Political Populism: Handbook of Concepts, Questions and Strategies of Research, edited by Reinhard Heinisch, Christina Holtz-Bacha, and Oscar Mazzoleni. Baden-Baden: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft, 2021, 595 pp.

Abstract

This handbook is divided into three parts, the first of which includes theories, approaches, conceptualizations and dimensions of political populism. The second part analyzes populist manifestations in Europe and America, while the third part focuses on new phenomena and new research programs of political populism. In this context, the interdisciplinary nature of research is considered, taking into account the peculiarities of political populism in Europe and America. This handbook offers a comprehensive theoretical and empirical introduction to the manifestations, causes, and consequences of political populism and the political dimensions of various populist phenomena, especially in the democracies of Europe and the Americas. The main focus of this handbook is on explaining the phenomenon as a result of the crisis of legitimation of the representative system, as well as contradictions and limitations in the current political science debate. The phenomenon of political populism is considered primarily from the standpoint of political science and communication studies. This handbook also offers a comprehensive analysis of the impact of political populism on various policy areas such as the environment, health or economic policy.

Keywords

• radical right
• social movements
• populist parties
• nationalism
• new populism
• Trumpism