Political Science

This course analyzes the success of development strategies in relation to when and where they were used throughout Africa. It studies the factors contributing to why certain development strategies were chosen and under what circumstances, as well as the factors that impacted the success of each of these strategies. It focuses on the main approaches to development including neo-liberal, import substitution industrialization, export- and state-led industrialization, basic needs, ERP/SAPs, HIPC, and African-based strategies from the Lagos Plan to NEPAD.

This course provides an introduction to the methods of inquiry that are appropriate to the study of politics. While the material introduces fundamental topics in research design and choice of methods that are relevant to both quantitative and qualitative research, this course emphasizes quantitative methods and provides an introduction to basic data analysis. 

This course examines major trends and issues in international relations of East Asia. Instead of providing a comprehensive survey of the history, culture, and national policies of countries in the region, it mainly addresses four issues in the course: What are major trends in regional IR? What is the source of conflict in the region? What are the common interests that unite peoples and states of East Asia? How does the region organize itself? It explains dynamics and patterns of regional international relations in a broad geopolitical and geoeconomic context. Topics in discussion include major powers’ role in the region, the Korean Peninsula, the Taiwan Strait, ASEAN, Southeastern Asia and regional institution-building.

This course explores major political ideas and concepts from the modern Western tradition. Key political constructs such as power, authority, justice, liberty and democracy are examined in intellectual and historical context. Reading Thomas Hobbes’s Leviathan and John Locke’s Second Treatise on Government, among other influential writings, students are exposed to the broader themes and ideas that have shaped political life in the West since 1600.

This course provides a sweeping overview of the American political tradition. It traces the origins of the United States Constitution and the development of the federal government, paying particular attention to the relationships among the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government and the distribution of power among political institutions across the national, state, and local levels. It also studies the nature of campaigns and elections, citizen participation and public opinion, as well the roles of political parties, interest groups and the news media. All of this will be addressed with a sweeping historical perspective as well as in relation to the current public health and leadership crisis in the United States and the upcoming presidential election in November. In this course, students learn the basics of American government as well as how American politics has informed much of our general knowledge in the field of political science, both in terms of how political institutions actually function (or fail to function) and the gaps that have long persisted between philosophical ideals and the realities on the ground.

This course examines the roles of women in politics from the nineteenth century to the present from an interdisciplinary perspective. Topics include the historical evolution of relative problems, the political behavior of women and their absence in politics, women's place in the workforce, and education. The course also explores French and American feminism, women's suffrage in France, homosexual theories and practices, sexism and homophobia, and the debate over parity, universalism, and communism.

This course provides a study of the principle theories of human rights and the role of human rights in democratic societies. It looks at the challenges of guaranteeing human rights in different cultural contexts, the function of human rights in the constitutional order, and issues regarding justice of law, the legitimacy of power, and rights-based theories.