Kristina Dietz researches in the "DemoReg" 2025-2028 research network
Further information on Kristina Dietz's research at the Faculty of Social Sciences - Department of International Relations at the University of Kassel: https://www.uni-kassel.de/fb05/fachgruppen-und-institute/fachgruppen-und-institute/politikwissenschaft/fachgebiete/internationale-beziehungen-mit-schwerpunkt-lateinamerika/forschung.html
The research network "DemoReg", funded by the Hessian Ministry of Science and the Arts (HMWK), deals with the increasing tendencies of democratic regression. The research focuses on the question of how democratic regression manifests itself in a spatio-temporal perspective and in discursive contexts and which normative, institutional, cultural and historical dynamics underlie it. The project pursues four objectives:
(1) To identify structural deficits in political and social developments of democracy as well as potentials for strengthening democracy.
(2) The determination of concrete factors that are anchored in structures, historical path dependencies and conceptual-communicative relationships of local social spaces and influence democratic processes and attitudes. In this context, we are also interested in systematic differences between spatial and settlement types.
(3) The combination of studies of democratic spaces with analyses of their temporality. Democracy cannot do without a progressive reference to the future. At the same time, in regressive times it is linked to the ideal of a past that is to be restored, which contradicts its own principles.
(4) The development of perspectives for action to strengthen democracy within the framework of transdisciplinary, participatory research together with political and social actors.
As part of "DemoReg", Prof. Kristina Dietz's department is conducting joint research with Prof. Bernd Belina (Goethe University Frankfurt), Dr. Reiner Becker (Demokatiezentrum Hessen), Prof. Eva Wegner (Philipps University Marburg) and Prof. Miguel Pellicer (Philipps University Marburg) on populist-discursive constructions of urban-rural contrasts. The aim is to reconstruct populist invocations of the country in public discourse in order to investigate whether, how and why these invocations are effective in Hessian villages. Based on the observation of global tendencies of changes in urban-rural relations in the context of democratic regression, we discuss the results of the research in an internationally comparative way
The network is part of the program "Strengthening Democracy Research Hesse" launched by the Hessian Ministry of Science and Research, Art and Culture, which is part of the "Immediate Program 11+1" of the Hessian state government and is funded by the Ministry.
The spokespersons are Prof. Dr. Ursula Birsl (Philipps University Marburg) and Prof. Dr. Thomas Biebricher (Goethe University Frankfurt)
Further information: https://www.uni-marburg.de/de/aktuelles/news/2025/starke-demokratie-durch-starke-forschung-hessens-neuer-forschungsverbund