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Root number
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520743 |
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Semester
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HS2026 |
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Type of course
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Block Course |
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Allocation to subject
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Sociology |
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Type of exam
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not defined |
| Title |
Governing the Underworld |
| Description |
Taught by Prof. Dr. Diego Gambetta, Dr. Valeria Pizzini, and Prof. Dr. Wojtek Przepiorka
The seminar focuses on the governance provided by organized crime groups to regulate and settle disputes in extra-legal and illegal markets. The seminar is a kind of political economy of the underworld.
Each class will address a fundamental question to understand how some - though not all - organized crime groups (aka mafias) become providers of extra-legal governance in alternative, or in competition or even sometime in cooperation with the state. The first question, which will be addressed theoretically, is: do agents who operate outside or against the law need governance or can they operate in a state of anarchy? The other classes will use theory to respond to empirical questions relying on historical evidence and case studies. The questions will be the following: how do the features of markets and the actions of states shape the provision of criminal governance? How did groups providing governance emerge and stabilize in history? Why do organized crime groups evolve different types of organizations? Do groups providing criminal governance expand through migration? The classes will describe the robust answers, but also the tentative ones, and the open questions.
The seminar is organized as a one-week block-seminar taking place in the first week of the semester. Students are expected to prepare for the seminar by reading the compulsory readings before the start of the seminar and attend and actively participate in all meetings of the seminar. Students who want to attend this seminar should block their schedules from Monday, September 14 till Friday, September 18. A detailed syllabus including a schedule, a list of compulsory preparatory readings, and descriptions of graded assignments will be provided in ILIAS in due time before the start of the semester.
Prerequisites:
This is a master-level / advanced-level (i.e. 3rd year) BA seminar. Students must be in good command of English, be ready to do the preparatory work and attend and actively participate in all meetings.
Inscription:
from August 15, 2026 (08:00 p.m.) onwards via ILIAS
FORM OF IMPLEMENTATION:
In person |
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ILIAS-Link (Learning resource for course)
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No registration/deregistration in CTS (Admission in ILIAS possible).
ILIAS
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Link to another web site
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| Lecturers |
Prof. Dr.
Wojtek Przepiorka, Institute of Sociology - General Sociology ✉
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Prof. Dr.
Diego Marco Gambetta, Institute of Sociology ✉
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ECTS
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6 |
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Recognition as optional course possible
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No |
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Grading
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1 to 6 |
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| Dates |
Monday 14/9/2026 08:00-18:00
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Tuesday 15/9/2026 08:00-18:00
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Wednesday 16/9/2026 08:00-18:00
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Thursday 17/9/2026 08:00-18:00
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Friday 18/9/2026 08:00-18:00
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Saturday 31/10/2026 23:50-23:55
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| Rooms |
Seminarraum B 007, Institutsgebäude vonRoll
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| Students please consult the detailed view for complete information on dates, rooms and planned podcasts. |
User:
Öffentlicher Bereich
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