Banal Democracy: A Discursive Psychological Approach to the Invocation of Democracy in Political Rhetoric

Alex Hunt (Heriot-Watt University)

Discursive and rhetorical psychology have demonstrated how nationalistic ideologies are taken-for-granted as natural and banal features of everyday life. However, it is not clear why other forms of ideology like democracy cannot share this element of banality. This study therefore aims to show how democratic ideology is taken-for-granted as a natural feature of UK political discourse. Our data was drawn from the official Hansard records of UK House of Commons debates relating to the ‘European Union (Withdrawal) Act.’ To demonstrate the ideological implications and banality of democracy, we employed a discursive-rhetorical psychological framework. The analysis shows that the banality of democratic ideology is indicated by politicians treating democracy as a universal value which does not need to be justified.

The Effects of Continued Engagement in Community-Based Leisure Activities on Older Adults’ Cognition: An Overview of My PhD Journey

Malwina Niechcial-McKenna (Heriot-Watt University)

An active and engaged lifestyle is beneficial to our cognition. Engaging in activities requiring new learning has been shown to produce more cognitive benefits than engagement in those activities that rely on previously obtained knowledge. Taking part in a new community-based leisure activity has been shown to improve older adults’ cognitive abilities. My PhD examines whether taking part in a subsequent new community-based activity further enhances those benefits and if any are still observable some years later. I will present the results of my studies to date and discuss plans for the last year of my PhD journey.

In-person: Mary Burton Building (MBG13), Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh; Online: click ‘Join via MS Teams’.