This course is designed to provide students a comprehensive introduction to Comparative Politics through the discussion of a broad range of thematic topics. These are supplemented with a selection of academic readings and real-world case studies from various regions of the world. In general, Mondays will be dedicated to the basic concepts of the week’s readings (ECP), Wednesdays to the related scholarly readings (provided by the course instructor) and Thursdays/Fridays (sections) will focus on the comparative cases (CCP) as a platform for applying what was learned in the other readings.
Classification of political systems according to institutional and developmental characteristics. Causes and costs of political stability and instability. Comparison will relate to contemporary political institutions and processes in specific countries.
This course focuses on the comparative representative democracies of West Europe. This course stresses party systems and the social bases of politics in industrialized societies. Throughout the course, students will critically examine the structure and operation of Western European institutions and the implications such institutions have for political and policy outcomes. This knowledge will enable students to think analytically about Western European institutions for present-day European politics, as well as to think critically regarding political and policy issues in West European states and throughout the wider European Union.
Sub-Saharan Africa is an evolving, diverse, young, and frequently misrepresented part of the world. Over the last two decades the continent has undergone far reaching political, social, and economic upheavals challenging its conventional image as a failed continent. The course is designed as a survey class exploring the changing dynamics of African politics since independence from European colonial domination. Key topics include the long-term legacies of European colonialism; the emergence and the modus operandi of autocratic rule; the struggle for democratization and the outcome of that struggle; the origins, causes, and manifestations of violent conflict; the impact of ethnic identities on political contestation; and the different forms of political engagement shaping contemporary Africa. The course combines in-depth regional knowledge with comparative theory thereby addressing central questions about the notion of African exceptionalism, democracy, and political culture.
This is an introductory course in Latin American Politics. It combines two approaches to studying the region: country specific and thematic. We will study two key cases of the region: Argentina and Venezuela. Venezuela is a case of failed democracy. Argentina is a democratic success. We will begin the course with these countries. In the second half of the semester, we will focus on two themes: resources for democratization and subnational politics.
The course focuses on politics in the Russian Federation. As the core of the former Soviet Union, the initial problems that Russia confronted highlight the various economic, political, and social difficulties that accompanied the region’s transition away from communism. While Russia had made more progress toward the institution of free and competitive elections than several other former Soviet republics during the 1990s (e.g., Belarus and the Central Asian states), economic and political freedoms substantially declined after 2000. The course provides students with a foundation for understanding these developments.
Following a discussion of the collapse of the Soviet Union, the course examines the initial struggle for power in post-Soviet Russia and the origins of Russia’s political institutions. After outlining Russia’s institutional framework, we turn to how Russia’s first president, Boris Yeltsin, addressed the various challenges that the country confronted during his time in office and how those policies facilitated the rise of Russia’s second (and fourth!) president, Vladimir Putin. The remainder of the course considers how Putin consolidated power in Russia so that he could leave office in 2008 only to return in 2012 and the implications of these changes on Russia’s political trajectory.
As a Comparative Politics (CPO) course, the class serves as an example of how to compare domestic politics in a single country at different moments in time. I also occasionally place Russian developments in comparative perspective, highlighting at times how the experience of one country can lead to a reconsideration of conventional wisdom.
This course introduces politics in third world states, an examination of common problems and the various strategies for dealing with them. Why are some countries wealthier, more stable, and better governed than others? Why do some societies reduce poverty and inequality while others remain trapped in cycles of stagnation, crisis, or violence? This course examines these questions through the comparative politics of development. Rather than treating development as an economic puzzle alone, this course approaches it as a political one – different development strategies are chosen, implemented, contested, and sometimes derailed through institutions, coalitions, regime type, and struggles over distribution.Why is it so? Why do similar countries facing comparable constraints adopt different models and achieve different outcomes?
The course begins by clarifying what “development” means and how it is measured. We then trace major paradigms that have shaped debates about development in the global South, from modernization theory and its claims about prosperity and political order, to dependency and world-systems perspectives that emphasize structural inequality in the international economy. Building on these foundations, we examine the politics of industrialization and state-led development, the shift from import-substitution to export-oriented growth, and the rise of structural adjustment and neoliberal reform.
Across the semester, we will compare democratic and authoritarian pathways to development, the political logic of clientelism and social policy, and the ways foreign aid, violence, and natural resources can reshape incentives, actors, and institutions. We will also have “case labs” each week where we will draw on contemporary cases around the world and connect theories to real-world decisions and dilemmas. By the end of the semester, students will be able to evaluate competing explanations of (under)development and apply them to concrete country trajectories with analytical rigor.
In the late twentieth century, the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union led some scholars to speak about “the end of history” where liberal democracy would be the only form of government left standing. However, authoritarian regimes in different parts of the world continue to demonstrate their resilience. In this course, we will explore the different types of authoritarian regimes, exploring their characteristics and political workings, including legitimation strategies, through various examples. Specifically, we will examine military, single-party, personalistic/sultanistic, and hybrid regimes, exploring how they manage to stay in power and asking ourselves whether regime change could occur.
This course has a heavy reading load, multiple in-class exercises, and team/class discussions. It will be structured following the Team-Based Learning (TBL) system. In the first week of the course, I will place you in a permanent team. You will work in the same team for the entire semester through various assessment sessions and application exercises. I expect that you will come to class fully prepared to discuss and apply the reading contents in class activities. Please feel free to come to my office hours to discuss your concerns regarding any class readings, assignments, presentations, etc.
Elections can be critical junctures in political history. In democracies, they are opportunities for voters to express their level of satisfaction with government, and even authoritarian regimes may use elections as safety valves to release pent-up societal discontent. In all contexts, elections can function as rallying points for the opposition and to test the government’s mettle. Ultimately, electoral outcomes may determine which societal interests have a voice in the corridors of political power and whether the current direction of politics continues. Yet elections operate differently, even among democracies, and the differences grant those in power a variety of rules to manipulate. Thus, the rules that govern elections may not only make the difference between winning and losing, but incumbent parties may also be tempted to alter the rules to solidify their electoral control. This course examines these various dynamics.
This course is a specialized undergraduate class on Argentina. Argentina has a worldwide reputation for human rights violations. However, those violations are now several decades in the past. Moreover, Argentina has done a remarkable job in addressing that past and compares favorably to many other countries like Chile, Spain and El Salvador. This course is about how Argentina has dealt with and is dealing with its dark past.
We begin with a history book that helps understand the divisions within Argentine society. We will continue with a political examination of Argentina’s work to address human rights violations. We end with recent literature on how memory is kept alive… or not. These are controversial topics and we will discuss various approaches in class.
What is democracy and why has it spread across the globe? Will it continue? This course will teach students about dictatorships, democratization, and democratic breakdown. We will examine the different “waves” of democratization, explore how country-specific attributes and international factors shape democratic transitions, and discuss how institutional arrangements impact democratic consolidation.
The conduct of research and the profession of political science are somewhat of a mystery even to advanced and highly-qualified undergraduate students, regardless of their participation in the Honors Program or the University Scholar Programs. The Junior Fellows Program rectifies this neglected area by providing meaningful research experience, insight into the profession of Political Science, and the ability to work closely with a faculty member or an advanced (ABD) graduate student. The program is designed for advanced juniors and seniors wishing to gain the experience that will prepare them to succeed in their senior thesis work and stand out as they apply for research opportunities and advanced degrees. Junior Fellows will have a hands-on experience with the innovative research performed at the Department of Political Science and gain valuable professional insight by working closely with their supervisor on a weekly-basis, attending a seminar series exploring the diversity of methods and approaches, and participating in a capstone research presentation workshop.
This course exposes graduate students to major trends in the study of comparative politics, particularly its theoretical and methodological foundations. Like the larger subfield, Comparative
Politics at the University of Florida focuses on the study of domestic politics in countries besides the United States. While the United States may be an important case for comparison, our emphasis
in this class lies beyond America’s borders. Student may acquire detailed knowledge of U.S. politics via the Department’s American Politics subfield. Over the course of the semester, the seminar will address a wide range of questions and issues. I view the course as an introduction to the subfield; thus, the material covered is, by necessity, quite broad in age, methods, and scope. The readings range from foundational works to recently published research. Students will engage in debates about the advantages and disadvantages of different methodologies, as well as the validity and eneralizability of different hypotheses and theories. Substantive themes include the politics of development, revolutions, democracy, and authoritarianism as well as questions related to the state, political culture, civil society, ethnic conflict, and political institutions. Despite a conscious attempt to cover an array of topics, students should be aware that the readings are mere samples of rich research traditions. Each book or article gives only a taste of what Comparativists (political scientists who study Comparative Politics) do. The Department offers many additional courses that provide the kinds of depth that an introductory seminar must forego. Still, if you adequately fulfill your responsibilities in this class and other classes, then you can be confident that your initial footing in the subfield will be solid.
This class is intended for graduate students in political science and the related social sciences. Its subject is the relation between social contention and politics. The course aims to:
1. provide a survey of the literature on social and protest movements,
2. introduce students to methods for studying these movements,
3. furnish tools for interpreting protest across different social and political
contexts,
4. apply those tools in the development of a final paper, which the students
will also present in conference format.
Specifically, we will address the following questions: Under what conditions do social movements form? How and when do they exploit opportunities to mobilize? What internal resources do they draw on to overcome obstacles to mobilization? What are the implications of how a social movement frames its cause? Who participates and how? We also explore social movement case studies.
The seminar examines key issues in contemporary sub-Saharan African politics. Open to all graduate students, it discusses sub-Saharan Africa’s political dynamics from a variety of methodological and disciplinary angles. The following reoccurring themes will be at the heart of our weekly meetings: the logic behind and the consequences of European colonialism, the challenges of state formation, the emergence of hybrid political regimes, the dynamics of contemporary political regimes, key features of the continent’s political economy, the drivers of violence and conflict, gender in African politics, and the effects of regional cooperation arrangements. The readings are a mix of classic and recent works. To fully grasp their content, students are expected to spend considerable time reading and thinking. Students should feel free to consult and discuss additional material they regard as beneficial to the discussion.
Students will develop a familiarity with the basic concepts of international relations. There are two specific goals facing the students: 1) developing an appreciation for the elements of both change and continuity in the global system and 2) developing skills necessary to apply theoretical and conceptual understanding in analyzing current international events. The broad intellectual objective is to assist students in developing an appreciation for the complexity of international issues, including the inter-relationship of domestic and international events.
This course fulfills the Gen Ed categories for International (N) and Social and Behavioral Science (S) requirements. International courses promote the development of students’ global and intercultural awareness. Students examine the cultural, economic, geographic, historical, political, and/or social experiences and processes that characterize the contemporary world, and
thereby comprehend the trends, challenges, and opportunities that affect communities around the world. Students analyze and reflect on the ways in which cultural, economic, political, and/or social systems and beliefs mediate their own and other people’s understanding of an increasingly connected world. Social and behavioral science courses provide instruction in the history, key themes, principles, terminology, and underlying theory or methodologies used in the social and behavioral sciences. Students will learn to identify, describe and explain social institutions, structures or processes. These courses emphasize the effective application of accepted problem-solving techniques.
The course is structured into lectures (Mondays and Wednesdays) and weekly discussion sessions (Thursdays and Fridays). The lectures cover the prominent actors and the various issues that world politics deals with. Lectures will cover/discuss dominant theoretical perspectives to assist students’ understanding of world politics. Students are thus expected to fully acquaint themselves
with the material discussed in the lectures and discussion sections. By the end of the semester the students will have acquired enough background to identify, describe, and explain the dynamic interaction of processes that characterize the contemporary world.
This course is an introduction to concepts and analytical tools for studying interactions among international actors: states, international organizations, and transnational groups. Social and behavioral science principles are used to analyze concepts such as power and national interests as they relate to social, political, and economic issues.
A primary objective of international relations scholars is to explore and explain the many phenomena in world politics by studying the effects of national and transnational actors on the outcomes or developments of international events. These effects are then facilitated and enhanced by actions such as fighting in wars/conflicts, conducting trade, signing treaties/legislations, migrating, and more. Students will be embarking on a journey that will help them better understand the world that we currently live in, and they will be able to better equip themselves with the abilities to ask and answer the “why and how” questions about many world events.
Introduction to concepts and analytical tools for studying interactions among international actors: states, international organizations, and transnational groups. Social and behavioral science principles are applied to analyze concepts such as power and national interest in relation to social, political, and economic issues. Students will gain both empirical and theoretical knowledge that will strengthen their critical understanding and informed perspectives on key issues in world politics.
This course explores the dynamic relationships between political and economic factors in the global arena. Throughout the term, we will examine contending theoretical perspectives on the global economy, the role of global economic institutions, monetary relations, trade regimes, and the impact of development, inancial crises, and climate change on the current global economic order. In addition to these structural elements, we will analyze the politics of global economic inequalities. This course is designed to help you navigate complex questions, such as:
What defines the global political economy? What defines global inequality?
What are the different theoretical perspectives of global economic relations among
states and non-state actors?
How do the interests of those living in poverty—in both rich and poor nations—
factor into economic relationships and dynamics among states and peoples?
What actions can the international community take to address development and
inequality?
This course is designed to enable students to understand the policies and objectives of the United States in its relations with others in an international system undergoing tremendous change. It is constructed to help students appreciate the elements of both continuity and change in U.S. foreign policy and to provide students with the basic tools for answering questions about the sources of U.S. foreign policy. Students then will better understand the complexity of international issues, including their interrelationships with domestic events. To achieve these ends students will 1) evaluate the major approaches to analyzing and explaining U.S. foreign policy; 2) review the history of U.S. foreign policy; 3) investigate contemporary U.S. foreign policy and its relationship to world politics; 4) apply these elements in a critical fashion to particular foreign policy issues currently facing the American government.
Security is a contested, multifaceted, and evolving concept, which is what makes the study of security both problematic yet fascinating. The discipline of security studies has made its way into the academic and policy worlds alike in addition to stretching far beyond the boundaries of international relations. This course will provide you with an introduction to the various methodological, theoretical, and empirical branches of security studies. A primary aspect of this course will be to identify and critically analyze the commonalities, divergences, and nuances between the conceptualizations of security studies so you can question existing narratives and understandings of what security is, how it is conceptualized, where security goes, who is afforded security, and how security is practiced. Additionally, to gain a more comprehensive perspective, the course will go beyond big academic names, older works, and Western/European viewpoints on security studies by delving into recent scholarship, lesser-known scholars, and non-Western/non-European positions of security studies.
What are theories of International Relations? What, and to whom, do they address? In what historical contexts did they arise? In this course, we will carefully read six books written by major scholars of international relations, each of whom shares the assumption that the varied interactions among states and nonstate actors in the global arena are vital elements of the world system. But they differ from each other in the conceptual perspectives they use to analyze international politics, such as the meanings and practices of “power,” “security,” and “cooperation.”
The primary objective of this course is to appreciate how the variety of perspectives we will read and discuss shapes different understandings of “international relations,” and their implications for studying global politics today. The six books and scholars differ from one another not only in their theoretical perspectives, but also in their analytical lenses. Some of the analyses consist primarily of abstract reasoning about global politics, while others are empirical in their orientation, ranging from archival and textual analysis, through historical case studies, to feminist and critical analyses applied to both abstract and empirical reasoning. The secondary objective of the course is to familiarize you with some of the ways in which social scientists establish their claims to knowledge of their subject matter, especially from critical perspectives. Finally, a third objective is to reflect on the particular historical contexts and dynamics of global politics within which these scholars wrote, and to consider how their theories are still applicable today.
We will carefully consider seven books written by major scholars of international relations. All six scholars share the assumption that the varied interactions among states and nonstate actors in
the global arena are vital elements of our world. But they differ greatly from each other in the conceptual perspectives that they employ to analyze world politics. The primary objective of the
course is to develop an appreciation of the ways in which perspectives shape different understandings of “international relations.”
It is well known that intra-state conflicts have been much bloodier than inter-state conflicts ever since the end of the Second World War. What drives ethnic intra-state conflicts? Why do we sometimes see the belligerent sides shifting between violence and negotiations? Why do some conflicts cause more bloodshed than others? Why are some conflicts harder to resolve? What are the strategies that different actors on each side employ to promote their strategic or domestic political goals? As you can tell from these questions, we will study in this course not just the forces shaping the Israeli Palestinian conflict, but also compare this uniquely intractable conflict to other modern ethno-religious conflicts. We will explore the weight of factors associated with the structure of the conflict, as well as factors rooted in the international environment.
This course is unique compared to standard courses on the Israeli Palestinian conflict in four main ways. First, we will not only go over political developments in the conflict, but also try to explore the moves in the fields of terrorism and counter-terrorism, intelligence, propaganda, subversion and economics of both sides. After all, different victories of either side stem from an advantage in one of these arenas. Second, we will be examining the impacts of the conflict on both sides (their societies, their economies, their political systems) as well as explore the externalization of the conflict (to Jews and Muslims abroad). In this context we will examine the impact of the conflict on the relevant diasporas (or ethnic kin groups in the Palestinian case), as well as on actors that are not party to the conflict at all.
Third, we will give a lot of attention to actors trying to intervene in the conflict — their motivations, the factors shaping their attitude and different policies over time, their toolkits, and finally their success in gaining strategic advantage from intervening as well as the impact on conflict resolution/escalation. Fourth, we will engage in comparison with other intra-state conflicts, military occupations and decolonization struggles. Fifth, we will definitely not make the mistake of ignoring strategic context — after all, the Israeli Palestinian conflict is embedded in several other regional and international conflicts (some of which are geo-political, and others more ideological). These global and regional conflicts include: the Arab-Israeli inter-state conflict, the Cold War (and later in the post-Cold War era the conflict between the radical global left and the Conservative right), the conflict between the Muslim Brotherhood and the Westernizing regimes of the Middle East, and finally the Iranian struggle to gain regional dominance.
Are you interested in the formulation of different security policies in the face of different and often simultaneous challenges? In this course we will learn about different security policies and assess their effectiveness. We will better understand how and why different security policies are adopted given different international and domestic constraints. We will do so by looking primarily at the security policies of Israel and comparing them to the policies adopted by other countries. During its very short history of 76 years, the small state of Israel has had to face a variety of serious security challenges, ranging from hostile nuclear and biological weapons programs to conventional warfare, insurgency and terrorism in their variety of forms. We will explore how Israel met these challenges, assess how effective these policies were, and determine to what extent the Israeli policy response differed, if at all, from that of other countries (democracies and non-democracies) and why. We will also discuss what other countries, and especially the US, may learn from the Israeli experience, and where conditions are too different for adopting the Israeli policy response. No background knowledge is required.
This is an introductory course in public international law. It has three main objectives: 1) to explore the origins of international law (IL) and its relation to international politics; 2) to outline the general principles about the creation, interpretation, and enforcement of international legal rules; and, 3) to provide a broad overview to the main specialized areas of IL.
In this class, we will study public international law. The terms public international law and international law will be used interchangeably. IL is concerned with the relations between states, but in recent years it has become an area of interest for individuals, corporations, and non-governmental organizations. While we will study the evolution of IL at the intersection of legal and political theories, the crux of the class will be a systematic examination of cases decided by international, European, and US courts. You will learn different styles of legal analysis and argumentation. Understanding these styles might prove challenging. Because of this, be prepared to discuss them during the class. The class discussion is a deliberative exercise: you are expected to contribute to it because everyone will benefit from a vigorous exchange of ideas. In order to facilitate this exchange, I will call people in class. Please note that class attendance is mandatory.
In addition, please respect your colleagues’ views: IL is a subject open to multiple interpretations and an arena of contentious debates. Don’t forget that collegiality and tolerance are virtues not vices.
This course explores theoretical and empirical approaches to understanding gender dynamics in international relations (IR). While the field of IR has historically minimized the role of gender in global politics, this course centers gender as an analytic framework and as an organizing principle that shapes, and is shaped by, international relations in meaningful ways. In this course, we will begin by examining the theoretical foundations of feminist scholarship in IR, focusing on key concepts such as power and security. We will then turn to examining how understandings of global conflict and political violence shift when studied through a gender lens, applying newly learned theoretical frameworks to what we can observe across modern global politics. In addition to studying relationships between gender, conflict, and political violence, we will also explore the role of gender in peace processes, human rights, international political economy, and more. Students will primarily be evaluated on their ability to critically reflect on the concepts and questions explored throughout this course while developing and defending their own academic arguments. The main objective of this course is to enhance students’ understanding of gender-based research in the field of international relations while strengthening their own critical analysis skills.
This course will offer the intellectual, analytical and research tools to understand the history and complexities of forced migration and refugeehood and their centrality to political, social and economic change in global, regional and national contexts. It will introduce students with an interest in local, national, as well as international career opportunities in human rights, development, refugees, or migration to relevant topics and discussions in the academic literature, as well as develop an understanding of various research methods.
Scholarship in international relations has often given limited attention to how ideas about race and racism have shaped world politics, even though the field developed in a historical context marked by empire, migration, and hierarchies among peoples. This course engages classic and contemporary scholarship on what W.E.B. Du Bois termed the “color line”—the problem of racial division and its relationship to global order.
We examine how racial categories and racialized hierarchies have influenced (and been influenced by) major themes in international politics: imperial governance and decolonization; the emergence of IR as a discipline; antisemitism; U.S. foreign policy and the international dimensions of civil rights struggles; Afro-Asian solidarity and Non-Alignment during the Cold War; and debates over political voice, recognition, and authority in global institutions.
The course equips students to assess competing arguments about when and how race matters in international relations, and how it intersects with power, security, political economy, and shifting geopolitical alignments.
This course is designed to familiarize students with the major schools of thought in American foreign policy as well as the different theoretical approaches to its study. Although the majority
of the course will focus on the Post-WWII period, we will also examine the 18th and 19th century traditions in American foreign policy because those traditions set the parameters of debate that ensued in later years. We will spend the last few sessions considering current issues in American foreign policy.”
The Department offers two opportunities for students to become more engaged with faculty — as Research Fellows and as Teaching Fellows.
This is an upper-level interdisciplinary studies course that will serve as an introduction to managing and leading public service organizations. You have taken this class because you want to have a positive impact on the world. Your interests could be affordable housing, sustainable cities, access to quality health care, food security, arts & culture, education, or the environment. You may want to work in non-profits, local, state or national government, or the philanthropic arm of a for-profit company. You could also be focused on ensuring public policies are based on the best possible evidence; that non-profits are financially solvent and measure their impact; or that employees are treated fairly and respectfully. Whatever your individual passion, you can only realize that by mastering organizational processes. Organizations are how work gets organized, coordinated, and accomplished. Knowing how organizations work, and how to work within them, are two of the most powerful tools you can have.
In this course, students will investigate how the national government is structured and how the American constitutional republic operates. It covers the philosophical and historical foundations of American government, including but not limited to the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution and all its Amendments, and the Federalist Papers. The course examines the branches of government and the government’s laws, policies, and programs. It also examines the ways in which citizens participate in their government and ways their government responds to citizens.
In this course, students will investigate how the national government is structured and how the American constitutional republic operates. It covers the philosophical and historical foundations of American government, including but not limited to the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution and all its Amendments, and the Federalist Papers. The course examines the branches of government and the government’s laws, policies, and programs. It also examines the ways in which citizens participate in their government and ways their government responds to citizens.
In this course, students will investigate how the national government is structured and how the American constitutional republic operates. It covers the philosophical and historical foundations of American government, including but not limited to the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution and all its Amendments, and the Federalist Papers. The course examines the branches of government and the government’s laws, policies, and programs. It also examines the ways in which citizens participate in their government and the ways their government responds to citizens.
Why do we have state and local governments? What functions do they perform and in which areas do they have primary responsibility for policy formation and execution? The American federal system of government is complex and gaining an appreciation and understanding of this is the chief goal of this course. Consequently, we will study federalism and then the various institutions, organizations and policy processes that most affect our everyday lives – those in the state and local governments. We will take a somewhat comparative approach, but with our vantage point, we’ll spend more time on Gainesville and Florida than elsewhere.
Since you’ll have read the material before class, coverage of topics will combine lecture and class discussion, plus academic and non-academic readings, and other hands-on materials as appropriate to our topics. We will also have occasional guest speakers. By the end of the semester, students will have been introduced to all aspects of state and local politics from the academic and practical sides. With any luck, you’ll be armed and dangerous and ready to intelligently make whatever decisions you decide to make in the years to come.
This survey course is designed to examine several categories of enduring and emerging civil liberties granted to each person by the United States Constitution. The major purpose is to investigate the role and functions of courts – especially the United States Supreme Court – in addressing major interpretive/enforcement issues concerning civil liberties in America. Additionally, we shall explore and assess the interconnected relationship of the Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches of federal and state government. Students seeking an in-depth exposure to purely legal/jurisprudence aspects of civil liberties should locate and take separate criminal justice, and/or constitutional law courses.
Note: This Syllabus is a general outline of the course and is subject to change. The Professor or the TA will let you know when modifications are made, therefore class attendance is important.
How will your personal, social and political life be impacted, and potentially transformed, by emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, digital media, synthetic biology, nanotechnology, robotics, quantum computing, augmented reality and virtual reality?
Technology and Politics helps students understand and prepare for the impacts of fast-moving technological developments. The course is interdisciplinary, integrative and largely discussion based.
The problem of unethical behavior involving elected officials is a perennial concern in American politics. Since the early days of the Republic, policy makers and ordinary citizens have sought to
control unethical conduct such as bribery and treason. In recent decades, the focus of concern about political ethics has shifted to the problem of “conflicts of interest” between elected
officials’ private interests and their public duties, and to the regulation of campaign finance. This course will examine theories of political ethics, important episodes of corruption, and the
regulation of political ethics through elections and legislation. The main focus will be on the ethics of legislators, but we will also look at presidents, governors, and other public officials.
Some of the main questions the course will address include: How does political ethics differ, if at all, from private ethics? What causes corruption? What have been the aims of good-government
reformers? What sorts of ethical issues does the American campaign finance system pose? Should unethical behavior be addressed at the ballot box rather than through new laws? What are the limits of ethics regulation? What defenses of politicians can be mounted against the various criticisms that are often made of them, for example that they are overly concerned with winning reelection, that they are too partisan, and that they are overly ambitious and dishonest? What constitutes political courage, and what other virtues are important for public officials to have?
To explore major issues associated with modern political campaigns. Presidential campaigns are a primary, but not exclusive, focus. The emphasis of the course is to investigate why modern campaigns take the forms they do, and to place them in broader American cultural and political contexts. This is NOT a course on how to run campaigns; it is a course on understanding campaign politics.
We take as our starting point that political campaigns mirror American politics generally, warts and all, and are part and parcel of those politics at the time the campaigns take place. The real question is: do our campaigns strengthen our democracy, or not?
Lectures will be presented, but this is primarily a discussion course. As such, coverage of topics will combine much class discussion, some lecture, academic and non-academic readings, guest speakers and other hands-on materials as appropriate to our topics. Students are expected to read the required materials in advance of class, and come prepared to use them as a vehicle for discussion. Attendance will NOT be taken, but students are responsible for everything that happens in class. If a student misses class, it is his/her responsibility to find out what was missed;
students are also responsible for all information on the syllabus. Students should take advantage of the instructor’s office hours to discuss issues with him. With any luck, you’ll be armed and dangerous by the end of the semester.
The United States Congress is the most scrutinized branch of the U.S. government and plays a central role in shaping national policy, elections, and the functioning of representative democracy. This course explores two fundamental questions: (1) What do members of Congress do, and why? (2) How do the actions of individual members and the collective body of Congress influence national policy outcomes?
We will delve into the legislative process, examining the influence of political parties, leadership structures, and interest groups. Additionally, we will critically assess the common critique that “Congress is broken,” exploring the effectiveness and challenges of Congress as an institution. Through discussions and analysis, students will gain a deeper understanding
of Congress’s role in shaping public policy and its place within the broader democratic system.
This course examines political parties, which are the primary political organizations that nominate candidates and organize deliberations within political institutions.
Given the course title, you’d be correct to guess that we’ll examine American political parties and elections. However, we’ll approach it in reverse order and in a topical and timely fashion rather than the traditional chronological order approach. We’ll begin the course at the end by getting immediately into the nitty-gritty of campaign strategies and tactics and what the modern parties are up to and, briefly, how they are structured. We’ll spend large parts of the first 3-4 weeks on campaigns and elections and less on parties and then beginning about the 4th or 5th week, we’ll revert back, possibly way back, and take a historical look at democratic theory and political parties.
I realize this is a Political Science class, but one of the weaknesses of our discipline is its focus on short periods of time and the consequent underestimation of and lack of appreciation for history and historical context. We’ll rectify that and spend several weeks discussing the historical development of the American Party system from the philosophical and theoretical arguments against parties in the 18th century, to the practical and logistical and legislative necessities that drove their development in the 19th century, and finally to the institutionalization of the two major parties of the modern era. We’ll also touch briefly on third party and interest group movements as well as the growth of the media and its role in politics.
Coverage of topics will combine class discussion, lecture, academic and non-academic readings and other hands-on materials as appropriate to our topics. By the end of the course, the hope is that you will have a greater appreciation and understanding of several things – the historical reasons why we have political parties in America, their theoretical as well as functional and institutional purposes, our electoral system and its intricacies, and various strategies and tactics employed in campaigns and elections. Hopefully, by May, you’ll be armed and dangerous and ready to make some informed decisions on the candidates, races, and issues of your choice….if you haven’t already
Examines the theoretical foundations, historical context and current activities of special interest groups in the United States.
Interest groups are a critical link between citizens and the institutions of government. To understand American politics—how it really works—you must understand where groups come from, what they do, and how they influence public policy. This course surveys the role of interest groups in American politics, including representation, lobbying, and electioneering.
Students are expected to have basic knowledge of American government before taking this course. As an upper-division seminar, this class emphasizes analytical reading, evidence-based discussion, and clear communication. We will read widely across the interest group literature and consider both normative and empirical questions. For example: Do interest groups enhance or undermine democracy? How much influence do they have, and how can we tell?
We will also reflect on how well existing academic models explain the current partisan environment and policymaking process. What are the limitations of literature, and what might be done—by scholars, practitioners, or citizens—to better align theory and practice?
This survey course addresses the rapidly shifting landscape of perceived rights/entitlements contained in the U.S. Constitution for minority/BIPOC/color groups in America. Recent political activity, governmental and media treatment have called into serious question how these groups are viewed and treated by law enforcement, the civil and/or criminal justice system and the detention industry in this country. With an emphasis on examining the historical and contemporary treatment of certain color groups in America, this survey course will provide exposure, rationale and historical knowledge of the perception and management of these ethnic/color groups by the current legal systems, law enforcement, social service and the detention institutions. The relevant experiences of Hispanic/LatinX Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans/First Peoples, African Americans, as well as various Immigrant groups will be examined, as time and course materials allow.
Although some aspects of the course will address societal treatment, economic and liberty
concerns common to all these minority groups, there will be a greater focus on the African American experience as a microcosmic laboratory to explore the central tenets of this course. By examining certain color groups’ unique ethnic/cultural responses to initial and subsequent perception and treatment by governmental and economic institutions, it is hoped that a pragmatic “litmus test” can be fashioned to help the serious student appreciate what human factors we have in common, and those that need healing & understanding.
Note: This Syllabus is a general outline of the course and is subject to change. The Professor or the TA will let you know when modifications are made, therefore class attendance is important.
This course is designed to teach students the “science” within political science. Part of this task is conceptual: helping students to think systematically about research design. To this end, students will learn how theory can inform measurement, data collection, and data analysis. The second part of this task is practical: teaching students to critically evaluate scholarly research and conduct their own. Students will learn how to work with real-world data, analyze it using appropriate statistical techniques, and draw appropriate inferences. With the conceptual and practical knowledge, students will be able to pose social science questions, identify appropriate measurement strategies and develop research designs, and answer questions about social phenomena using statistical techniques. The goal of this course is to help you develop the skills necessary to conduct empirical research.
Introduction to basics of data science including programming for data analytics, file management, relational databases, visualizations, geographic information systems, and web development with application to large-scale election databases.
This course explores the evolving relationship between China and Africa using the political, economic, and cultural lens. China has grown to be one of the most prominent partners in Africa. This relationship is manifested in trade, infrastructure, politics, and physical environment. However, this relationship is complex with varied actors. This course explores the historical emergence of the relationship between China and the continent, the current areas of engagement and how these have impacted the latter. The course will be taught as a seminar and will use the case study approach to emphasize and analyze the main issues of engagement and sometimes confrontation. The course will also include guest lecturers who study various aspects of the topic. Students will engage with these researchers and write brief papers on their presentations.
Introduction to the political dimensions of artificial intelligence (AI). Study of core concepts, theories, and methods related to AI’s impact on political institutions, public discourse, and decision-making. Focus on the politics of ethical, epistemological, and knowledge production challenges. Designed to equip students with analytical tools for understanding AI in domestic and global politics.
A student who successfully completes this course will be able to:
1. Analyze the impact of artificial intelligence on the production and dissemination of political knowledge.
2. Evaluate the ethical implications of AI in political decision-making and governance.
3. Assess how AI shapes political discourse, influences public opinion, and reinforces or challenges power
structures.
4. Explain the epistemological challenges posed by AI-generated knowledge in the study of politics.
5. Apply critical thinking of appropriate research methods to examine AI-related political phenomena.
6. Compare competing theoretical frameworks for understanding AI’s role in contemporary political
systems.
7. Construct evidence-based arguments regarding the political implications of emerging AI technologies.
To achieve these goals, the course endeavors to provide instruction on key themes, principles, terminology, and underlying theory or methodologies used in the study of AI in politics. Students will learn to identify, describe, and explain institutions, structures, and processes that shape the role of AI in politics. The course is structured into lectures, discussions, and small group work. The course takes a thematic approach to the various issues that define and shape the role of AI in politics. At the same time the thematic approach is seasoned with a reasonable amount of conceptual/theoretical discussion to anchor our understanding of AI in politics both on solid empirical and theoretical grounds. At the end of the semester the students will have acquired enough knowledge (both empirical and theoretical) to be able to form their own critical and knowledgeable views on many important issues stemming from the role of AI in politics. This means that students will be able to identify, describe, and explain the historical, cultural, economic, political, and/or social experiences and processes that characterize AI in contemporary
world politics.
This course will focus on the hands-on quantitative aspects of studying political behavior. Specifically, students will explore alternative study designs and their practical applicability in the field of political behavior.
In this course, we will think about the Middle East through the analytical lens of political ecology. We will politicize the issues, conditions, conflicts, outcomes, imaginations, and projects
that pertain to various environmental phenomena in the region. Our task is multifold. Together, we will question the place, representations, and socio-political functions of “nature,” its
conservation, and its degradation in the Middle East. We will develop sophisticated understandings of the various relationships of power embedded in environmental disasters, conflicts, and infrastructural projects. We will investigate historical and contemporary humanpathogen interactions to think about the political ecologies of infection and disease in the region. We will situate the Middle East in the world of carbon/post-carbon politics and debate the potentials and limitations of environmental activism in the region. Lastly, we will develop a cultural literacy of and refine our critical outlooks on the multispecies experiences that form the texture of biological life above and beyond human life in the Middle East.
This course introduces the concepts of political oversight and accountability in the context of democratic governance. The goal is to provide a basic understanding of these core concepts, and the tools used in their implementation and then apply this information within the context of the European Union (EU). The course is designed to engage with the broader discourses on the democratic deficit in the EU and the character of the EU political system more generally. Through both general and EU specific readings as well as in course activities students will learn about the oversight and accountability processes that undergird democratic governance and their applicability to the EU context.
This course introduces the concepts of political oversight and accountability in the context of democratic governance. The goal is to provide a basic understanding of these core concepts, and the tools used in their implementation and then apply this information within the context of the European Union (EU). The course is designed to engage with the broader discourses on the democratic deficit in the EU and the character of the EU political system more generally. Through both general and EU specific readings as well as in course activities students will learn about the oversight and accountability processes that undergird democratic governance and their applicability to the EU context.
This interdisciplinary course focuses on the ways emotions and other affective dynamics shape the perception and development of social and political challenges in Europe and the European Union, and teh USA. It offers an introduction into the main ideas embedded in the burgeoning field of “affect theory,” explores how these concepts are being used in contemporary social and political science and links these conceptual frameworks to specific case studies involving contemporary European emotional, political and media landscapes. Specific case studies include EU austerity politics in the wake of the 2008 financial meltdown, the migration crisis, Euroscepticism and the rise in support for populist politics, 9/11 and the War on Terror, and the Balkan Wars.
Until recently, the study of politics and political behavior did not pay much attention to the role of emotions in public and political life. Dominated by positivism and behavioralism, social sciences and political studies conceived of political subjects as rational actors pursuing their strategic interests. More recently, the so-called “affective turn” in social sciences has centered academic interest on the place of feelings, connecting the personal and the political, the individual and the collective. Meanwhile, the rise of populist leaders mining emotions for political gains, conspiracy theories, anxiety about the climate crisis, the rise of nativism, and discussions about the place of fear, anger and hope in contemporary social movements have demonstrated the
relevance of the study of affect in political and communal life. Feelings such as disgust, fear, anxiety, optimism, hatred, anger, aggression, aversion, envy, resentment, melancholy, nostalgia, trust, shame, compassion, pride, humiliation, hope and desire now are widely understood as emotions that can serve as catalysts in determining wider social and political developments. The current media and internet environment moreover provides a networked space that enables the effective mobilization of these affects.
What is law? Is law different from morality? Why? Why do people obey the law? Is the command of a robber different from that of a legitimate authority? Philosophy of law tries to answer these questions. It is a rich and profound subject. We will encounter the classical legal philosophers: H.L.A. Hart, Hans Kelsen, Joseph Raz, John Finnis, Lon Fuller, and Ronald Dworkin. We will debate some of the most pressing topics in legal philosophy: the nature of law, the relationship between law and morality, the obligation to obey the law, and the problems of interpretation. This list is by no means exhaustive. But the course will give you the tools to analyze and frame complex legal arguments. You will learn how to work with legal rules, interpretative techniques, and rhetorical strategies. You will move from your everyday understanding of legal rules to a general, more abstract, understanding of the nature of law. You will master textual, contextual, and interdisciplinary approaches to legal inquiry. In short, you will learn how to reflect on the nature of law, authority, and order.
The course will be organized around the most important book of legal philosophy: H.L.A. Hart’s “The Concept of Law”. Even though it was written as a primer for British undergraduate students, it quickly became the center of every philosophical discussion about the nature of law. Hart’s versatile writing style, original answers to thorny philosophical questions, and clear exposition of the nature of law are the main reasons that make this book suitable for undergraduate classes and highbrow philosophical colloquia alike. I will introduce you to the intellectual climate that influenced Hart, especially his exposure to the ordinary language philosophy and the work of J.L. Austin. Hart embraced Austin’s claim that “a sharpened awareness of words to sharpen our perception of the phenomena” and deployed it in the course of his book. Hart’s ideas will also be viewed as a matter of theory construction. You will learn how Hart’s embrace of a particular mode of theorizing affected his claims about the nature of law. By doing this, you will explore how the theory construction enables and constrains the types of substantive claims that scholars make in law, philosophy, and social science. In particular, you will learn how the mode of theorizing highlights the difference between Hart’s theory of law and the one proposed by one of his main interlocutor, Hans Kelsen. As a result, you will learn how to construct, understand, and reflect upon legal theoretical claims.
You will encounter different styles of analysis and argumentation. Understanding these styles might prove challenging. Because of this, be prepared to discuss them during the class. The class discussion is a deliberative exercise: you are expected to contribute to it because everyone will benefit from a vigorous exchange of ideas. In addition, please respect your colleagues’ views because we will study problems open to multiple interpretations. Don’t forget that collegiality and tolerance are virtues not vices.
What is wrong, if anything, with residential segregation? Should people have the right to determine their own food systems, or is ensuring adequate food access sufficient? How should competing claims over land between different groups (farmers, indigenous peoples, corporations) be resolved? Do indigenous communities have the right to veto the expansion of oil, mining, and energy businesses? Is economic growth desirable? Should punishment reduction be employed to influence perpetrators to cooperate with authorities in confronting the problem of disappeared persons in transitional justice contexts? On what grounds can states claim Antarctic territory? What constitutes a just energy system? Should we be concerned about informality and the underground economy? How can we define the demos of a given political community? In this class, we will approach these and other normative questions through the methodological and substantive inputs of political theory. We will engage in exercises of applied political theory, in which conceptual and normative analysis will be informed by empirical research. In particular, our focus will be mostly centered on studying pressing issues occurring in Latin America. This regional focus will help us contextualize and elaborate specific theoretical answers to the problems at hand. Likewise, we will aim to learn from these different contexts and understand their relevance and adaptability to other settings and circumstances.
This course will consider how politics and policies can assist in shaping housing, cities, homelessness, and suburbia in Latin America. Some examples of class material will consider the early origins of modern cities, the development of suburbia, recent developments such as public housing, gentrification, and gated communities.
This course will consider how place branding has significant political and policy implications. Attention will be given to understanding governmental policies that attempt to influence how places are projected through branding, marketing, and diplomacy. Some examples will consider the early origins of place branding, the development of place branding, and historically recent developments such as city branding, city marketing, and country branding.
This course will offer an examination of the development of politics in Puerto Rico from the late 19th century to the present. This course will focus mostly on the politics in Puerto Rico
covering topics such as party politics, social movements, sports, urbanism, colonialism, and debt. It will also discuss certain relevant elements that were and are part of the Puerto Rican
diaspora.
This course will consider how politics can assist in shaping housing, cities, homelessness, and suburbia. Significant attention will be given to understanding governmental policies that attempt to influence how people live. Some examples will consider the early origins of modern cities, the development of suburbia, and historically recent developments such as public housing, gentrification, and gated communities.
Democratic backsliding and the rise of nationalist far-right populism have prompted authoritarian tendencies at the national level in Europe in recent years. The coming to power of Mussolini in Italy marked the start of “the first reverse wave of democratization” in Europe reducing the number of democratic states in the world to 12 by 1942. Considering the devastating experience Europe faced with the rise of authoritarianism in its recent history, it is of utmost importance to understand the recent attempts at eroding democracy especially in Central and Eastern European countries. The increasing popularity of authoritarian leaning far-rights leaders of Europe elsewhere begs the question if this is going to be a wider European trend in the upcoming years. This course examines democratic backsliding in Europe from the perspective of the European Studies. The initial goal of the course is to provide the type of fundamental understanding of political regime decay that would allow for informed research writing and political analysis. The primary theoretical focus of the course is on political regime research as part of comparative politics. After reviewing democratic erosion theories, and problems with democratic transition and democratic consolidation, the course will focus on empirical cases from Europe starting from the inter-war years until today. We will also establish how certain blatant forms of democratic backsliding of earlier times are now replaced by more subtle manipulation by incumbents legitimized through the very institutions that democracy promoters have prioritized (Bermeo, 2016). The readings will provide the foundations for understanding the core concepts, processes, and theoretical approaches to democratic backsliding in Europe. After establishing similarities of tactics used by parties and leaders in steering the regime away from democracy, the course will end on a note that “snowballing,” or the demonstration effect of transitions in stimulating and providing models for subsequent efforts at democratization can also be followed by reverse waves as exemplified in European history.
The creation and development of the European Union is one of the most fascinating political events of the last century. It represents a unique opportunity to study the evolution of a political system without having to rely solely on historical documents. In the past half-century, the EU has grown from a set of weak /poorly defined institutions with a limited policy domain and an emphasis on national sovereignty into an extensive political system with increasingly strong supranational actors influencing all aspects of political and economic life. What began in 1951 as an experiment in cooperation in the coal and steel sectors among six states has grown to be a formal political and economic union between 28 member states from Estonia to Ireland and Malta to Sweden (and it is still growing) reducing to 27 with the recent Brexit referendum. The goal of this course will be to examine this transformation both theoretically and historically from a comparative politics perspective, keeping in mind the changing (and growing) global role of the EU.
This course introduces students to key thinkers, texts, and themes in the history of Western political thought. We will encounter these thinkers in historical sequence, asking questions such as: Who should rule, and why? What is the nature of freedom, and how is it practically enacted? What is the nature of citizenship, and how is it practiced? How are politics and economics intertwined? What should we do under conditions of state and/or social injustice? How do these political ideas change across historical context? We will also explore the extent to which these ideas have influenced and remain relevant to our contemporary politics.
Professional development for a graduate career in Political Science. Covers the research process, emerging issues, developing a professional scholarly identity, and careers. Required course for
graduate students in their first year. Although this is a 0-credit course, please note that you may be charged 1 credit if you are not enrolled in other courses.
Political Behavior (POS 6207) is a graduate-level seminar-style course that introduces students to the field of political behavior. This broadly refers to how and why ordinary people make the
political decisions that they do. This course will focus primarily on political behavior in the United States, but many of the ideas and conclusions are applicable to other contexts and countries. It is geared primarily toward students pursuing a Ph.D. in political science, but is also appropriate for M.A. students pursing graduate study in political campaigning. My hope is that by the end of this course, you will develop your own novel research question and derive a way to properly answer it. You will also ideally continue moving from being primarily a passive receiver of research toward being both a critical consumer of existing research and a producer of new knowledge.
This course introduces graduate students to some of the major themes in the American Legislative Process. This course offers a rigorous exploration of the intricacies of the American legislative
process with a specific focus on the U.S. Congress. This class is designed to give you a broad overview of the legislative process in the United States and will help prepare you for future research, practical applications in both the private sector and policy making process.
In this course, students will learn about different methods and techniques for collecting, analyzing, and writing qualitative methods. Since the course does not focus on “why using qualitative methods” but rather on the “how” (I.e., how to do interviews, focus groups, etc.) students are expected to have passed Conduct of Inquiry. The course is an overview of different techniques for gathering qualitative data. The course begins discussing what is arguably the backbone of qualitative research: fieldwork. We will discuss fieldwork as an overarching, and broad ‘method’ in political and other social sciences. These sessions will discuss how to prepare for conducting research on-site, whether in the United States, your home country, or a foreign country. We will
also discuss setbacks and challenges of fieldwork and what are the best strategies to overcome them. Afterwards we will discuss different types of qualitative data collection techniques, including ethnography, interviews, focus groups, archival research, and what I call ‘alternative methodologies.’ Afterwards, the course will focus on qualitative research evaluation, data analysis and writing. What makes good qualitative data and research? How do you make sense of all the data that you collected? How do you use that data to test or validate your theoretical arguments? How do you write your results so that they do not -in the words of many unprepared reviewers- “sound anecdotal”? Along the way, we will discuss the ethical considerations, limitations, and requirements of qualitative research. Given that this is a course focused on data-collection techniques, the assignments are designed to put what was learned into practice. By the end of the semester the students will be better prepared to assess the best strategies for qualitative data collection for their research, assess ethical challenges in qualitative research, conduct ethnographic research and fieldwork, and prepare research protocols using different methods.
This course provides graduate students with an introduction to research design in political science. We will cover the fundamentals of the research process starting with the formulation of research questions and the construction of research puzzles.We will then cover theory building, the derivation of hypotheses, and discuss methodological approaches.
The aim of most empirical research methods is to draw inferences, that is, use the things we know to learn about the things we do not know. We will discuss a variety of the methods social scientists use to draw inferences about politics. These include large-N quantitative analysis, small-n case studies, and experimental approaches. We will devote considerable attention to the strengths and weaknesses of the different methodological approaches we cover. This will better prepare you to critically evaluate scholarly work and equip you to undertake original research.
This course introduces the statistical tools most commonly used to process, analyze, and visualize data in the social sciences. We will explore descriptive statistics, statistical inference, hypothesis testing, and linear regression, with a brief introduction to logistic regression. Using the statistical software package R, students will learn to transform, visualize, and analyze data with a strong emphasis on interpreting results for real-world applications. Each topic will cover methodology, including underlying assumptions, the mechanics of the analysis, and appropriate interpretation of results. Throughout the course, we will work with real political data to ground our learning in practical examples.
This course is a graduate-level introduction to statistical modeling for political science research, with a focus on ordinary least squares (OLS) regression. The central goal is to develop practical competence and good judgment in using regression models: how they are constructed, how to interpret them, how to evaluate assumptions, and how to diagnose when they break.
A separate course in causal inference follows this one. Accordingly, we will use causal language (e.g., confounding, post-treatment bias, and DAGs) primarily to motivate good modeling practice and to clarify what regression can and cannot justify. We will preview a few causal inference tools near the end of the semester, but formal identification strategies will be developed in the subsequent course.
The course has three components. First, we will review key tools and concepts in mathematics, probability, statistics, and computing. Second, we will build and use linear regression models and learn how to interpret results responsibly. Third, we will learn core diagnostic and conceptual tools for regression-based research, including how control-variable choices can help or harm inference.
1. Be able to distinguish high quality public opinion research from poor quality.
2. Understand how to put together a basic public opinion research plan for a campaign.
3. Understand basic methodologies for conducting public opinion research.
4. Able to write about and analyze public opinion research
5. Be able to do work both in-person and in a remote setting to prepare for the campaign and consulting environment.
Introduction to basics of data science including programming for data analytics, file management, relational databases, visualizations, geographic information systems, and web development with application to large-scale election databases.
Analysis of the defining features of key eras in American political history. Addresses the role of cultural, institutional, and economic factors in explaining the emergence of key eras. Analysis of major policy initiatives and the extent to which they represented major change from previous policy.
The subfield of American political development (APD) is a relatively new subfield in American politics, dating back roughly to the early 1980s. It has several distinguishing features. First, political scientists working within this tradition often use a methodological approach that is historical and comparative to assess both continuity and change in American politics. Some use conventional quantitative methods such as multivariate regression to explain phenomena of interest, but many–arguably, most–do not. Works in APD tend to provide detailed historical accounts, through the use of primary and secondary source material, in order to explain policy outcomes and political puzzles. APD scholars also tend to emphasize the role of political institutions as an
explanatory variable. Compared to behavioral political scientists, they devote substantial attention to the state, as both an independent and dependent variable. Many works in APD focus on questions of state development, especially the development of bureaucratic and regulatory capacity. Another important question that links the different research efforts within the APD tradition is the question of American “exceptionalism.” Many of the important works in the APD literature seek to explain why and how the American state and American policies differ from the states and policies of other advanced industrialized democracies.
We will proceed both chronologically and thematically. We start by devoting two weeks to the theoretical frameworks that animate the study of American political development, considering the role of institutions, culture, and economics, and addressing the question of patterns and periodicity in American politics. Then we turn to the Jeffersonian and Jacksonian eras, and move through the Civil War, Reconstruction, Populism, Progressivism, the New Deal, and the Great Society, and modern welfare and health care reform. We will also consider race, gender, conservatism, and labor.
Since much of the literature in APD focuses on social policy, this course will devote substantial attention to social policy before and after the New Deal, including a section on national health insurance and welfare reform as they played out in the 1990s (with attention to the historical roots of the debates and resolution of the conflicts). However, the main focus of the course will be on American political history prior to 1950. We will consider both the origins and the legacies of various transforming changes in American politics. Throughout the semester as we examine both critical turning points and periods of continuity, we will assess the contribution that political culture, political institutions, political leaders, economic factors, and demographic changes, have made to American political development.
The goals of the course are several. First, the course aims to provide students with a basic historical knowledge of the main periods or eras in American politics. In doing so, we will aim to identify the features or characteristics that separate one “era” from another. Second, the course provides an overview of the main debates in the APD literature. We will look at the big questions and different answers that have been offered on topics including the meaning and impact of the Jacksonian era, of Populism and Progressivism, of the New Deal and the Great Society. We will also address the role that is played by labor, race, and gender in American politics. Third, over the course of the semester, we will evaluate the thesis of American “exceptionalism,” by assessing just how exceptional American politics really is, and what the causes of this exceptionalism might be. We will do this most directly with regard to social policy, again because this has been a central focus of APD scholars (as opposed to, for example, environmental or tax policy).
Imagine that you have a data that you would like to analyze starting with a set of possible explanations. Perhaps, before collecting the data you might have believed that some theories are plausible explanations. After you acquire the data, you decide to examine whether any of those explanations fits the data. Your belief in the credibility of your explanations, given the data, is based on using Bayes’ rule from probability theory: you update predicted probabilities of an event by using whatever new information comes your way. This is the essence of doing Bayesian analysis. And this is what we in fact do every day in reallocating credibility across various possibilities that face us when encountering situations that call for a decision to be made in favor of some of these possibilities – Bayesian decision is in effect a manifestation of our daily intuitive behavior. As a matter of fact, you have been doing Bayesian analysis without knowing it. For
example, your intuitive interpretation of the usual p-values and confidence intervals are Bayesian, through and through. More generally, the parameters of any statistical model can be estimated using Bayesian methods in a very intuitive way. In sum: two shifts of focus are made in explicitly doing Bayesian
data analysis:
(1) We go from a frequentist notion of probability (that is, as a property of the outside world) to a belief-based one (that is, as an observer’s belief about observed uncertainty)
(2) We go from point-value hypothesis testing to estimating parameter values and uncertainty by:
a. Specifying a probability model with some prior knowledge about parameters
b. Updating our knowledge about the parameters through a conditioning of this probability model on observed data
c. Assessing the fit of the model to the data and checking the sensitivity of the conclusions to the starting assumptions The purpose of this course is to introduce and train students to thinking in such a ‘Bayesian intuitive’ way when doing scientific data analysis. The course starts with the basic concepts of Bayesian analysis and incrementally goes into somewhat more advanced computational methods. Students are expected to acquire enough skills and understanding of Bayesian statistics such that by the end of the semester they will be able to:
1. Acquire a good understanding of Bayesian methods including Bayesian model specification, Bayesian posterior inference, and model assessment.
2. Use the acquired knowledge of Bayesian statistics to develop and estimate linear and non-linear Bayesian models as well as have enough exposure to MCMC (Markov Chain Monte Carlo) computation.
3. Deploy this knowledge in analyzing data in their respective research fields of interest.
This is an advanced offering that counts distributionally either in comparative politics or methods. It is meant to introduce students to a wide range of work which studies macro-political outcomes (state formation, regime type, political change, and development) across a broad range of states. The materials in the course look at a wide cross-section of cases from Europe, Africa, North America, Latin America, and Asia. It also includes two units with meta-theoretical/methodological focus which serve as an introduction to the forms of inquiry grouped under the rubrics of comparative historical analysis, historical institutionalism, and historical political economy. This can either serve as an independent area of examination on comprehensive exams or will help to buttress your knowledge in the theories of the state, regimes and regime change, or development.
Graduate level course in comparative politics. This seminar offers an introduction to the study of the far right in Europe and beyond. The course emphasizes core readings in the field and in depth understanding of seminal works.
How can we leverage existing and emerging computing technologies for practical use in the social sciences? Once considered the domain of specialists with extensive technical training, computational methods are now more accessible than ever. This course provides an introduction to the tools and techniques that are transforming social science research, particularly in the realm of text analysis (and broader concepts related to text-as-data). Students will learn to leverage computational methods to analyze complex phenomena, develop reproducible workflows, and engage with the ever-growing intersection of data science and social inquiry.
Students should exit this course with the ability to (among other things):
• Compile and deploy complex computing routines in R and (to a lesser extent) Python, including multilayered and hierarchical coding structures (e.g., iterative loops, data organization and manipulation, functions, package construction, etc.)
• Retrieve, process, and organize non-traditional data sources (i.e., text) for tasks using a combination of natural language processing techniques (e.g., supervised and unsupervised learning models)
• Create informative representations of data and other summary findings (e.g., tables and figures).
• Produce replicable workflows and documentation using R, Python, and LATEX(Beamer).
Scholarship in international relations has often given limited attention to how ideas about race and racism have shaped world politics, even though the field developed in a historical context marked by empire, migration, and hierarchies among peoples. This course engages classic and contemporary scholarship on what W.E.B. Du Bois termed the “color line”—the problem of racial division and its relationship to global order.
The course examines how racial categories and racialized hierarchies have influenced (and been influenced by) major themes in international politics: imperial governance and decolonization; the emergence of IR as a discipline; antisemitism and othering; U.S. foreign policy and the international dimensions of civil rights struggles; Afro-Asian solidarity and Non-Alignment during the Cold War; and debates over political voice, recognition, and authority in global institutions.
The course equips students to assess competing arguments about when and how race matters in international relations, and how it intersects with power, security, political economy, and shifting geopolitical alignments.
Per the approved General Education description taken from the course catalog, this class covers the following material: “Basic principles of political thought. Examination of nature of state and relationship between individual and state. Covers topics such as authority, consent, freedom and obligation. Exploration of these concepts throughout western tradition as well as in other areas.”
The Objective of this class is to familiarize students with a number of thinkers and intellectual traditions that have shaped political thought and action from antiquity to the present.
This course introduces students to canonical thinkers, texts, and themes in the history of Western political thought. We will encounter these thinkers in historical sequence, asking questions such as: Who should rule, and why? What is the nature of freedom, and how is it practically enacted? What is the nature of citizenship, and how is it practiced? How are politics and economics
intertwined? What should citizens do under conditions of tyranny or inequality? How do these political ideas change across historical context? As an honors offering, this course will
also consider contemporary scholarly responses to the canon and explore the extent to which these texts and themes remain relevant in U.S. political culture today.
The global popularity of democracy today has been increasingly haunted by its ambiguous meaning and contested substance. While it has been often associated with various ideas such as freedom, equality, constitution, representation, and even revolution, democracy, the venerable Greek term, originally signifies the rule (kratos) by the people (demos). But who are the people? How do and should they rule? What are the justifications and, if any, limitations of their ruling? An investigation on how past political thinkers and activists reflected on these questions not only helps us de-familiarize and problematize current opinions about democracy but also points toward alternative futures of democratic ideals.
This advanced undergraduate course situates the ongoing debates about democracy and its problems in a larger historical and philosophical framework. We will study a sampling of classic and contemporary literature on democracy. We will begin with the history of democracy, ranging from ancient Athenian democracy to revolutionary democracies in the modern world, and draw insights from their advocates and critics. We will then return to the contemporary world and examine debates about the normative values and justifications of democracy. Finally, we will interrogate current challenges to democracy (i.e. populism, racial domination, emerging technologies) and consider various attempts to solve or mitigate these problems.
No lesson is intended to espouse, promote, advance, inculcate, or compel a particular feeling, perception, viewpoint or belief.
This course introduces students to canonical thinkers, texts, and themes in the history of Western political thought. We will encounter these thinkers in historical sequence, asking questions such as: Who should rule, and why? What is the nature of freedom, and how is it practically enacted? What is the nature of citizenship, and how is it practiced? How are politics and economics
intertwined? What should citizens do under conditions of tyranny or inequality? How do these political ideas change across historical context? As an honors offering, this course will
also consider contemporary scholarly responses to the canon and explore the extent to which these texts and themes remain relevant in U.S. political culture today.
This seminar offers an overview of major approaches and methodologies for studying models and theories of the public policy process. That is, the process through which policy decisions are made and materialized. During the semester, we will examine various theories of the policy process as well as the main stages of the policy cycle: agenda setting, policy formation, decision making,
implementation, and policy learning/evaluation. The course will conclude by analyzing the policy process in the context of welfare and health policies in the US.