Country Study (HUNGARY)

Overview: In this assignment, you will perform an in-depth study of an assigned country. The information you collect about your country will center around the major topics we cover in the course. All required content is outlined in the instructions below. You will be assigned a country in Week 3. Format: You can choose between completing a written report or a presentation. You should only complete ONE of these options, not both. The required content for the assignment will be the same regardless of which format you choose. In-text citations and a list of references is also required for both assignment options. Option 1: Written Report The written report must be a typed document submitted to Canvas as a Microsoft Word document or PDF. The report should be between 1500 and 2500 words, not including the title, your name, or references. Option 2: Presentation For the presentation format, you must provide well-designed slides and an audio recording of you presenting the slides. The slides should contain the basic content that you will elaborate on in greater detail during your recorded presentation. These slides should be created using PowerPoint, Prezi, or a similar software. The recorded presentation of the slides should be between 12 and 20 minutes long. Instructions for how to record and submit the presentation can be found on Canvas. Assessment: This assignment will be graded based on the “Country Study Rubric” provided on Canvas. See the syllabus for more information on how this assignment factors into your overall final grade for the course. Important Guidelines: As you begin working on the Country Study, please keep the following in mind: You should work on each section of this assignment as we progress through the semester. See the course schedule to get an idea of when to complete each section. The content information below also lists the unit that aligns with each general content area. While you may offer some speculation based on previous scholarly work and data, this assignment is not an opinion piece or argumentative essay/presentation. Your work should be technical and supported by evidence. You may not include any direct quotations in your assignment. Your work (written or spoken) should be entirely in your own words. A direct quotation includes four or more words in a row that are taken directly from a source. Any information that you get from a source should instead be paraphrased in your own words and then cited. For help with paraphrasing, see the information provided by Purdue’s Online Writing LabLinks to an external site.. You must include in-text citations and a reference list. For students completing a written report, the in-text citations should be placed in parentheses at the end of the corresponding sentences. For the presentation, in-text citations should be placed in parentheses at the end of the corresponding sentence/bullet point. References should be provided on a separate page/slide at the end of the document/presentation. You must format the in-text citations and reference list according to APA style. Additional tips on APA formatting are available on Canvas, and you can access the style guide hereLinks to an external site.. The sources you use should be credible. You should not include Wikipedia as a source, but it may be a good starting point to identify more reliable sources. You may cite the textbook and other assigned readings from the course. If you are uncertain of the credibility or reliability of a source, please feel free to email me for guidance. You may not use AI or any other generative software to complete this assignment (e.g., ChatGPT, etc.). Review the syllabus for the full policy. Grammarly and tools like Microsoft Word’s Spelling and Grammar feature are acceptable to use for basic proofing purposes. For additional writing help, see UBalt’s writing resources hereLinks to an external site.. Content: This information reflects the minimum content you should include in your final report/presentation. You should use the following section titles (shown in italics as headings) as headings/subheadings in your written report or presentation slides. Be sure to fully address each component. For the written report, write out the information in complete sentences organized in paragraphs (not bullet points). The information below also contains hyperlinks for several sources and tools that you will be expected to use when completing this assignment. Detailed instructions or video demonstrations on how to access and use each of these resources is located on Canvas. Please email me if you have any difficulties or questions about these or other sources. Country Background Note: Sources like the CIA World FactbookLinks to an external site., Britannica’s Countries of the WorldLinks to an external site., and Freedom House’s Country Narrative ReportsLinks to an external site. should contain most (if not all) of this information. What is the name of your country and what region is it located in? Is there anything unique/interesting/notable about its geography? (e.g., land-locked; largest/smallest in the region; notable features like major rivers/mountains/desert; etc.) What year did your country officially become an independent state? Provide some brief context on how your country became independent. Regime Status Note: This section of the assignment corresponds with the content covered during Part 2 of the course (weeks 3 through 7). More detailed instructions for how to access and incorporate data and graphs from the sources in this section will be provided on Canvas. Access Freedom House’s current reportLinks to an external site. for your country. How does Freedom House classify your country (i.e., not free, partly free, or free)? Using the previous reports, has this rating changed in any year over the last 5 years (since 2019)? If so, how has it changed? Access the V-Dem online graphing toolsLinks to an external site.. Create a graph showing trends over time for the Regimes of the World variable for your country. Be sure to change the scale to “Original Scale.” Insert this graph into your report/slides for reference. According to this data, how is your country classified in 2023 (e.g., closed autocracy, electoral autocracy, electoral democracy, liberal democracy)? Based on the information you gathered from Freedom House and V-Dem, describe any changes you observe in your country’s regime type over the last several years or decades. If there have been many significant changes in the last few years, you can focus on a narrower time frame. Use what you have learned from the assigned readings to discuss whether there has been democratization or autocratization in your country. Be sure to provide some context about why or how these changes (or lack thereof) have occurred. Draw specifically on course materials about the theories or arguments concerning regime transformation and resilience. For information specifically regarding political events in your country, you will need to consult additional outside sources. Institutions Note: This section of the assignment corresponds with the content covered during Part 3 of the course (weeks 8 through 11). For the information in this section, I recommend reading currentLinks to an external site. and archivedLinks to an external site. editions of the Freedom House reports (some of the older versions – prior to 2014 – have more in-depth background information). To access the archived editions, click the hyperlinkLinks to an external site. and then click to expand the section on the page that says “Past Editions.” The CIA World FactbookLinks to an external site. and Britannica’s Countries of the WorldLinks to an external site. should also have useful information. You also may need to consult other external sources to find information. Describe the basic features of your country’s political system and institutions. More specifically: What year was the most recent constitution adopted? Based on the information you can find, does the constitution seem to be amended or replaced often? If so, provide some brief context about those changes (e.g., are the changes often led/supported by the same person/party? Are the changes a result of coups or some other extraordinary event? Etc.). Does the current constitution establish a federal or unitary system of government? Be sure to briefly define the differences between federalist and unitary systems. Describe the legislative branch in your country. What is the legislature called and how is it structured (unicameral or bicameral)? Describe your country’s legislative electoral system (district system, proportional representation, mixed/hybrid). Finally, what party/coalition currently holds the majority/power in the legislature? Tip: V-Dem has a variable that you can graph onlineLinks to an external site. called “Legislature bicameral” that indicates the number of chambers a country’s legislature contains. The V-Party ExplorerLinks to an external site. may also contain some interesting data, but you are not required to use this for the assignment. Describe the executive branch in your country. Is the “head of state” separate from the “head of government” in your country? How is the chief executive supposed to come into power (e.g., elections, hereditary succession, etc.)? Who is the current chief executive and how/when did they come into power? Briefly describe the pattern of party politics in your country. In recent years, is there only one political party that tends to hold the most power? Are there two or even multiple parties that often credibly compete for power? Be sure to name the major parties, their basic ideological leanings, and their current power status (e.g., majority or supermajority in legislature; executive & legislature controlled by same parties; etc.). Limit your discussion to only the top 3 most significant parties if there are multiple. Society and Culture Note: This section of the assignment corresponds with the content covered during Part 4 of the course (weeks 12 through 15). For the information in this section, I recommend reviewing the CIA World FactbookLinks to an external site., Britannica’s Countries of the WorldLinks to an external site., and Freedom House’s Country Narrative ReportsLinks to an external site.. However, you also may need to access additional sources of information. Consider the demographics of your country’s population. How large is the population? Is the country racially/ethnically homogenous or diverse? What is/are the main racial or ethnic group(s)? Is the government more secular or religious? What about the population? What religion(s) or religious identities are the most prevalent (if any)? Are there certain forms of discrimination prevalent in your country? For example, consider discrimination based on race/ethnicity, sex/gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and religion. Tip: Freedom House’s Country ReportsLinks to an external site. include a section discussing equal treatment of various segments of the population (Question F4).