, and Hannah Arendt while bringing these into discussion with their performative meanings, such as polemical forms of reasoning, analogical and metaphorical uses of language, and hidden…

The Institute of Political Science is a vibrant department with nearly 70 academic staff in Leiden and nearby The Hague.

Under what circumstances do paramilitary groups limit their use of political violence? This article examines the use of political violence by the PIRA.

In what ways do historical and current events affect how we should judge the legitimacy of political authorities?

Carl Li defended his thesis on 30 June 2015

Politics is about the authorised allocation of values: who gets what, when and how much? This question is relevant at many different levels, in many different places and in very different ways.

A European cooperation project on disinformation and fact-checking training empowering current and future media and media education professionals, to identify, prevent, and combat fake news spread over digital networks.

Data reuse and big data: a taxonomy for personal data reuse.

This presentation is presented in Dutch

This presentation is presented in Dutch

Study information

African oral literatures, new media and technologies: challenges for research and documentation

Are you thinking about studying Political Science? Watch the introduction video’s and learn more!

Profile Area Political Legitimacy, Leiden University

This volume challenges the idea that the development of ‘democracy’ is a story of rise and progress at all. It is rather a story of continuous but never completely satisfying attempts of interpreting the rule of the people.

Hegemony and World Order explores a key question for our tumultuous times of multiple global crises.

At the Institute of Political Science we value our alumni. We can learn from you, and would like to contribute to your further development. And, of course, we want to lend a hand in connecting ‘our’ political scientists all over the world.

How do psychology, culture, politics, and upbringing influence our lives in a rapidly changing world? What is the role of education and development, and how do cultural differences shape our society? In the minor "Introduction to Social Sciences: Human Behavior in a Changing World" (30 EC), you will…