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The Open Society 2.0: Democracy in the Age of Social...
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The Open Society 2.0: Democracy in the Age of Social Media and Populism

A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760). This special issue belongs to the section "Contemporary Politics and Society".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2025 | Viewed by 3215

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Friedel Weinert

E-Mail Website1 Website2
Guest Editor
Faculty of Management, Law and Social Sciences, School of Social Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DB, UK
Interests: challenges of modern societies; information technology; populism; social media; liberty; the rule of law; history of science; philosophy; migration; civil disobedience
Dr. John Ackroyd

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Faculty of Management, Law and Social Sciences, School of Social Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DB, UK
Interests: challenges of modern societies; information technology; populism; social media; liberty; the rule of law; history of science; philosophy; migration; civil disobedience

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In this Special Issue, we aim to analyse the challenges of modern societies. In particular, we intend to produce a body of work written by the most competent researchers, which reflects the many risks facing open societies. This volume should become a record or reference for current and future generations looking at present-day society. Contributors are invited to analyse how modern societies fare in an unprecedented age of populism, supported by influential and powerful social media. Populism has existed before, but it has never enjoyed the platforms and channels of modern media.

This approach includes but is not limited to the following: revisiting the notion of an open society to see how its conception has changed since Popper. Today the complexity and reflexivity of modern societies have to be accounted for. Once the notion of an open society, with its emphasis on liberty and the rule of law, is clarified and updated, its many challenges can be assessed, including migration, fake news, civil disobedience, political correctness, the role of public trust and the ethics of AI, etc.

Prof. Dr. Friedel Weinert
Dr. John Ackroyd
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • challenges of modern societies
  • information technology
  • populism
  • social media
  • liberty
  • the rule of law
  • migration
  • civil disobedience

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 434 KiB  
Article
Democracy, Free Elections, and Gender Equality as Perceived by Recent Immigrants
by Anna Zagrebina
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(11), 578; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13110578 - 25 Oct 2024
Viewed by 753
Abstract
This study examines how democracy and its political attributes (such as free elections) and social attributes (such as gender equality) are perceived by people who come from nondemocratic countries and have lived for several months in a democratic society. The data were collected [...] Read more.
This study examines how democracy and its political attributes (such as free elections) and social attributes (such as gender equality) are perceived by people who come from nondemocratic countries and have lived for several months in a democratic society. The data were collected in Quebec using an original questionnaire completed by 127 adult immigrants. The results indicate that recent immigrants from nondemocratic countries primarily view democracy as a society based on the rule of law with strong social control. They consider free elections significantly more important to democracy than the possibility to vote for any political party. Contrary to expectations, recent immigrants view gender equality as essential for democracy, although this importance varies according to sphere. Immigrants’ conceptions of democracy also signify the most salient characteristics of the social and physical environment of the host society as the most important democratic features. The study illustrates the multifaceted nature of the process of forming ideas about democracy among immigrants socialized in nondemocratic societies. Not only is theoretical knowledge about democracy as a political system part of these ideas, but everything observed in a democratic society can be perceived as attributes of democracy. The results indicate that immigrants’ impressions of the social and physical environment in their host society should not be overlooked when analyzing their ideas on democracy. Consequently, the study concludes that a more welcoming society can foster more positive visions of democracy among newcomers from nondemocratic countries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Open Society 2.0: Democracy in the Age of Social Media and Populism)
22 pages, 319 KiB  
Article
The More Democracy, the Better? On Whether Democracy Makes Societies Open
by Cristian López
Soc. Sci. 2024, 13(5), 261; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13050261 - 13 May 2024
Viewed by 1425
Abstract
It is a common view that Popper’s defense of the open society has been a defense of Western, liberal democracies. This seems to imply that by fostering democratic institutions we are ipso facto fostering open societies. I criticize this view by arguing that [...] Read more.
It is a common view that Popper’s defense of the open society has been a defense of Western, liberal democracies. This seems to imply that by fostering democratic institutions we are ipso facto fostering open societies. I criticize this view by arguing that in-built incentives in democratic mechanisms move us away from (or hamper) the open society. Democracy promotes voters’ ignorance, indulges voters’ irrationality, and allows voters to externalize costs. This is contrary to well-informed, rational decisions and personal responsibility that lie at the fundamentals of the open society. I suggest that it has been free-market capitalism, or free-market societies, which has moved us closer to the ideal of the open society and which best realizes open society’s values. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Open Society 2.0: Democracy in the Age of Social Media and Populism)
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