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Course Criteria
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4.00 Credits
Political and economic developments in Africa since the end of the Cold War have both vindicated and belied Robert Kaplan’s famous prediction of a “coming anarchy” in the region. Drawing on the rich social science literature on the political economy of contemporary Africa, the course will address a set of critical questions that will have important implications for the well being of the people of the continent and the world in the twenty-first century. The central questions we will address are: Why is most of Africa poor? Why do states fail so often in Africa? Why is there wide variation in the responsiveness of African countries to AIDS prevention? Why has Botswana, a small country in Southern Africa, been able to sustain economic growth and democratic politics since its independence? Can international aid resurrect growth and democracy on a wide scale in Africa?
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4.00 Credits
This course is an introduction to the study of colonial legacies, with a focus on South Asia and Africa. Although research on colonialism spans the entire spectrum of the social sciences, our emphasis will be on the impact of colonial policies on political and economic development. Some of the central questions we will explore are: How have colonial ethnic censuses affected political stability in post-colonial societies? Are countries in which ex-colonizers have settled in large numbers more likely to be richer today than countries with insignificant settler populations? Do ex-British colonies have systematically different long-term economic and political trajectories than ex-French colonies? The course will also examine the merits and demerits of proposals that have been suggested to permanently alter these legacies in developing countries such as creating stronger states by redrawing arbitrary borders or the creation of ethnically representative armies.
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4.00 Credits
When and why do elected officials sell their votes to special interests, neglect their constituents, and enact policies that benefit a handful of politically connected actors? When is it acceptable for multinational corporations to bribe officials in foreign countries to get access to resources and local markets? This course examines the factors that promote good governance. We begin by classifying and measuring corruption using data from Africa, Latin America, Eastern Europe, South Asia, and the Middle East. Then we turn to country-specific case studies and examine how such factors as an electoral system, a political culture, the level of economic development, and natural resource endowment affect politicians. Building on these case studies, we develop a general framework to understand conditions under which popular elections, political parties, a civil society, and other democratic institutions can guard effectively against corruption.
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4.00 Credits
The first half of the course examines explanations of crisis initiation, the escalation of violence, and causes of protracted conflict. The second half surveys theories of conflict resolution and explanations of the successes and failures of peace-making and peace-keeping efforts. Students will work in groups to apply theories and concepts to a conflict of their choice. Additional examples will be drawn to study how war and peace evolve in cases that vary in the intensity of the conflict (causes of genocide, e.g., Rwanda), the length of the conflict (enduring rivalries, e.g., the Israeli-Palestinian conflict), and the value of the conflict (territorial and resource wars, e.g., the dispute over Kashmir, and the Congo).
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4.00 Credits
This class will examine terrorist groups, methods and counter-terrorism, past and present. Topics include psychological approaches, the connection between religion and terrorism, terrorist strategies, suicide terrorism, WMDs, domestic terrorism, terrorist organization, state sponsorship, financing, counter-terrorism, intelligence analysis and cyber-terrorism. We will also do case studies of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Al Qaeda and 9/11, Hamas and the IRA.
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4.00 Credits
What motivates individuals to identify with an ethnic group? How does ethnic identity shape voting, political parties, democratic stability, economic growth, and political violence? This seminar explores the growing literature on ethnic politics in comparative politics and international relations. The course includes theoretical and multi-country studies of ethnic politics and also includes in-depth case studies of Nigeria, the United States, South Africa, India, and Sudan. Prerequisite: PSC/IR 101, or PSC/IR 106, or permission of instructors.
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4.00 Credits
This seminar examines the nature of political parties and political competition across democracies in the developed and developing worlds. Issues analyzed include the formation of different types of parties, their role in agenda-setting, policy-making and representation, and their transformation in the post-World War II era.
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4.00 Credits
This seminar examines the nature of political parties and political competition across democracies in the developed and developing worlds. Issues analyzed include the formation of different types of parties, their role in agenda-setting, policy-making and representation, and their transformation in the post-World War II era.
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3.00 Credits
See description for IR 280.
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0.00 Credits
No course description available.
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