Working Group
Empirical Constitutional Studies
Description
This working group focuses on using various empirical methods to study “constitutional phenomena” in a broader sense. Unlike in previous decades, the academic community working in the constitutional domain now has a diverse background. Put another way, the interest in constitutional politics has reached beyond the realms of traditional constitutional lawyers. Today, it is undeniable that comparative constitutional inquiries are conducted on much more accessible data, which enables scholars to engage in serious interdisciplinary dialogue for empirical analysis. Yet, there is little common room for those with similar research curiosity. We think it is beneficial to be united under the empirical legal domain.
The group as a whole in all its activities will try to (i) improve techniques to measure facts in the constitutional domain; (ii) exchange answers to specific research questions to ensure the link between ideas and evidence; and (iii) discuss the interaction between theory and data related to the constitutional studies. Moreover, this group does not only refer to courts as traditionally focused but also other constitutional actors such as decision makers at various levels, law clerks, students and even ordinary public members. Last, the group is open to qualitative, quantitative and mixed approaches to constitutions.
Aims and objectives
The main objective of the working group is to promote empirical work among constitutional lawyers, economists, and social scientists to achieve novel insights. The field of constitutional studies is rapidly growing, particularly from a comparative perspective. The empirical aspect of this field has also been increasing remarkably across Europe. Lawyers are much more developed in legal thinking, whereas social scientists hold a different perspective when observing the constitutional environment with data. We aim to offer a common understanding in which lawyers’ in-depth textual knowledge of constitutions is combined with scholars from other disciplines to make robust observations within the constitutional domain. We acknowledge that lawyers and social scientists can complement each other when studying the same constitutional object, particularly through cooperation and exchange of methods. We hope lawyers, economists and social scientists will benefit from each other’s methodological knowledge and expertise on constitutions within this WG.
This working group aims to provide a platform to bring social scientists and lawyers together and support their collaboration in constitutional studies. We believe that gathering under the same roof of empirical legal studies will advance the research and attract scholars in the legal field and social scientists who want to focus on constitutional data. From this, we hope to learn from each other and to support young academics seeking to enter this field. We’d like to create opportunities where young scholars can benefit from the experiences of more senior scholars in various gatherings.
Chairs
Serkan Yolcu (Bilkent University) & Katarzyna Metelska-Szaniawska (University of Warsaw)
Contact
serkan.yolcu@bilkent.edu.tr
kmetelska@wne.uw.edu.pl