Authoritarianism in the Digital Era: Power, Affect, and Action

What is authoritarianism today, and how do digital technologies play a role? This course examines authoritarianism as a mode of power rather than a regime type. Through conceptual discussions on authoritarian logics and their social-psychological implications, the course explores how authoritarian effects, such as surveillance, discipline, and normalization, are produced institutionally, experienced psychologically, and enabled and intensified by digital technologies in everyday life. It then turns to empirical cases in the digital sphere to examine how these effects operate across political contexts, and how individuals and groups contest and deconstruct authoritarian power through practices of connection, collective action, and community formation under conditions of constraint.