Rethinking Populism

In this timely book, Hans-Georg Betz rethinks the concept of populism to address crucial questions around this complex, multifaceted, and enduring political phenomenon. Betz provides a novel interpretative framework based on the extant theoretical and empirical literature and supported by primary sources.

Rethinking Populism highlights the divisive nature of populism, exploring the economic, social, and political dynamics fueling its rise and success. It tackles key facets of the field, including questions of identity, recognition, and the disruptions associated with globalization, financialization, digitalization, and skill-biased technological change. Chapters address populism’s endurance and past failures, offering diverse case studies that underscore the dynamics which engender populist mobilization. Betz illustrates how nativism, culture wars, gender, and emotions such as nostalgia and resentment are drivers of contemporary radical right-wing populism.

The book is an essential resource for students and academics in political science, political theory, economics, sociology, and cultural history. It is also of interest to policymakers and practitioners involved in international politics and public policy.