School of Social and Political Sciences - Theses
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ItemThe crisis of the French Socialist Party in contemporary France( 2014)This thesis argues that, over the past three decades, the French Socialist Party (PS) has been experiencing a crisis. This crisis is a result of deep internal divisions among Socialist elites, which is affecting the internal cohesion and effectiveness of the Party, particularly with regard to policy-making. Subsequently, it is argued that these internal disputes among elites is impeding on the Party’s ability to develop a compelling alternative political narrative for France within an increasingly interconnected European Union (EU). The aim of the thesis is to examine the malaise of the Socialist Party since François Mitterrand’s notorious 1983 socio-economic ‘U-turn’ and to analyse how this crisis has been manifested within the Party as well as at the national and EU levels. The thesis advances two main hypotheses: first, the French Socialist Party is experiencing a crisis, which has developed over the past three decades. Although the crisis of the PS is to an extent comparable to the crisis experienced by other social democratic parties in Western Europe, the way in which the French Socialist Party is dealing with its crisis is distinct. This is due to two factors: the first is France’s political culture. The second is the nature of the French party system within which the Party is placed. The malaise of the PS in France is evident in a number of ways. Firstly, there are deep divisions among Socialist elites with regard to party policies and the implementation of those policies. Secondly, these internal disagreements have, over time, resulted in a crisis of representation and a disjuncture between Socialist elites and Socialist constituents rendering it difficult for Socialist leaders to devise a credible alternative political stance for France. Thirdly, the Party’s lack of a clear political message is evident in the Party’s inability to effectively deal with socio-economic and socio-cultural challenges which French society has been experiencing for some time. The second hypothesis is that the presence of competing ideological factions within the Party, especially between the ‘working class’ constituents and the ‘professional class’ constituents, is negatively affecting the Socialist elites’ ability to find a compromise between upholding the Party’s values and ideologies and ensuring that the Party is adapting to necessary socio-economic, political and cultural changes both in France and in the EU.