Political Science

Recognizing that forced migration represents one of the key societal challenges of our times, with an average of one person being displaced every two seconds, this course uses a multidisciplinary approach to provide a theoretical, practical, and experiential understanding of the different causes and impacts of forced migration globally and a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of historical and contemporary issues in the field.  

This course examines the model of human rights in the Spanish and international legal systems and its relationship with sustainable development. Topics include: international protection of human rights; democracy, human rights and vulnerable groups; gender equality and human rights; the relationship between sustainable development and peace, eradication of hunger and poverty, economic development, urban development, culture and cultural diversity, the right to a healthy environment, access to justice and education, and universal health.

This course discusses political issues in contemporary Korea. Topics include political polarization, politics of gender, politics of youth, population crisis and Korean politics, Korea as an immigration-accepting country, North Korean in South Korean society, populism, emergence of cast society, center-periphery in Korean politics, and China, Japan, and the United States in South Korean society. 

This course examines a major issue in comparative politics (e.g., the media, gender, nationalism, ethnic conflict). Topics will vary from year to year.

This course explores conflict and diplomacy in the contemporary Middle East through an in-depth examination and discussion of case studies from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Each week is devoted to a specific conflict. Additionally, the course serves as an introductory survey to the history, politics, and societies of the contemporary Middle East, as well as to the main dynamics driving conflict and conflict resolution in this region.

This course surveys intergroup conflict and peacebuilding through the perspective of culture, psychology, and law. The course studies several case studies to understand why people fight; how they form political coalitions to make peace, and the legal frameworks that facilitate a sustained end to conflict. The course is organized around key sociological definitions of groups: political engagement, gender, ethnicity, disability, and nationality. To this end the course looks at historical and present-day examples such as:

- The American Abolitionist Movement
- Eugenics in the Early Twentieth Century
- Nationalism and Gender in World War II
- Human Rights
- Disability Culture in Japan and the United States
- Homophobia in Uganda
- Nativism in Northern Ireland
- Ethnicity and Religion in the Israeli-Palestinian movement
- Peacemaking in Liberia

This course examines the principal institutional elements of the political systems and cultures of Europe. Other topics include: the European Union, political parties, interest groups, institutional frameworks, European public figures and politicians, and European political integration. 

This course examines a specific problem area in the comparative politics of developing areas.

This course analyzes the political and economic development in East Asia. It focuses on South Korea as the main case, while using Japan and China as comparative cases. After reviewing key theoretical approaches to the successful state-led development of East Asian economies since the 1950s, this course narrows its focus down on Korea. It explores how Korea has achieved dramatic economic and political development since the 1970s, faced a serious economic crisis in the late 1990s, and attempted to overcome new challenges since then. Utilizing the Korean case, this course analyzes the changing relationship between the state and market, the proper role of the state in economic development, and the political and economic paths that the East Asian economies (especially China) might take in the future.