Introduction to the nature of politics and political institutions. Emphasis on political behavior and continuing issues of modern politics, such as power, authority, legitimacy, freedom, and order
Credits: 4

Power and competition in American politics focusing on: voters and elections; public opinion and the media; interest groups and political institutions - the President, Congress, and the Courts. Examines critical political issues from the founding of the nation to the present.
Credits: 4

Introduction to United States foreign policy since the end of World War II examining the foundations of American policy, the origins and conduct of the Cold War and the dilemmas of the post cold War era. Explores contemporary problems facing United States foreign policy such as the international economy and transnational global issues. 403W is writing intensive
Credits: 4

January Term 2012 Course details

Introduction to the ways in which law operates in modern society: its forms, functions, underlying values, and the consequences of its application in particular regimes. Topics include the psychological bases for legal obligation; the evolution of particular legal doctrines; the philosophical underpinnings of legal responsibility; the relationship of law to social structures; the relationship of law to morality; the nature of legal reasoning; and critiques of law.
Credits: 4

Origin of the idea of justice; relationship between politics, justice, and morality; selections from Plato, Aristotle, Roman, Islamic, and Christian political philosophers.
Credits: 4

Human rights and the quality of communities as expressed in Hobbes, Locke, Mandeville, Rousseau, and others. Group 8.
Credits: 4

Current political ideologies and controversies in America and abroad; liberal democracy and its critics since the 19th century. Group 8.
Credits: 4

Classical and contemporary works of literature to illustrate perennial issues in political philosophy; among authors studied are Aristophanes, Sophocles, Shakespeare, Melville, Tolstoy, and Sartre. Group 8.
Credits: 4

Develops an understanding of politics in the Russian Federation. Surveys the political history of Russia from 1900 until the collapse of the Communist Party and the dissolution of the USSR. Focuses on the development of the Federation's institutions, with emphasis on the Presidency and the Parliament, federalism, the role of the people, transformation toward a market economy, and the Federation's status as a democracy.
Credits: 4

Credits: 4

Examines the structures, processes and issues that shape contemporary international relations. Topics included are: the rise of the nation-state system and its current prospects; national and international security in the post Cold War era; problems of the international political economy; international conflict resolution; human rights; and global environmental politics.
Credits: 4

Provides an overview of U.S. national security. Examines the nature of security, evolution of strategy, and the history of the United States approach to its national security. Focuses on the policy and decision-making processes, the use of force in international affairs, and the capabilities of the U.S. military. Concludes with treatment of specific issues, including the current American security environment-- state and non-state threats, contemporary military strategy, weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, peacekeeping, coercive diplomacy, alliances, and conflict management and resolution. Writing intensive.
Credits: 4

Examines the legal rules governing regulatory agencies, in the U.S. Topics include regulatory adjudication and rulemaking, legislative and executive control over administrative agencies, judicial review and public participation. Course examines federal and state levels of government
Credits: 4

The evolution of international economic regimes (monetary, trade, development). Particular emphasis on theoretical approaches to explain current economic problems: systematic theories (interdependence, hegemonic stability); domestic determinants (bureaucratic, interest group); and decision-making theories (rational choice). Writing intensive.
Credits: 4

Classics of sociological and political economic theory, as well as contemporary thinking in conservative, classical liberal, modern liberal, and radical political economy. Emphasis on the historical context in which these ideas emerge, and the links among them. Readings and discussions include such thinkers as Comte, Spencer, Weber, Durkheim, Locke, Marx, Smith, Riccardo, J.S. Mill, Shumpeter, Keynes, Hayek.
Credits: 4

Political opinion, identity, and belief-formation and reinforcement. The roles of cognition and emotion in how political identities, opinions and beliefs form, change and resist change. The implications of idea-framing in the acceptance and rejection of political concepts and ideologies. The role of social contexts and the media in creating conceptual boundaries in contemporary politics. Writing intensive.
Credits: 4

Course analyzes and evaluates the roles of political philosophy and historical circumstances in politics through the readings of selected works by political philosophers and political leaders whose writings combine political philosophy with historical analysis. Special attention given to the nature of argument, choice, and leadership in political behavior. Authors studied include Machiavelli, Madison, Marx, and Lincoln.
Credits: 4

The United States, the world's oldest and most prominent constitutional democracy, is frequently characterized as an American empire, and empire maintained not only by its political ideals and its economic strength, but also by war. Through the reading of selected ancient and modern works by major political philosophers, historians, and political leaders, this course examines empire, democracy, and war as recurrent political concerns and as the actual experience of different regimes throughout history, including the United States. Works by, among others, Aristotle, Thucydides, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Kant, Clausewitz, and Lincoln are supplemented by selected historical studies and by analyses of American policy since World War II.
Credits: 4

This course provides an interdisciplinary approach to the study of political violence and terrorism. It covers the psychological and sociological roots of terrorism, the organizational patterns of cells, groups and networks, and the role of ideology and identity in shaping goals, targets, and tactics. No credit for students who have previously taken PS 651 Special Topics: Political Violence and Terrorism.
Credits: 4

Explores how grassroots advocacy organizations and social movements mobilize human and material resources in order to shape public policy and what tatics and organizational and communication strategies lead to success. Provides students with hand-on learning through service learning project at a local organization. Policy areas may include immigration, environmental conservation, women's issues and more. Instructor permission required.
Credits: 4

This course examines the relationships among law, politics, and social structures and how much relationships shape our conceptions of justice. We explore philosophical and historical origins of US law and such concepts as due process and sovereignty. We examine the foundations and economic, environmental, and sociological underpinnings of contemporary legal and political issues.
Credits: 4

This course examines Supreme Court legal holdings from the creation of the American Republic to the present, with attention to the social and historical contexts in which holdings have been made. We examine Constitutional issues, the process by which the Court examines such issues, the ways in which political and social context has framed and influenced Court decisions, as well as how the Court has influenced politics and the broader society.
Credits: 4

Overview of the pressing social, political, and economic issues in the developing world. Analysis includes: political development, including different forms of authoritarianism and democracy; international political economy and models of macro-economic development; international and national aid programs aimed at reducing poverty. Case studies include China, India, Iraq and more.
Credits: 4

This course examines the politics of how food is produced, marketed and distributed in the United States, with attention to how the American food system has changed since World War II. The ethics and nutritional and public health implications of current agricultural policies and practices are looked at carefully, as are the environmental impacts of current practices. The impact on international food prices and markets and world hunger are also examined.
Credits: 4

Independent study on specific topics in Politics ans Society. Project must be approved by the project supervisor Politics and Society Program.
Credits: 1-4

Students undertake internships or other approved field projects with organizations such as political campaigns, media organizations, government offices, business or community groups. The seminar component enables students to share and analyze these experiences, employing readings, discussions, collective behavior games, and speakers. Permission required.
Credits: 4

This course explores International Relations Theory as developed by political scientists, subjected to critical insights from other disciplines, including psychology, anthropology, political economy and history. Course first surveys the historical development of International Relations Theory, beginning with Thucydides and Macchiavelli, and proceeding through 20th and 21st century realist, liberal, Marxist and constructivist theories. Theses theories are then examined critically in the light of insights from psychology, anthropology and political economy. Pre or Coreq: PS 501 or PS 401 or permission of instructor. Special fee.
Credits: 4

This course examines the theoretical debates in comparative politics and political sociology regarding the social and economic bases of dictatorship and democracy, as well as the transition from authoritarianism to democracy. The course considers different conceptualizations of democracy, as well as competing theoretical agruments regarding the causes of democractization. Readings draw on case studies from different regions, including Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia.
Credits: 4