The rise of populism: the economic and other factors behind this phenomenon

Abstract

Because of its recent surge, populism is a trending topic in political economy studies. The impact of several factors that help populist politicians to succeed are widely debated in both academia and the media and among them economic factors are vitally crucial. The importance of some of these economic factors is discussed in this thesis. Firstly, the correlation between the rise of populism and trade & automation is examined which is followed by the role of economic crises. The third factor explored in the thesis is the impact of economic fairness and social mobility. And lastly, economic aspects of immigration is discussed. Overall, the thesis is meta-analysis of existing literature in this field.