*CFP* "DIGITALIZATION AND CHALLENGES OF DEMOCRATIC PROCESSES IN EUROPE", PANEL, EUROPE OF THE 21ST CENTURY, 20TH INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC CONFERENCE

Digitalization and challenges of democratic processes in Europe

a panel within the 20th international academic conference

Europe of the 21st CENTURY

February 6-7, 2020 Collegium Polonicum, Słubice

On behalf of the organizers, namely the Faculty of Political Science and Journalism at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznan and the Faculty of Political Science and Sociology at the University of Granada we would like to extend an invitation to participate in the panel entitled “Digitalization and challenges of democratic processes in Europe”, that will take place on February 6th 2020 in Collegium Polonicum in Słubice during conference “Europe of the 21st Century”.

The new media and the Internet are transforming political institutions and ways of not only political communication, but also broader political dynamics, transforming relations between politicians and citizens. Undoubtedly, digital technologies have profoundly altered democratic processes worldwide, including electoral processes.  The new media became in this context a great platform for information, involvement and mobilization activities of the electorate.

Without any doubt, digitalization and digital tools are bringing along new opportunities, advances and challenges. They fundamentally have changed the access to information, the ways of communication, political discourse and engagement in political processes. On one hand they affect politicians and political parties since they may enhance political campaigning, and, on the other hand, they give the electorate wide opportunities not only to increase their activities in the political space, but also to influence the decisions taken.

These digital transformations of democracy and democratic societies pose various challenges not only in the context of political practice but also to theoreticians of democracy and political communication.

Finally, digitalized contexts mentioned open a wide variety of new and more sophisticated research techniques as the consequence of the challenge that these increasingly complexes processes are consolidated.

The panel will provide an opportunity to exchange views, opinions and research results on the conditions, experiences, constraints, benefits and challenges related to different dimensions of digital transformation of democratic processes - not only using theoretical and methodological approaches, but also practical perspective.

The Organizers invite submissions of original papers, not published or considered for publication elsewhere, that contribute to the conference theme: Digitalization and challenges of democratic processes in Europe. All accepted papers will be published in the Conference Proceedings.

We assume that the papers are focused on the following

1. Digital transformation: theoretical approach 
2. New Methodological approaches 
3. Digital media in political communication 
4. From representative to digital democracy: digital media to increase citizen participation 
5. Evidences from different countries

Research papers should not exceed 15 pages, and they should, indicatively, include the following sections (more as content than as exact titles)

1. Title and Abstract (up to 300 words) 
2. Introduction 
3. Background / Literature Review 
4. Methodology / Research Framework 
5. Results / Findings 
6. Discussion 
7. Conclusions / Further Work 
8. References

Important Dates:

Abstract submission deadline: 9 January 2020

Decision notification: 13 January 2020

Registration: 18 January 2020

Panel: Digitalization and challenges of democratic processes in Europe: 6 February 2020

Final paper submission: 31 March 2020

For more information on the panel - please write to Marcin Łukaszewski PhD, (marcin.lukaszewski@amu.edu.pl).

The conference organizers will provide participants with accommodation and refreshments.

More information on the conference agenda, details of travel to Słubice and accommodation.