All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00 – 2:15
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Girma Parris
MWF 11:40 – 12:30
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Pete Moore
MW 3:20 – 4:35
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events.

Counts for CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement; Understanding Global Perspectives and Human Diversity and Commonality Perspectives.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Elliot Posner
TR 10:00 – 11:15
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Matthew Hodgetts
TR 8:30 – 9:45 a.m.
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 215
The Arctic in the System of States, Science and Markets
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30 – 12:45
Regardless of how the Arctic is defined, major environmental challenges that accompany climate change, melting sea ice and human activity there give rise to disasters that engender major changes such as forced migration and the destruction of property. At the same time, the instruments available to address Arctic environmental issues are in need of reform. Therefore, the challenge of Arctic governance is that what is essentially a set of regional issues has become problematized as a global call for action. Nonetheless, the causes of these physical changes embedded in industrial society do not emanate from the region–but rather from behaviors of peoples and industries far removed from them.

This course takes a comprehensive view of the region, and explores the evolving concept of the Arctic through the lens of international relations with a particular emphasis on traditional national security, scientific cooperation, and political economy. We will consider future challenges and potential avenues of resolution that fall across disciplinary lines. Thus, students are expected to prepare for class by doing the assigned readings–there are very few lectures. At the same time, we will carve out time to review and reflect on composing, writing, and revising in order to produce the best possible research.

Counts as Communication Intensive course.

POSC 231
Conflict Resolution: Essential Communication Skills
Aysegul Keskin-Zeren
Tues. 7:00 – 9:30 p.m.
This course focuses on actively developing practical communication and conflict resolution skills, designed to be inclusive across diverse contexts, from individual to international interactions. Students will acquire a comprehensive toolkit, including empathetic and active listening, non-violent communication, assertion, reframing, facilitation, negotiation, mediation, interactive conflict resolution, and alternative dispute resolution methods like circle processes and facilitation basics. Special emphasis is placed on identifying and surmounting barriers to effective communication, nurturing productive techniques, and fostering comfort with conflicts. This course recognizes the significance of adapting these skills across diverse contexts, emphasizing the need for effective application in various cultural settings.

Counts as Communication Intensive course. 

POSC 321/421
News Media and Politics
Girma Parris
MW 3:20 – 4:35
Analysis of the political role of the news media in American government and politics. Examines the fascinating relationship between reporters and politicians. Covers the overall structure and legal position of the media as well as the media’s impact on the American political system.

POSC 325/425
American Constitutional Law
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30 – 12:45

An introductory survey of U.S. constitutional law. Special attention given to the historical, philosophical, and political dimensions of landmark Supreme Court cases. Judicial review, federalism, separation of powers, due process, and equal protection. Supreme Court’s involvement in major political controversies: the New Deal, abortion, physician-assisted suicide, school desegregation, and affirmative action.

POSC 355/455
Modern Political Ideologies
Matthew Hodgetts
TR 1:00 – 2:15
Substance and nature of ideological thinking in the contemporary world via a survey of political “isms”–for example, liberalism, libertarianism, conservatism, fascism, socialism, and even more recent trends such as feminism, environmentalism, etc.

POSC 364/464
Dictatorship and Democracy in Modern Latin America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00 – 5:15
This course focuses on political leadership and political parties in Latin America. It addresses the nature, causes, and consequences of dictatorship and democracy in the region, touching on politicians from Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and on the evolution of political parties in contemporary Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, and Uruguay.

Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity course

POSC 370J/470J
International Law and Organizations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30 – 3:45
Study of international organizations and international law as two means for regulating and coordinating nation-state behavior. History of the two techniques will be traced, covering 19th century efforts at cooperation, the League of Nations and the United Nations, regional and specialized global organization. The functions of international law in global politics will be stressed, with primary focus on the evolving role of law in dealing with global problems, e.g., war, the environment, economic cooperation, and human rights.

POSC 379/479
Introduction to Middle East Politics
Pete Moore
MW 12:45 – 2:00
This is an introductory course about Middle East Politics, in regional as well as international aspects. In this course we will explore broad social, economic, and political themes that have defined the region since the end of World War Two. Since this is an introductory course, a major goal will be to gain comparative knowledge about the region’s states and peoples. The countries that comprise the modern Middle East are quite diverse; therefore, we will only be able to focus on a few cases in depth. A second goal is to use the tools and theories social scientists employ to answer broad questions related to the region, such as: How have colonial legacies shaped political and economic development in the Middle East? How do oil, religion, and identity interact with politics? How have external powers affected the region’s political development? What do the uprisings of 2011 hold for the region’s future?

Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity course.

POSC 385/485
Doing Government Work: Public Administration in the U.S.
Joe White
MW 12:45 – 2:00 
This course focuses on how governments, particularly governments in the United States, do their work. The topic is often called “public administration,” or “implementation,” or “bureaucratic politics.” It involves what James Q. Wilson calls government “operators” such as teachers, public health doctors, agricultural extension agents, grant administrators and Seal teams. Their actions depend on their own values; conflict among political authorities, and on what is needed to perform specific tasks. We will begin by discussing the challenges of organizing to do anything, or organization theory; turn to the peculiar political context of administration in the United States; and apply these understandings to specific government activities. Students should emerge with a better understanding of why government agencies do what they do, and why they succeed or fail.

Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar. 

POSC 386/486
Making Public Policy
Joe White
MWF 9:30 – 10:20 
Most political science classes look at how people or organizations or governments pursue their interests  within a context of institutions, rules, and unequal resources.  In contrast, the field of policy analysis and  other prescriptive social science fields focus on defining “problems,” things in society that might be fixed, and “solutions,” public policies that might do some good.  When we study how public policy is made we combine these two perspectives.

Much of government and politics are about defining and responding to problems as much as they  are about fighting and compromising.  In the words of one political scientist, politicians not only  “power” but “puzzle.”  “Problems” are not obvious, neither is what can be done about them, and  deciding what problems are important enough to try to fix is a basic aspect of politics.  Compared to  other courses this one therefore will especially emphasize the politics of ideas, how different kinds of problems generate different kinds of politics, and the dynamics of idea-generation and promotion in specialized communities of experts, interests, and policy-makers: “policy communities.”  Yet power and institutions still matter!  Students should learn a different way to think about politics, the policy  process perspective; get a modest introduction to the professional world of policy analysis; and  especially get a sense of why policy initiatives succeed or fail.

POSC 390/490
Special Topics in International Relations: Al Qaeda and ISIS
Karl Kaltenthaler
Tues. 7:00 – 9:30 p.m.
This course is intended to familiarize students with the two most important Islamist violent extremist groups in the world, ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) and Al Qaeda.  The course teaches students ideology, structure, strategy, and tactics of the groups and their allies.

POSC 390
Special Topics in International Relations: The Diplomat’s Perspective and Toolkit
Bianca Menendez
MW 4:50 – 6:05 p.m.
This course is intended to give students a recent diplomat’s perspective on the contemporary craft of diplomacy and what tools are needed to practice diplomacy and other professions in the global setting. It will examine how private and public institutions and agencies collaborate in forming and executing foreign policy and promoting U.S. interests abroad. Students will gain familiarity with how to apply the tools of diplomacy in a variety of international affairs contexts.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 351
Modern Political Thought
Matthew Hodgetts
5/13/24 – 5/31/24, 10:30 – 1:00 every weekday
Coined in 1516 to describe an imagined island community that was ‘no place’, utopia has come to mean eutopia – ‘good’ (or ‘better’) place. The concept has had a rich academic and literary life, including the advent of the dystopia, a term likely first used in 1868. The ‘dystopian turn’ has dominated the genre since the late 19th century, and it is the form contemporary readers are most familiar with, particularly given its proliferation in young adult fiction starting in the mid-2000s. While the course will engage with the utopian (and dystopian) intellectual tradition, it is focused in particular on the literary genre. Its framing question is what insight into our politics can we gain by engaging with it in its fictional extremes in both ‘good’ and ‘bad’ places? To inspire our thinking, the course will engage with works of utopian and political theory paired with works of utopian and dystopian fiction in a variety of media forms.

Beginning in Spring 2024, we will be introducing 200-level courses. Capped at 18, these writing-intensive courses, open to all undergraduates, will fulfill the Communication Intensive requirement under the new UGER and SAGES University Seminars under the old GER. Political Science majors and minors may take up to two 200-level seminars. POSC credit will register automatically in SIS for students who started this academic year. All other students will need to submit the “substitution form“, which requires their advisor’s signature. Please ask Scout Weber if you need help with the process.

More information on the UGER can be found here.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Girma Parris
MW 10:35 – 11:25
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Matt Hodgetts
MW4:50 – 6:05
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events. CCounts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Kathyrn Lavelle
TR 1:00 – 2:15
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

POSC 201
Politics: Participation and Power
Joe White
MW 12:45 – 2:00
This course presents an introduction to core aspects of politics: participation (who is acting on or with whom) and power (how people or organizations influence other peoples’ or organizations’ behavior). To do this we will read and discuss classic texts as old as the Bible and classical Greece and up to the recent past. We will look at political leadership, relations among both individuals and states, and forms of political action ranging from democratic politics to war. We will focus both on the substance and the communication strategies of authors. Assignments will include both essays and one oral presentation. Counts as a Communication Intensive course and SAGES USSO. Counts as a Moral & Ethical Reasoning course.

POSC 229
Writers and Government
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00 – 5:15

POSC 319
Politics and Money
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15 – 3:05
One of the most famous definitions of politics comes from Harold Laswell, who described it as the struggle over “who gets what, when, how.” Money is at the center of most political conflict. It is a resource, a motivation, and an end unto itself. This course will examine the role of money in politics, with particular emphasis on American politics. We will discuss the role of money in elections, in the policy-making process, and what it means for representation. The course will begin with the question of the role that financial consideration play in public opinion and voting behavior. We will then address the role that money plays in election results, both in terms of its role in financing campaigns, and the relationship between the state of the economy and election results. Finally, we will discuss the policy-making process. In that context, we will address the role that interest groups play in the process, and how the quest for economic benefits for one’s constituency motivates the behavior of elected officials. We will conclude by discussing how policy changes at the systematic level occur and the influence that various groups have on policy outcomes.

POSC 322/422
Political Movements and Political Participation
Karen Beckwith
TR 10:00 – 11:15
Political Movements and Political Participation is concerned with the variety of ways citizens engage in collective activism in the United States and across national boundaries, and with the conditions under which citizens identify common concerns and join together in political movements to bring about change. The course begins with an examination of three general bodies of theory and research on political movements: resource mobilization, political opportunity structures, and cultural framing. We will also investigate frameworks of political participation for understanding the relationships among different expressions of collective activism and representation. In the context of these sometimes competing theories, we will consider 1) the conditions under which political movements are likely to emerge, as well as the circumstances in which collective political action is precluded; 2) how citizens come to recognize collective grievances and shared political identities; 3) the strategies and tactics of organized movements, and their likelihood of political success; and 4) the relationship between political movements, political parties, and the state.

POSC 328/428
Topics in Civil Liberties
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30 – 12:45

Rights of the accused as outlined in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments. Topics covered are (1) arrests, searches, and seizures, (2) the privilege against compelled self-incrimination, (3) the rights to counsel, confrontation, and jury trial, and (4) the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments. Case-specific approach but presents interplay of history, philosophy, and politics as background of each topic.

POSC 341
U.S. Political Parties and Elections
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00 – 2:15
Political Parties and Elections examines the development and history of political parties in the US, examining the impact of electoral systems and law at the national and local levels, the impact on key events in shaping the parties’ ideologies, policy preferences, and core constituencies. The course reviews key party realignments and asks whether the US is experiencing a party realignment in response to party polarization and populist challenges. It also considers candidate emergence, campaign strategies, and campaign finance in the context of the US political party system. Counts as a Disciplinary Communication course and SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 345
The Politics of Guns in the U.S.
Matthew Lacombe
TR 2:30 – 3:45
Despite high rates of both gun violence and public support for stricter rules, the U.S. has not enacted strong federal regulations on the ownership and use of firearms — a situation that has been described as the “gun control paradox.” This discussion-based seminar digs into the gun control paradox. The majority of the semester will focus on the politics of guns. We’ll cover the history of the gun control debate in the U.S. and examine the various roles that interest groups — including both the NRA and gun control advocacy organizations –play in it. We’ll think about how gun politics are connected to and impact partisan politics. We will also explore the relationship between gun politics and mass political behavior, discussing who buys guns (and why) and the social and psychological meaning they carry for many Americans. Related, we’ll ponder how guns are linked to a range of politically-relevant identities individuals hold, including those related to race and gender. Finally, we will examine gun policy, critically assessing the pros and cons of various proposed solutions to the U.S. gun violence problem. Counts as a Disciplinary Communication course and SAGES Departmental Seminar. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course.

POSC 357/457
Economic, Environmental, and Health Challenges: The Impact of Democracy
Kelly McMann
MW 3:20 – 4:35
To what extent does democracy result in positive economic, environmental, and health outcomes? Instructed by faculty from the disciplines of economics, environmental science, epidemiology, medicine, political science, and sociology, students will learn about current economic, environmental, and public health problems and various democratic and non-democratic political institutions. They will read and discuss the latest findings about how democratic and non-democratic political institutions impact economic, environmental, and public health outcomes. Topics include economic inequality, economic growth, global warming, water pollution, infectious and non-infectious diseases, and worker health and safety. Building on this foundation of knowledge, students will work together to investigate the impact of political institutions on problems of their own choosing. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Local & Global Engagement course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

POSC 359A
Political Information, Truth and Science Fiction
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40 – 12:30
This course uses science fiction novels to study the problems of information, truth and falsehood in democracy. The concepts of truth and misinformation have long been themes in science fiction, and as modern democracies grapple with the problems of changes to the media landscape, science fiction novels pose useful social scientific hypotheses, to be read in the context of existing social science research.

POSC 360/460
Revolts and Revolutions in Global Perspectives
Pete Moore
TR 8:30 – 9:45 
Revolution! Few political events conjure as much hope, passion, or fear. This class engages some classic texts unpacking the roots, processes, and outcomes of these important political events. Why do people try to change the world when the costs can be so high? Under what conditions, if any, is it right to use violence to enact political change or to deny it? Is it right for an outside power to enter another country to influence a revolutionary situation? To what extent do the means we employ to change the world determine that new world?  Students will explore these questions through the study of specific historical cases as well as current global events in Latin America, Africa, and Southwest Asia. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course.

POSC 370M/470M
Theories of Political Economy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30 – 3:45
The current era is undergoing a fundamental re-evaluation of the compromise of embedded liberalism, the postwar political consensus concerning the proper role of the state in a market economy.  This course is a seminar in political economy that will bring a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on this shift, and other broader debates in the field, by applying them to the American experience.  The seminar is roughly focused around three questions:  What have been the major debates concerning the role of the government in the economy? How were these debates resolved in the compromise of embedded liberalism, and What has been the American experience with these questions of political economy?  To answer these questions, we will read original literature to uncover the connections among politics, economics, and the world of ideas that has resulted in the political debates we confront today. Counts as a Disciplinary Communication course and a SAGES Departmental Seminar. 

POSC 371/471
Natural Resources and World Politics
Pete Moore
TR 11:30 – 12:45

This course examines a central concern of global economics and global politics: to what extent do natural resources shape political and social outcomes? The pursuit and extraction of natural resources has been associated with a broad range of issues from democracy to war. But should resources be invested with such power? Why do states compete for resources? What are the effects of these politics? This course pursues these questions in two acts. The first is a critical examination of the development of the global oil industry from where it began in Cleveland, OH in the late 19^th century through to its internationalization in the 20^th century.  Second, this course extends these histories and findings to current global debates around oil politics and oil states in Latin America, Africa, and Southwest Asia.

POSC 373/473
Politics of the European Union
Elliot Posner
TR 10:00 – 11:15
The evolution of the European Union ranks among the most significant developments in contemporary European and international history. It is an extraordinary illustration of successful cooperation among sovereign countries and a fascinating laboratory for political scientists and others interested in the building of polities, markets and societies. Yet scholars have disagreed about nearly every important aspect of its origins, nature and implications; and with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the United Kingdom’s departure (Brexit), the pandemic and its consequences, democratic backsliding (in some member states) and other crises, they are arguing about whether and how the EU can endure recent and future challenges. The seminar’s readings, discussions and written assignments will introduce students to the main debates and cover past and ongoing developments. Counts as a Disciplinary Communication course and SAGES Departmental Seminar. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

POSC 377/477
Politics of Russia
Kelly McMann
MW 4:40 – 6:05
After becoming independent in 1991, Russia faced three challenges: the creation of a sovereign state, the development of a new political system, and the restructuring of its economy. In this course we will evaluate Russia’s efforts, by examining center-periphery relations, nationalism, soft vs. hard power, democracy and authoritarianism, and socialism and market reform in the country. Learning these concepts will also help students understand other countries’ politics. Counts as a CAS Global & Cultural Diversity course. Counts as a Disciplinary Communication course and SAGES Departmental Seminar. Counts as a Human Diversity & Commonality course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

POSC 387/487
Environmental Justice
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 3:20 – 4:35 
The idea of environmental justice emerged five decades ago to bring attention to and politicize the injustices of environmental degradation. Our understanding and exploration of the idea is now global and the ways in which we theorize about and study injustices have grown in sophistication and inclusiveness. Over the course of the semester, students will explore the political theories developed about environmental justice, the experiences of actors living with and acting on environmental injustices, and more generally the scholarly literature on environmental degradation governance. These theories and cases are largely drawn from the Global South and from marginalized communities in the Global North. Topics addressed can include local commons governance, the right to development, rights of nature, indigenous rights and environmental governance, land defenders, commodities extraction, and animal and land conservation. Counts as a Disciplinary Communication course and SAGES Departmental Seminar. Counts as a Moral & Ethical Reasoning course. Counts as a Understanding Global Perspectives course.

POSC 389/489
Special Topics in American Politics and Policy: Race, Immigration, and American Political Development
Girma Parris
MW 12:45 – 2:00 

American Political Development involves employing history as an active and independent variable (through the use of concepts such as timing and sequence, path dependence, critical junctures, political orders, and intercurrence) to address fundamental questions of political science and political institutional development.  Its primary aim is the revelation of factors behind periods of continuity and moments of institutional change through focusing on political phenomena over long stretches of time as opposed to momentary snap shots of history.

Race and immigration policy have been intrinsic aspects of American political development.  Building on the contributions of Rogers Smith and Desmond King’s 2008 article Racial Orders in American Political Development and Daniel Tichenor’s 2002 book Dividing Lines: The Politics of Immigration Control in America, this class will show the symbiotic relationship between the politics of race and immigration and American Political Development.  Although scholars from the race and immigration camps have alluded to the overlap in the politics of each, this class will aim to make those interconnections more explicit.  Specifically, the class will show how historical trajectories in immigration politics and racial politics have — at times — reinforced each other and/or interacted, and how the presence or timing of particular events has had direct and indirect influence on the historical trajectories of the other.  Ultimately, both have manifested in particular moments in American political development.

POSC 390/490
Special Topics in International Relations: International Conflict Resolution
Aysegul Keskin Zeren
Tuesday 7:00 – 9:30 p.m.
This course introduces students to theoretical and practical perspectives on international conflict and its resolution. Students will explore the multiple ways in which conflict arises, the patterns it follows, and how it is expressed. They will also learn different ways in which people, communities, and societies approach conflicts. Special consideration will be given to how conflict is defined by the interplay of power, communication, culture, and systems. Students will learn conflict analysis frameworks that inform the development and implementation of conflict resolution processes and peacebuilding initiatives. They will then examine central elements and conditions that influence how conflicts can be terminated through resolution strategies and how the stakeholders in conflict can move from violence to peace. Particular attention will be given to the role third parties can play in conflict resolution processes such as negotiation, mediation, peacekeeping, peacemaking, and peacebuilding. Case studies include role of the military-industrial complex in foreign-policy making and international conflicts, chosen traumas in divided countries such as Cyprus, greed and grievance in civil wars, international mediation efforts in the Israel-Palestine conflict, peacekeeping in the DRC, peacebuilding in Liberia, and current international negotiation efforts.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Matthew Lacombe
TR 4:00 – 5:15
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Girma Parris
MWF 11:40 – 12:30
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Kelly McMann
MW 3:20 – 4:35
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events. Counts for CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement; Understanding Global Perspectives and Human Diversity and Commonality Perspectives.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Pete Moore
MW 12:45 – 2:00
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Matthew Hodgetts
TR 10:00 -11:15
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 310/410
Congress In an Era of Polarization
Joe White
MWF 9:30 – 10:20
The United States Congress may be the most thoroughly studied political institution in the world.  An extensive literature explains or disputes topics such as how members are elected and how that shapes how Congress behaves, the differences between the House and Senate, the role and workings of the committee system, congressional party organizations and leadership, conflict between party and committee as organizing principles within Congress, the range of pressures or influences upon legislators, and how legislators deal with those influences.  Over two centuries of practice and scholarship enable us to discuss sources and dynamics of change.  This course will build on that scholarship to address those topics, but will also have to confront a big question: has current hyper-partisanship made Congress so different that most of what we knew is no longer so relevant?

POSC 321/421
News Media and Politics
Girma Parris
MW 3:20 – 4:35
Analysis of the political role of the news media in American government and politics. Examines the fascinating relationship between reporters and politicians. Covers the overall structure and legal position of the media as well as the media’s impact on the American political system.

POSC 323/423
Judicial Politics
Judge Polster and Jacqueline Meese-Martinez
TR 5:30 – 6:45
Rejecting the view that judges mechanically apply the law, the study of judicial politics seeks to understand the behavior of judges as political actors with policy goals. Topics include judicial selection and socialization, judicial policy change, judicial strategy (especially the strategic interaction of judges on multi-judge panels), the interaction of courts in hierarchical judicial systems, the policy impact of judicial decisions, and the courts’ interactions with coordinate branches of government (the executive, Congress, state governments, state courts). Primary focus will be on the federal judiciary, with some discussion of state judicial systems.

POSC 327/427
Civil Liberties in America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30 – 12:45

Civil Liberties in America” centers on the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment.  Our approach will therefore be case-specific, but, by contrast to a law school course, emphasis will be given to the historical and political context in which constitutional law is shaped, as well as to the philosophical dimension of landmark cases.

We will follow the text of the Amendment, focusing first on liberty of religion with its establishment and free exercise clauses, and then move on to explore freedoms of speech and the press, of assembly and association.

POSC 347
Economic Inequality and Power in the United States
Matthew Lacombe
TR 2:30 – 3:45
In recent decades, economic inequality in the United States has soared to levels not seen for nearly a century: Workers’ wages have stagnated, while the proportion of wealth concentrated among the most well-off Americans has increased. These trends may have negative consequences for democracy in the United States, contributing to a political system that often responds to the preferences of the wealthiest Americans while frequently ignoring the views of most ordinary citizens. This course, in diverse ways, explores the political causes and consequences of rising inequality, especially with regards to who has political power. We will begin by examining the contours of inequality in the U.S. while also exploring the various ways that power manifests itself in politics. We’ll then explore the relationship between wealth and public policy outcomes in the United States, along with the ways that the very wealthiest Americans — both individually and collectively — work to advance their policy views. We’ll then explore how political and economic inequality are interrelated with race and social class. Finally, we will assess potential remedies to political and economic inequality. Counts as Disciplinary Communication Skill and Moral and Ethical Reasoning Perspective.

POSC 349/449
Political Science Research Methods
Kelly McMann
MW 4:50 – 6:05
This course examines approaches that political scientists use to understand events and processes. In doing so, the course provides students with skills helpful to completing senior projects, such as the ability to evaluate and conduct research. Through exercises and projects, students will take part in the research process from constructing a question to developing a research design to interpreting results. Students will learn and apply key techniques, including inductive and deductive reasoning, hypothesis construction, operationalization of concepts, measurements, sampling and probability, causal inference, and the logic of controls. They will produce materials common to the discipline, such as research designs. Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 359A
Political Information, Truth and Science Fiction
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15 – 3:05
This course uses science fiction novels to study the problems of information, truth and falsehood in democracy. The concepts of truth and misinformation have long been themes in science fiction, and as modern democracies grapple with the problems of changes to the media landscape, science fiction novels pose useful social scientific hypotheses, to be read in the context of existing social science research.

POSC 363/463
The Politics of Electoral Systems
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00 – 2:15
Elections involve more than a simple act of voting to express individual preferences. The rules under which countries conduct elections determine who controls the executive and how votes are converted into legislative seats. The mechanics of various electoral arrangements will be examined in detail and the consequences for the political system discussed in terms of strategies and desired outcomes on the part of contestants in terms of democratic representation. Students will research individual countries and analyze recent elections from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives. Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 369/469
Social Justice Issues in Latin America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00 – 5:15
This course explores ethnicity, gender, and religion in Latin American politics and society, and then tackles revolution, democracy, and populism. Throughout, the region’s history, geography, and culture are taken into account–for example, the European and indigenous legacies in Mexico and Perú, Bolivia, Chile, and Ecuador; the Asian presence in Perú and Brazil; the African contributions to Cuba and Brazil; female heads of state, such as Nicaragua’s Violeta Chamorro, Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Costa Rica’s Laura Chinchilla, and Brazil’s Dilma Rousseff. Liberation Theology and the current Pope’s worries about the declining number of Catholics in the region are also addressed. Today’s multiparty democracy in Mexico, Hugo Chávez’s legacy in Venezuela, and Cuba’s international humanitarian aid and ideological aims would not be possible without revolution(s) and populism. They are inevitably intertwined with ethnicity, gender, and religion. This course aims to encourage a better understanding of Latin America and its relation to the rest of the world.

POSC 376/476
United States Foreign Policy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30 – 12:45
Focus on U.S. foreign policy making with a dynamic network of executive and congressional actors and organizations; analysis of traditional and contemporary U.S. foreign policies from nuclear defense to current economic resource issues; future role of the United States in world affairs.

POSC 378/478
International Relations Theory
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30 – 3:45
This course is a seminar in international relations theory. As such, we will bring a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on issues and debates in the area of international relations by systematically studying the evolution of the world system. The seminar is roughly divided into a first half focusing on war and the political system, and a second half focusing on trade, finance and the economic system. Each section devotes particular attention to ethical problems associated with political and economic issues. This course should develop students’ ability to read and critically evaluate academic literature in the field of international relations, and enable students to produce a scholarly paper on one substantive area of the field. Counts as Disciplinary Communication Skill and SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 379/479
Introduction to Middle East Politics
Pete Moore
MW 3:20 – 4:35 
This is an introductory course about Middle East Politics, in regional as well as international aspects. In this course we will explore broad social, economic, and political themes that have defined the region since the end of World War Two. Since this is an introductory course, a major goal will be to gain comparative knowledge about the region’s states and peoples. The countries that comprise the modern Middle East are quite diverse; therefore, we will only be able to focus on a few cases in depth. A second goal is to use the tools and theories social scientists employ to answer broad questions related to the region, such as: How have colonial legacies shaped political and economic development in the Middle East? How do oil, religion, and identity interact with politics? How have external powers affected the region’s political development? What do the uprisings of 2011 hold for the region’s future?

POSC 383/483
Health Policy and Politics in the United States
Joe White
MW 12:45 – 2:00
Health care spending in the United States is about 18% of the economy, far more than in any other country.  Yet many indicators show that health outcomes are also much worse than in many other rich democracies.  Why is this so?  The most obvious explanation is that the U.S. has a dysfunctional health care system (well, dysfunctional except for those who make money off it) enabled by a dysfunctional political system.  In order to consider this puzzle, the course introduces and briefly reviews important aspects of health policy – not just access to and the cost and quality of medical care, but concerns more closely related to the field of public health.  It provides perspectives on the “policy process,” how government decisions are made.  And it relates basic aspects of American politics, such as the separation of powers, ideological battles and the organization of interests, to health policy results.

POSC 388/488
Global Politics of the Climate Crisis
Matthew Hodgetts
TR 1:00 – 2:15 
This course examines the law, politics and policy surrounding global environmental challenges such as climate change. The course aims to provide a broad overview of the key concepts, actors, debates, and issues in global environmental politics. It aims to illustrate the complexities of addressing environmental problems-from the proliferation of global institutions and international actors, to the absence of central enforcement mechanisms. We examine the causes of environmental degradation and competing views on the gravity of the problem. Using concepts from political science and economics, we investigate the challenges in getting states to act jointly to address environmental problems. We examine the actors and institutions of global environmental politics, to understand how conditions are defined as problems and responses are chosen and implemented. The course concludes by applying the tools and concepts to the case of climate change. Counts for Understanding Global Perspectives.

POSC 391/491
Special Topics in Comparative Politics: The Comparative Politics of Women’s Movements
Karen Beckwith
TR 10:00 – 11:15 
This course focuses women’s movements, where women are the major actors and leaders in political movements that place women at their center. Women’s movements are distinguished by gendered identity claims that serve as the basis for activism where women explicitly organize as women, for example, as mothers or daughters. The primacy and decision making of women— the common thread of which is the politicization of their lived experience as women—is what makes such movements women’s movements. Feminist and women’s rights movements constitute a subset of women’s movements, which can be defined as political movements where women, organized explicitly as such, are the major actors and leaders and make gendered identity claims the basis for their actions. This course investigates women’s movements around the globe, asking about the conditions of their emergence, their forms of activism, and their relationship to the state, among other concerns, and asks about the extent to which women’s concerns are universal and shared globally. The course focuses on women’s movements in Europe, Latin America and Africa. No prerequisite.

POSC 391/491
Special Topics in Comparative Politics: Reconciliation vs. Revenge
Aysegul Keskin Zeren
Tuesday 7:00 – 9:30 p.m.
This course is on one of the newest and fastest-growing areas of study called transitional justice. Transitional justice covers the ways in which societies emerging from authoritarianism and intractable civil wars, and transitioning to a peaceful post-conflict existence, address legacies of past crimes, injustices and human rights violations. How do we deal with past atrocities or conflicts and still build strong foundations for communities to live together? Is justice or forgiveness the best option? Are these the only options possible? Does truth-telling provide a guarantee that communities will be able to live together again? Is justice required for painful memories of past acts to be put to rest? Is it possible to pursue both justice and reconciliation at the same time? These are just some of the questions we will ask and attempt to answer. In this class we will examine the dilemma that many post-conflict societies face; whether to seek reconciliation with past enemies or exact revenge for their deeds. Problems related to apologies, forgiveness, reconciliation, truth commissions, amnesties, tribunals, purges and reparations will be examined. We will focus on many case studies, including South Africa, Rwanda, El Salvador, Cambodia, Sierra Leone, Germany, Iraq and the US, in its handling of issues such as Japanese internment.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 334
Comparative Political Violence
Pete Moore
5/15/23 – 6/2/13, 10:30 – 1:00 every weekday
This is a non-standard, simulation based course analyzing the causes and processes of political violence in comparative perspective. The course begins by engaging some classic philosophical work on power, conflict, and violence. It then moves to specific cases drawn at different historical periods and from across the world (North America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East). For each case, students are organized into groups representing actual political actors. Collaborative research and written assignments serve to prepare each group for an in-class simulation exercise. Simulations vary in format and goals but each comprises a group grade and an individual written project. Counts for CAS Global & Cultural Diversity Requirement.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted.

Integrated Graduate Studies (See description)

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Joseph White
MWF 10:35-11:25
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Justin Buchler
MWF 111:40 – 12:30
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Kelly McMann
TR 11:30 – 12:45
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 11:40 – 12:30 
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Pete Moore
MW 3:20 – 4:35
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 306/406
Interest Groups in the Policy Process
Joseph White
MW 3:20 – 4:35
Introduction to the institutions and processes that make up the political environment of nonprofit and other organizations in the United States, beginning with an examination of the role of civil society in a democracy and continuing with the framing of issues, role of political entrepreneurs and organized interests, elections, the legislative process and strategies for influencing it, and the roles of executive institutions and the courts.

POSC 321/421
News Media and Politics
Girma Parris
MW 12:45 – 2:00
Analysis of the political role of the news media in American government and politics. Examines the fascinating relationship between reporters and politicians. Covers the overall structure and legal position of the media as well as the media’s impact on the American political system.

POSC 322/422
Political Movements and Political Participation
Karen Beckwith
TR 10:00 – 11:25
Political Movements and Political Participation is concerned with the variety of ways citizens engage in collective activism in the United States and across national boundaries, and with the conditions under which citizens identify common concerns and join together in political movements to bring about change. The course begins with an examination of three general bodies of theory and research on political movements: resource mobilization, political opportunity structures, and cultural framing. We will also investigate frameworks of political participation for understanding the relationships among different expressions of collective activism and representation. In the context of these sometimes competing theories, we will consider 1) the conditions under which political movements are likely to emerge, as well as the circumstances in which collective political action is precluded; 2) how citizens come to recognize collective grievances and shared political identities; 3) the strategies and tactics of organized movements, and their likelihood of political success; and 4) the relationship between political movements, political parties, and the state.

POSC 323/423
Judicial Politics
Michael Wager
TR 5:30 – 6:45
Rejecting the view that judges mechanically apply the law, the study of judicial politics seeks to understand the behavior of judges as political actors with policy goals. Topics include judicial selection and socialization, judicial policy change, judicial strategy (especially the strategic interaction of judges on multi-judge panels), the interaction of courts in hierarchical judicial systems, the policy impact of judicial decisions, and the courts’ interactions with coordinate branches of government (the executive, Congress, state governments, state courts). Primary focus will be on the federal judiciary, with some discussion of state judicial systems.

POSC 326/426
Constitutions in Practical Politics
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00 – 5:15
Overview of ancient Greek and Roman constitution-making, medieval principles, emergence of modern constitutionalism, and the constitutionalist vision of the American and French Revolutions. Examination of contemporary constitutional issues and developments in countries chosen by students or suggested by instructor.

POSC 328/428 
Topics in Civil Liberties
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30 – 12:45
Rights of the accused as outlined in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments. Topics covered are (1) arrests, searches, and seizures, (2) the privilege against compelled self-incrimination, (3) the rights to counsel, confrontation, and jury trial, and (4) the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments. Case-specific approach but presents interplay of history, philosophy, and politics as background of each topic.

USSY 292G
Interrogating Bullshit
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15 – 3:05
This course examines the role of specious and misleading claims in social, political and economic life. Colloquially, “bullshit” is the label we place on egregiously false statements, but as a verb, “to bullshit,” the concept is more nuanced. It denotes indifference to truth rather than an active desire to deceive. Empirically, though, distinguishing between a “lie” and “bullshit” can be as difficult as separating either from truth. This course will examine logical fallacies, scams, conspiracy theories, and the analytic techniques necessary to distinguish truth from bullshit. The course will provide introductory instruction in probability theory, statistics and proper interpretation of statistical data, as well as research design and causal inference. Previous work in statistics is not required.

POSC 349/449
Political Science Research Methods
Kelly McMann
TR 1:00 – 2:15
This course examines approaches that political scientists use to understand events and processes. In doing so, the course provides students with skills helpful to completing senior projects, such as the ability to evaluate and conduct research. Through exercises and projects, students will take part in the research process from constructing a question to developing a research design to interpreting results. Students will learn and apply key techniques, including inductive and deductive reasoning, hypothesis construction, operationalization of concepts, measurements, sampling and probability, causal inference, and the logic of controls. They will produce materials common to the discipline, such as research designs. Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 367/467
Western European Political Systems
Girma Parris
MWF 10:35 – 11:25
Comparative analysis of sociopolitical systems of selected Western European industrial democracies, using North American systems as a point of comparison.

POSC 370A/470A
Political Economy
Elliot Posner
TR 10:00 – 11:15 

This course introduces students to theoretical and substantive issues of political economy. It emphasizes the political, social and regulatory foundations that support global economic activity.  How are cross-border economic relations governed? Who decides and by what process? Who benefits and loses? In short, who gets what they want and why? We will focus on states and global firms but will also consider other participants such as international, transnational and non-governmental organizations. Students will first become familiar with competing and complementary theoretical approaches. They will then examine issues, from the past and present, about the governance of cross-border economic relations and the intersection of states, markets and societies. Topics include the origins and demise of the post-WWII global economy; international trade and monetary relations; the many types of market economies; financial crises, the internationalization of capital and tax havens; the emergence of multinational corporations and transnational production networks; the European Union and regionalism; inequality and the global distribution of wealth; “North-South” relations; religion, race and the nature of capitalism; the populist backlash against globalization and the rise of economic nationalism; China’s ascendance, trade wars and wavering US support of the international economic order; Russia’s resurgence and the risks of interdependence; and the effects of the pandemic on the international political economy.

POSC 370C/470C
The United States and Asia
Paul Schroeder
TR 1:00 – 2:15
Survey and analysis of U.S.-Asia relations in the post-World War II period. Focus specifically is on the interaction of politics and economics in the United States’ relations with Japan, China, and Southeast Asian countries. Topics will include the role of Asia in U.S. Cold War policies, the dynamics of U.S.-Japan alliance politics, post-Cold War issues involving U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, a history and analysis of economic conflict cooperation, and an examination of the move toward Asia-Pacific “regionalism.”

POSC 370D/470D
The Politics of China
Paul Schroeder
TR 11:30 – 12:45
Now more than ever, the Chinese state and society are facing tremendous economic, social, and political challenges. This course presents an overview of current issues facing the People’s Republic, including a changing (or not) political culture, policy processes and outcomes at the national and local levels, reform and economic growth, the resultant societal changes and pressures, and the consequent challenges the Communist Party faces as demand for political reform grows. The class involves a mixture of lectures and discussion and draws on a combination of primary and secondary sources, including current news reports and films. Counts for CAS Global & Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 380A
State and War in Africa and the Middle East
Pete Moore
MW 12:45 – 2:00
of the world. Traditional approaches to war and state conflict have emphasized systemic variables, such as balance of power, military capabilities, perceptions, the security dilemma, and of course anarchy. While these concepts have generated much academic interest, their ability to explain and understand conflict in the developing world is severely limited. This is due to the basic fact that nearly all conflict in the world today is not between states but is taking place within state boundaries. What drives these conflicts? Are there common factors and patterns within the Middle East and Africa? How does sub-state conflict affect political and economic development? What are the most likely resolution strategies? Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 387/487
Environmental Justice in the Global South and Marginalized Communities in the Global North
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 4:50 – 6:05
As we begin the third decade of the 21 st century, environmental degradation and sustainability have assumed major significance as public-policy issues, both within nations and internationally. Amidst all of this, the environmental justice discourse and its relatively new companion, the climate justice discourse, have helped us to understand the political complexity and normative issues underpinning these issues. The purpose of this course is to compare different experiences and strategies for addressing environmental issues across states and peoples with an eye towards identifying the factors that impede or facilitate sustainable outcomes. The issues and case selection are drawn primarily from the Global South, broadly understood, and marginalized communities of the Global North. The purposes in doing so are to explore environmental issues that might otherwise not come to the attention of students (and professors!) studying environmental politics, to build an understanding of the environmental justice discourse, and to have this course be a companion to my Politics, Policy, and the Global Environment (POSC/ESTD 388), which is more narrowly focused on international climate politics.

POSC 389/489
Special Topics in American Politics and Policy: Political Losers
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00 – 2:15
POSC389 Political Losers shifts the usual focus of political science research, from who wins and what explains their victory, to who loses, why they were defeated, and what impact defeat has upon the losers.  The course considers the effects of losing on voters (what happens to voters whose candidates never win?), on candidates (can electoral defeat position a candidate for future success?), on political movements (what happens when a political movement loses badly?), and on nations (can defeat in war advantage the losing party?).  What does it means to lose in politics and how do losers recover from loss? No prerequisites.

POSC 390
Special Topics in International Relations: International Conflict Resolution
Aysegul Keskin Zeren
T 7:00 – 9:30 p.m.

This course introduces students to theoretical and practical perspectives on international conflict and its resolution. Students will explore the multiple ways in which conflict arises, the patterns it follows, and how it is expressed. They will also learn different ways in which people, communities, and societies approach conflict. Special consideration will be given to how conflict is defined by the interplay of power, communication, culture, and systems. Students will learn conflict analysis frameworks that inform the development and implementation of conflict resolution processes and peacebuilding initiatives. They will then examine central elements and conditions that influence how conflicts can be terminated through resolution strategies and how the stakeholders in conflict can move from violence to peace. Particular attention will be given to the role third parties can play in conflict resolution processes such as negotiation, mediation, peacekeeping, peacemaking, and peacebuilding. Case studies include the role of military-industrial complex in foreign-policy making and international conflicts, selected traumas in divided countries such as Cyprus, greed and grievance in civil wars, international mediation efforts in the Israel-Palestine conflict, peacekeeping in the DRC and Liberia, and current international negotiation efforts.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted.

Integrated Graduate Studies (See description)

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Girma Parris
MWF 10:35-11:25
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 11:40-12:30
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Jonathan Flint
MW 3:20-4:35
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 319/419
Money and Politics
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05
One of the most famous definitions of politics comes from Harold Laswell, who described it as the struggle over “who gets what, when, how.” Money is at the center of most political conflict. It is a resource, a motivation, and an end unto itself. This course will examine the role of money in politics, with particular emphasis on American politics. We will discuss the role of money in elections, in the policy-making process, and what it means for representation. The course will begin with the question of the role that financial consideration play in public opinion and voting behavior. We will then address the role that money plays in election results, both in terms of its role in financing campaigns, and the relationship between the state of the economy and election results. Finally, we will discuss the policy-making process. In that context, we will address the role that interest groups play in the process, and how the quest for economic benefits for one’s constituency motivates the behavior of elected officials. We will conclude by discussing how policy changes at the systematic level occur and the influence that various groups have on policy outcomes.

POSC 327/427
Civil Liberties in America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45
Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment: liberty of religion through the establishment and free exercise clauses, freedoms of speech and the press, of assembly and association. The “pure tolerance” view examined against subversive speech, “fighting words,” libel, and obscenity. Survey of content-neutral regulation, symbolic expression, and current efforts to limit expression (campus speech codes and the feminist anti-pornography movement).

POSC 329/429
Writers and Government
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00-5:15
Poetry, drama, and fiction enhance the understanding of political realities. This course, an interdisciplinary venture, will focus on literature and politics. At its core is the belief that this emphasis will help students become better thinkers and speakers, readers and writers, as well as better participants in civic affairs. Through literature it will broaden and deepen students’ appreciation of human nature, tyranny, democracy, freedom of conscience, and lack of empathy.

POSC 334/434
Comparative Political Violence
Karl Kaltenthaler
T 7:00-9:30pm
This course examines the causes and consequences of political violence around the world. There is a particular emphasis on the analysis of terrorism. The main questions addressed in the class are: Why do some individuals or organizations turn to political violence to achieve their goals? What types of societies breed political violence? Why do groups and individuals choose the type of political violence that they use? Under what conditions will they succeed and under what conditions will they fail with the use of political violence?

POSC 346/446
Women, Power, and Politics
Karen Beckwith
TR 10:00-11:15
Women, Power, and Politics involves a critical examination of the impact of gender on the forms and distributions of power and politics, with primary reference to the experience of women in the United States. Major concerns of the course include the political meanings and import of “sex,” “gender,” and “politics;” the relationship between women and the state; how women organize collectively to influence state policies; and how the state facilitates and constrains women’s access to and exercise of political power. The course is organized around four foci central to the study of women and politics. The first section of the course focuses on the meanings of “women,” “gender,” and “politics.” In this section, we will consider how these concepts intersect and the ways in which each may be used to deepen our understanding of the workings of governments and political systems, and of women’s relative political powerlessness. The second section of the course employs these concepts to understand the (re) emergence of the US feminist movement, its meanings, practices, and goals, and its transformation across US political history. In the third section, we turn to conventional electoral politics, focusing on women’s candidacies, their campaigns, and women’s voting behavior. In the final section of the course, we consider those general factors that might provide for increased gender equality and improved life status for women, in global, comparative perspective. Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 355/455
Modern Political Ideologies
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 3:20-4:35
Liberalism, conservatism, Marxism, democratic socialism, fascism, libertarianism, feminism, anarchism, ecologism, etc. We frequently encounter these ideologies (“isms”) and may ourselves subscribe to one or more. But what are these things and what do they really mean? This course will explore through primary texts past and present debates on ideologies, both here and around the globe. Along with reading the theories behind these ideologies, we will be exploring ideologies ‘in the wild’, as the class will culminate with a final project involving the ideological ‘diagnosis’ of a contemporary political leader.

POSC 357/457
Economic, Environmental, and Health Challenges: The Impact of Democracy
Kelly McMann
MW 12:45-2:00
To what extent does democracy result in positive economic, environmental, and health outcomes? Instructed by faculty from the disciplines of ecology, economics, epidemiology, medicine, and political science, students will learn about current economic, environmental, and public health problems and various democratic and non-democratic political institutions. They will read and discuss the latest findings about how democratic and non-democratic political institutions impact economic, environmental, and public health outcomes. Topics include economic inequality, economic growth, global warming, air pollution, infectious and chronic diseases, and worker health and safety. Building on this foundation of knowledge, students will work together to investigate the impact of political institutions on problems of their own choosing.

POSC 359A/459A
Politics, Identity and Science Fiction
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:30
This course uses science fiction novels to study the problems of information, truth and falsehood in democracy. The concepts of truth and misinformation have long been themes in science fiction, and as modern democracies grapple with the problems of changes to the media landscape, science fiction novels pose useful social scientific hypotheses, to be read in the context of existing social science research.

POSC 363/463
The Politics of Electoral Systems
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00-2:15
Elections are a signature component of democratic political systems. Elections are also bids, by those who rule, for legitimacy, opportunities at regular (if infrequent) intervals to express political preferences through means regulated by the state (through law), and by political activists, associating in political parties that help to structure the choices presented to the electorate.

Elections present these organized choices to citizens, and permit citizens, as voters, to register preferences. Through elections for government offices, voters make choices among candidates; through national initiatives and local ballot issues, voters assert legislative preferences; through national referenda, voters confirm policy choices. In this course, we will examine how elections emphasize choice and participation, considering the means of citizen involvement in elections, and how elections structure citizen inclusion (or exclusion) in the electorate (through definitions of citizenship, through election law concerning sex, age, and residency, and voter registration and other requirements).

This course takes a comparative perspective, examining elections and electoral system differences across and within established democratic political systems, and discussing how preferred outcomes – and what those preferences are – can be shaped through the electoral process.

POSC 370J/470J
International Law and Organizations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45
Study of international organizations and international law as two means for regulating and coordinating nation-state behavior. History of the two techniques will be traced, covering 19th century efforts at cooperation, the League of Nations and the United Nations, regional and specialized global organization. The functions of international law in global politics will be stressed, with primary focus on the evolving role of law in dealing with global problems, e.g., war, the environment, economic cooperation, and human rights.

POSC 372
Africa’s International Relations 1945 to the Present
Paul Zeleza
TR 10:00-11:15
This course examines the development of Africa’s international relations from World War II to the present. The period covers the decolonization era and the period after independence. It will focus on three key aspects of the continent’s international relations: intra-African relations, relations with the major powers and emerging economies, and relations with the African Diasporas. It will explore the complex, contradictory, and rapidly changing political, economic, social, cultural, strategic and geopolitical forces that shaped these relations separately and in their interconnections. Offered as AFST 372, HSTY 372, and POSC 372

POSC 376/476
U.S. Foreign Policy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45
Focus on U.S. foreign policy making with a dynamic network of executive and congressional actors and organizations; analysis of traditional and contemporary U.S. foreign policies from nuclear defense to current economic resource issues; future role of the United States in world affairs.

POSC 383/483
Health Policy and Politics in the U.S.
Joseph White
TR 10:00-11:15
Overview of the principal institutions, processes, social forces, and ideas shaping the U.S. health system. Historical, political, economic, and sociological perspectives on the health system are explored as well as the intellectual context of recent policy changes, challenges, and developments. Students will acquire a sense of how health services are financed and delivered in the U.S. They will also learn how to assess its performance compared to that of other similar countries.

POSC 384/484
Ethics and Public Policy
Jeremy Bedik-Keymer
TR 2:30-3:45
Evaluation of ethical arguments in contemporary public policymaking discourse. That is, approaches to evaluating not only the efficiency of policy (Will this policy achieve its end for the least cost?) but also the ethics of policy (Are a policy’s intended ends ethically justified or “good,” and are our means to achieve those ends moral or “just”?). Overview of political ideologies that supply U.S. political actors with their ethical or moral arguments when proposing and implementing public policy, followed by an application of these differing perspectives to selected policy areas such as welfare, euthanasia, school choice, drug laws, censorship, or others. Offered as PHIL 384, PHIL 484, POSC 384 and POSC 484.

POSC 389/489
Special Topics in American Politics and Policy: Race, Immigration, and American Political Development
Girma Parris
MW 12:45-2:00

American Political Development involves employing history as an active and independent variable (through the use of concepts such as timing and sequence, path dependence, critical junctures, political orders, and intercurrence) to address fundamental questions of political science and political institutional development.  Its primary aim is the revelation of factors behind periods of continuity and moments of institutional change through focusing on political phenomena over long stretches of time as opposed to momentary snap shots of history.

Race and immigration policy have been intrinsic aspects of American political development.  Building on the contributions of Rogers Smith and Desmond King’s 2008 article Racial Orders in American Political Development and Daniel Tichenor’s 2002 book Dividing Lines: The Politics of Immigration Control in America, this class will show the symbiotic relationship between the politics of race and immigration and American Political Development.  Although scholars from the race and immigration camps have alluded to the overlap in the politics of each, this class will aim to make those interconnections more explicit.  Specifically, the class will show how historical trajectories in immigration politics and racial politics have — at times — reinforced each other and/or interacted, and how the presence or timing of particular events has had direct and indirect influence on the historical trajectories of the other.  Ultimately, both have manifested in particular moments in American political development.

POSC 390/490
Special Topics in International Relations: Human Rights
Aysegul Keskin Zeren
MWF 9:30-10:20
Since the middle of the 20th century, the concept of human rights has evolved into a powerful moral and political notion for dealing with human suffering and injustice. In this course, we define human rights as basic rights that we are all entitled to because we are human. They include the right to life, liberty, privacy, education and equality before the law, freedom of thought, conscience, religion, opinion, expression, information, movement, nationality and peaceful assembly. You might have some ideas or even strong opinions about human rights. Perhaps you have already taken a course on the topic. Whatever your background, this course is for you. We will study the philosophical foundations of human rights and the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We will also learn about the key debates and address the prominent and contentious human rights challenges that human beings face today. Some of the issues we will discuss are contemporary slavery, human trafficking, refugees, health, humanitarian intervention, torture, the death penalty, and transitional justice.

POSC 391/491
Special Topics in Comparative Politics
Aysegul Keskin Zeren
MWF 10:35-11:25
This course is on one of the newest and fastest-growing areas of study called transitional justice. Transitional justice covers the ways in which societies emerging from authoritarianism and intractable civil wars, and transitioning to a peaceful post-conflict existence, address legacies of past crimes, injustices and human rights violations. How do we deal with past atrocities or conflicts and still build strong foundations for communities to live together? Is justice or forgiveness the best option? Are these the only options possible? Does truth-telling provide a guarantee that communities will be able to live together again? Is justice required for painful memories of past acts to be put to rest? Is it possible to pursue both justice and reconciliation at the same time? These are just some of the questions we will ask and attempt to answer. In this class we will examine the dilemma that many post-conflict societies face; whether to seek reconciliation with past enemies or exact revenge for their deeds. Problems related to apologies, forgiveness, reconciliation, truth commissions, amnesties, tribunals, purges and reparations will be examined. We will focus on many case studies, including South Africa, Rwanda, El Salvador, Cambodia, Sierra Leone, Germany, Iraq and the US, in its handling of issues such as Japanese internment.

View Course Description posters here.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted.

Integrated Graduate Studies (See description)

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Girma Parris
MWF 10:35-11:25
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Karen Beckwith
TR 10:00-11:15
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Kelly McMann
TR 1:00-2:15
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 11:40-12:30
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Elliot Posner
MW 3:20-4:35
This course is an introduction to the study of world politics. It begins with concepts and problems that shape the contemporary academic field of International Relations. Students will then become familiar with some of the major theories about war, peace, order and cooperation and apply them to historical and contemporary case studies. Topics include: World War I, World War II and the origins and end of the Cold War; the US in international politics, 9/11 and its effects; changing distributions of power, China’s rise and Pax Americana institutions; cooperation in Europe and sovereignty in Africa; international law, governance of the global economy and the distribution of wealth across borders; financial crises, shrinking middle classes and populist politicians; and terrorist networks, climate change, nuclear proliferation and cyberwarfare.

POSC 308/408
The American Presidency
Joseph White
MWF 9:30-10:20
The sources of, strategies of, and restraints on presidential leadership in the United States. Emphasis on problems of policy formation, presidential relations with Congress and executive agencies, and the electoral process.

POSC 321/421
News, Media, and Politics
Girma Parris
MW 12:45-2:00
Analysis of the political role of the news media in American government and politics. Examines the fascinating relationship between reporters and politicians. Covers the overall structure and legal position of the media as well as the media’s impact on the American political system.

POSC 325/425
American Constitutional Law
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45
This course is an introductory survey of United States constitutional law. Our approach will be case-specific, but by contrast to a law school course, special attention will be given to the historical, philosophical, and political dimensions of each landmark case. We will first consider judicial review, federalism, the commerce clause, and separation of powers, and then focus on individual rights and liberties by studying due process and equal protection. The Supreme Court’s involvement in major political controversies – the New Deal, abortion, euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide, same-sex marriage, school desegregation, affirmative action, and discrimination based on gender – will be examined.

POSC 341/441
Politics, Parties, and Elections
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00-2:15
Examination of American political parties, their activities, organization, characteristics, and functions. Candidate strategies and electoral history viewed within the context of voter orientations and predispositions, stressing linkages between citizen and party and between party and government.

POSC 349/449
Political Science Research Methods
Justin Buchler
MW 2:15-3:05
This course examines approaches that political scientists use to understand events and processes. In doing so, the course provides students with skills helpful to completing senior projects, such as the ability to evaluate and conduct research. Through exercises and projects, students will take part in the research process from constructing a question to developing a research design to interpreting results. Students will learn and apply key techniques, including inductive and deductive reasoning, hypothesis construction, operationalization of concepts, measurements, sampling and probability, causal inference, and the logic of controls. They will produce materials common to the discipline, such as research designs. This course counts as a SAGES Department Seminar.

POSC 359/459
Politics, Identity and Science Fiction
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:30
This course uses science fiction novels as texts to analyze questions of race, gender, and other aspects of political identity.  Literature, particularly science fiction, is a way to create a social science counterfactual, which is a hypothetical state in which the world is otherwise.  These novels, then, allow us to ask questions that are otherwise difficult to address.  The course will examine novels in which race, gender and other aspects of identity work differently, and through these novels, we can ask relevant questions of identity in our world.  Students will read modern science fiction novels as sources of social scientific questions, and then conduct research about the relationship between the portrayals of political and social issues in the novels, and the existing state of social science.

POSC 369/469
Social Justice Issues in Latin America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00-5:15
This course will encourage understanding Latin America’s sociopolitical landscape by focusing on key realities and dilemmas. We will first explore ethnicity, religion, and gender, and then address these factors in connection to revolution, democracy, and populism. History, geography, and culture will be considered; for example, European, Indigenous, African, and Asian roots in Central and South America and the Caribbean, and female intellectuals, artists, and leaders throughout the region. It will also touch on Liberation Theology, the growth in secularism, and Pope Francis’s worries about the declining number of Catholics in Latin America.

POSC 370N/470N
Economics and Politics in Global Government
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45
This course explores how political institutions make policy in the financial area with particular emphasis on the United States.  Using a bureaucratic politics framework, it examines money, banks and the securities industry by integrating a wide range of literature in economics and political science.  Specific objectives include familiarizing students with different approaches to the political economy of finance from different disciplines, exploring the historical evolution of finance, examining the changing relationship between public and private authority within the financial system, considering how politics operates in a crisis, and evaluating the role of international financial institutions in the global economy.  By taking this course, students will equip themselves for further research into politics and economics, as well as offer them tools to analyze future policy developments as they unfold.

POSC 378/478
International Relations Theory
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45
This course is a seminar in international relations theory. As such, we will bring a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on issues and debates in the area of international relations by systematically studying the evolution of the world system. The seminar is roughly divided into a first half focusing on war and the political system, and a second half focusing on trade, finance and the economic system. Each section devotes particular attention to ethical problems associated with political and economic issues. This course should develop students’ ability to read and critically evaluate academic literature in the field of international relations, and enable students to produce a scholarly paper on one substantive area of the field. This course is a SAGES Department Seminar.

POSC 382A
Public Policy in Child Development
Gabriella Celeste
TR 4:00-5:15
This course introduces students to issues in public policy that impact children and families. Local, state, and federal child policy will be considered, and topics will include, for example, policies related to child poverty, education, child welfare, juvenile justice, and children’s physical and mental health. Students will learn how policy is developed, how research informs policy and vice versa, and a framework for analyzing social policy.

POSC 385/485
Doing Government Work
Joseph White
MW 12:45-2:00
This course focuses on how governments, particularly governments in the United States, do their work. The topic is often called “public administration,” or “implementation,” or “bureaucratic politics.” It involves what James Q. Wilson calls government “operators” such as teachers, public health doctors, agricultural extension agents, grant administrators and Seal teams. Their actions depend on their own values; conflict among political authorities, and on what is needed to perform specific tasks. We will begin by discussing the challenges of organizing to do anything, or organization theory; turn to the peculiar political context of administration in the United States; and apply these understandings to specific government activities. Students should emerge with a better understanding of why government agencies do what they do, and why they succeed or fail. This course is a SAGES Department Seminar.

POSC 388/488
Politics, Policy, and the Global Environment
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 3:20-4:35
In 1992, the international community committed itself to “preventing dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system”, reaffirming this in Paris in 2015. But the story thus far has largely been one of insufficient action leading to a declaration in November 2019 by 11,000 scientists of a climate emergency and a rapidly shrinking window to limit warming to 1.5 degrees. Why are we here three decades after committing to address the problem? Do we have reasons to be hopeful that perhaps finally the tide is turning? This course tells the story of the politics, of the power, at the heart of the crisis. We will frame the story around the international climate change regime, but also look beyond that to alternative venues and methods of climate governance and action. Topics beyond the regime will include market-based solutions, (the) Green New Deal(s) and renewables, cities, and popular mobilization. The course may be taken for credit in either Political Science (undergraduate or graduate) or Environmental Studies, and it is purposefully designed for an interdisciplinary audience.

POSC 390/490
Special Topics: International Relations
Jonathan Flint
MW 4:00-5:15
This course will vary semester to semester and will focus on International Relations topics such as statecraft and diplomacy in contemporary world affairs; weak states and international sovereignty; and transnational soft law. A description of the topic(s) being covered will be available on the political science website each semester that the course is offered. Students may take this course more than once for up to 9 credits, when different topics are covered.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Girma Parris
MWF 2:15-3:05
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Pete Moore
MW 12:45-2:00
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45
Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 301/401
Decision-Making in American Cities
Michael Wager
TR 5:30-6:45
Localities are the primary interface with government and provide the basic psychological place identification for most Americans.  The course will explore this assertion in the context of urban America today.  How are decisions made in cities?  Who shapes these decisions and why?  What role is played by shifting demographics, race, and poverty?  What can the individual do to influence local decision-making?

POSC 306/406
Interest Groups in the Policy Process
Joseph White
MW 12:45-2:00
Introduction to the institutions and processes that make up the political environment of nonprofit and other organizations in the United States, beginning with an examination of the role of civil society in a democracy and continuing with the framing of issues, role of political entrepreneurs and organized interests, elections, the legislative process and strategies for influencing it, and the roles of executive institutions and the courts.

POSC 308/408
The American Presidency
Joseph White
MW 3:20-4:35
The sources of, strategies of, and restraints on presidential leadership in the United States. Emphasis on problems of policy formation, presidential relations with Congress and executive agencies, and the electoral process.

POSC 319/419
Politics and Money
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05
One of the most famous definitions of politics comes from Harold Laswell, who described it as the struggle over “who gets what, when, how.”  Money is at the center of most political conflict.  It is a resource, a motivation, and an end unto itself.  This course will examine the role of money in politics, with particular emphasis on American politics.  We will discuss the role of money in elections, in the policy-making process, and what it means for representation.  The course will begin with the question of the role that financial consideration play in public opinion and voting behavior.  We will then address the role that money plays in election results, both in terms of its role in financing campaigns, and the relationship between the state of the economy and election results.  Finally, we will discuss the policy-making process.  In that context, we will address the role that interest groups play in the process, and how the quest for economic benefits for one’s constituency motivates the behavior of elected officials.  We will conclude by discussing how policy changes at the systematic level occur and the influence that various groups have on policy outcomes.

POSC 325/425
American Constitutional Law
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45
An introductory survey of U.S. constitutional law.  Special attention given to the historical, philosophical, and political dimensions of landmark Supreme Court cases. Judicial review, federalism, separation of powers, due process, and equal protection.  Supreme Court’s involvement in major political controversies: the New Deal, abortion, physician-assisted suicide, school desegregation, and affirmative action.

POSC 352/452
American Political Thought
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 3:20-4:35
What is America and what does it mean to be an American? What common values unite a nation where ‘give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free’ and ‘build that wall’ are words of motivation for many? In the spirit of critical reflection, students will engage with primary accounts from across time and place that speak to these questions. Along the way, students will hear from voices at the founding, the turbulent first decades, the gilded age, and on into the present. Particular attention is given to the voices of dissent from the workers’, civil, women’s, disability, Latinx, indigenous, LGBTQ+, and student rights movements. Student assessment is based on regular writing and active participation. No prior experience with political theory or philosophy is expected or required.

POSC 363/463
Comparative Analysis of Elections and Electoral Systems
Karen Beckwith
MW 12:45-2:00
Elections involve more than a simple act of voting to express individual preferences. The rules under which worldwide elections are held determine who controls the executive and how votes are converted into legislative seats. The mechanics of various electoral arrangements will be examined in detail and the consequences for the political system discussed in terms of strategies and desired outcomes on the part of contestants. Students will research individual countries and analyze recent elections from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives, including introduction to geospatial data for mapping variations in electoral behavior.

POSC 369/469
Social Justice Issues in Latin America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00-5:15
This course explores ethnicity, gender, and religion in Latin American politics and society, and then tackles revolution, democracy, and populism. Throughout, the region’s history, geography, and culture are taken into account–for example, the European and indigenous legacies in Mexico and Perú, Bolivia, Chile, and Ecuador;  the Asian presence in Perú and Brazil; the African contributions to Cuba and Brazil; female heads of state, such as Nicaragua’s Violeta Chamorro, Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Costa Rica’s Laura Chinchilla, and Brazil’s Dilma Rousseff.  Liberation Theology and the current Pope’s worries about the declining number of Catholics in the region are also addressed. Today’s multiparty democracy in Mexico, Hugo Chávez’s legacy in Venezuela, and Cuba’s international humanitarian aid and ideological aims would not be possible without revolution(s) and populism. They are inevitably intertwined with ethnicity, gender, and religion.  This course aims to encourage a better understanding of Latin America and its relation to the rest of the world.

POSC 370C/470C
The United States and Asia
Paul Schroeder
TR 10:00-11:15
Survey and analysis of U.S.-Asia relations in the post-World War II period. Focus specifically is on the interaction of politics and economics in the United States’ relations with Japan, China, and Southeast Asian countries. Topics will include the role of Asia in U.S. Cold War policies, the dynamics of U.S.-Japan alliance politics, post-Cold War issues involving U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, a history and analysis of economic conflict cooperation, and an examination of the move toward Asia-Pacific “regionalism.”

POSC 370D/470D
The Politics of China
Paul Schroeder
TR 2:30-3:45
Now more than ever, the Chinese state and society are facing tremendous economic, social, and political challenges.  This course presents an overview of current issues facing the People’s Republic, including a changing (or not) political culture, policy processes and outcomes at the national and local levels, reform and economic growth, the resultant societal changes and pressures, and the consequent challenges the Communist Party faces as demand for political reform grows.  The class involves a mixture of lectures and discussion and draws on a combination of primary and secondary sources, including current news reports and films.

POSC 370F/470F
Financial Politics in the United States and the World
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45
This course explores how political institutions make policy in the financial area with particular emphasis on the United States.  Using a bureaucratic politics framework, it examines money, banks and the securities industry by integrating a wide range of literature in economics and political science.  Specific objectives include familiarizing students with different approaches to the political economy of finance from different disciplines, exploring the historical evolution of finance, examining the changing relationship between public and private authority within the financial system, considering how politics operates in a crisis, and evaluating the role of international financial institutions in the global economy.  By taking this course, students will equip themselves for further research into politics and economics, as well as offer them tools to analyze future policy developments as they unfold.

POSC 373/473
Politics of the European Union
Elliot Posner
TR 10:00-11:15
The evolution of the European Union ranks among the most significant developments in contemporary European and international history. Yet scholars have disagreed about nearly every important aspect of its origins, nature and implications; and now with Brexit on the horizon, they argue about whether and how the EU can endure a conjuncture of challenges and crises. The seminar’s readings, discussions and written assignments will introduce students to the main debates by addressing five questions: What is the EU? What accounts for its origins and evolution? How does the EU work and what does it do? What impact has it had on the national societies, polities and economies of Europe? And how does the EU influence relations among members, neighboring countries, global society and international politics and economics? The class will cover topical contemporary developments including Brexit, the massive inflow of refugees, the legacies of banking and sovereign debt crises, security threats from Russia and extremists, and authoritarian tendencies of some member state governments.

POSC 375/475
The International Politics of Technology
Elliot Posner
TR 1:00-2:15
Technology is deeply political.  Nowhere is this statement more evident than in the realm of international relations, where governments perceive technology as a source of power and wealth and a symbol of relative position and modernity.  Yet for centuries skeptics have questioned the economic rationale of government technology policies.  Still, to this day, countries support emulation, innovation and a host of other strategies as means for catching up with leading nations or locking in current advantages.  What lies behind such policies?  What do they accomplish?  And what are the domestic and international politics surrounding them? After reading classic arguments, including texts by Adam Smith, Alexander Hamilton and Friedrich List, students will consider 20th and 21st century debates and an array of experiments tried by poor, middle-income and rich countries.  Cases include the development of new industries; the imposition of sanctions; the dilemma of dual technologies and military spillovers; the forging of national champions; the reorganization of banks and the creation of international financial centers; the copying of regional clusters (e.g. Silicon Valley) and stock markets (e.g. the Nasdaq); and the extraterritorial extension of domestic regulation and governance techniques.  There are no prerequisites and first year students are welcome.

POSC 377/477
Politics of Russia
Kelly McMann
TR 1:00-2:15
Russia faces three problems: the creation of a sovereign state, the development of a new political system, and the restructuring of its economy. In this course we will challenge the assumption that the outcome of these three transitions will be a strong, democratic, capitalist country. We will ask whether civil war, organized crime, an immature party system, poor social services, and nomenklatura privatization bode poorly for these three transformations.

POSC/PHIL 384/484
Ethics and Public Policy
Bharat Ranganathan
TR 1:00-2:15
Evaluation of ethical arguments in contemporary public policymaking discourse.  That is, approaches to evaluating not only the efficiency of policy (Will this policy achieve its end for the least cost?) but also the ethics of policy (Are a policy’s intended ends ethically justified or “good,” and are our means to achieve those ends moral or “just”?).  Overview of political ideologies that supply U.S. political actors with their ethical or moral arguments when proposing and implementing public policy, followed by an application of these differing perspectives to selected policy areas such as welfare, euthanasia, school choice, drug laws, censorship, or others.

POSC 388/488
Politics, Policy, and the Global Environment
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 11:40-12:30
In 1992, the international community committed itself to the goal of “prevent[ing] dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system” and reaffirmed that commitment in Paris in 2015. Yet just this month, more than 11,000 scientists declared “that planet Earth is facing a climate emergency”. To understand why we are where we are, students will engage with materials documenting the ways we have tried to, are, will, and could collectively govern the climate emergency. Some of the topics students will address are international treaties, transnational municipal networks, market solutions, corporate social responsibility, global activism, geoengineering, and displaced persons. Student assessment is based on several research projects including a major self-directed term paper and active participation. No prior experience with political science is expected or required.

POSC 389/489
Special Topics in American Politics and Policy: Race, Immigration and American Political Development
Girma Parris
MWF 10:35-11:25
This course takes a historical look at the politics of race and immigration as a means of not only detailing its history but in bringing into relief the historical lineage of contemporary issues in the politics of race and the politics of immigration. The course will look at the historical origins of (but not limited to) the following contemporary issues: undocumented immigration, nativism. refugee policy, police brutality, residential segregation, mass incarceration and socioeconomic gaps that correlate with race and ethnicity. A secondary goal of the course is to show how historically the politics of race and immigration have interacted and/ or reinforced policy developments in the other. This has led to political developments in race/ immigration often reinforcing or spurring political development in the other. In addressing this secondary goal, the course will investigate the institutional and political foundations of the socio economic hierarchies that have developed along race and ethnic lines. Written assignments, class discussion and class examinations will be oriented towards the investigatory aims of these two goals.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System
Girma Parris
MWF 10:35-11:25
Joseph White
MW 3:20-4:35
This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 11:40-12:30
Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries. Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions such as: What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur? How does one country become more democratic than another? Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent? This course introduces students to some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help them better understand world events. Counts for CAS Global & Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Elliot Posner
MW 12:45-2:00
Paul Schroeder
TR 10:00-11:15
Why do countries fight wars? Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed? Does trade help developing countries or harm them? This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics. It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 310
Congress in an Era of Polarization
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05
A study of Congress in the modern era with emphasis on the development of polarization, procedural changes, conflict between the legislative and executive branches during divided government, and the current state of representation. Offered as POSC 310 and POSC 410.

POSC 321
News Media and Politics
Girma Parris
MW 12:45-2:00
Analysis of the political role of the news media in American government and politics. Examines the fascinating relationship between reporters and politicians. Covers the overall structure and legal position of the media as well as the media’s impact on the American political system. Offered as POSC 321 and POSC 421.

POSC 326
Constitutions in Practical Politics
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00-5:15
Overview of ancient Greek and Roman constitution-making, medieval principles, emergence of modern constitutionalism, and the constitutionalist vision of the American and French Revolutions. Examination of contemporary constitutional issues and developments in countries such as Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ethiopia, India, and the United States. Offered as POSC 326 and POSC 426. 

POSC 328
Topics in Civil Liberties
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45
Rights of the accused as outlined in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments.  Topics covered are (1) arrests, searches, and seizures, (2) the privilege against compelled self-incrimination, (3) the rights to counsel, confrontation, and jury trial, and (4) the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments.  Case-specific approach but presents interplay of history, philosophy, and politics as background of each topic. Offered as POSC 328 and POSC 428.

POSC 353
Political Thought and Political Change in China
Paul Schroeder
TR 2:30-3:45
“No state is forever strong or forever weak,” said Han Feizi, China’s great legalist philosopher.  He believed that as a country’s conditions changed, the laws and institutions had to change to meet these new circumstances.  China today faces new circumstances that have caused deep and broad challenges to its people.  This has prompted serious debate among intellectuals, leaders, and average citizens about the possibility for and direction of political reform.  But what might that reform look like, and how would it be conceived, if it could overcome the current barriers?  This seminar will provide a fuller understanding of China’s potential for political change by examining Chinese political though from Confucius, Mencius and Han Feizi through Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping.  These and other political philosophies have influenced China’s political culture, which will influence the form of any change. Offered as POSC 353 and POSC 453.

POSC 354
Political and Social Philosophy
Laura Hengehold
TR 4:00-5:15 
Justification of social institutions, primarily political ones. Such distinctions as that between de facto and legitimate authority; analysis of criteria for evaluation, such as social justice and equality; inquiry into theories of justification of the state; theory of democratic government and its alternatives. Readings from classical and contemporary sources. Recommended preparation: PHIL 101. Offered as PHIL 334, POSC 354, PHIL 434, and POSC 454.

POSC 355
Modern Political Ideologies
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 3:20-4:35
Substance and nature of ideological thinking in the contemporary world via a survey of political “isms”–for example, liberalism, libertarianism, conservatism, fascism, socialism, and even more recent trends such as feminism, environmentalism, etc.  Offered as POSC 355 and POSC 455.

POSC 356
Transitions to Democracy and Dictatorship
Kelly McMann
TR 1:00-2:15
Everyday life is dramatically different depending on whether one resides in a democracy or under a dictatorship.  This course examines why some countries have democracies and others dictatorships.  It explores successful, incomplete, and failed transitions to democracy.  The incomplete transitions result in hybrid regimes, stuck between democracy and dictatorship, and the outright failures result in non-democracies, such as dictatorships. The course examines examples from most regions of the world, including Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the former Soviet Union, North America, and South America.  Offered as POSC 356 and POSC 456.

POSC 360
Revolts and Revolutions in Global Perspective
Pete Moore
TR 2:30-3:45
The Arab protests of 2011 gripped the attention of the world. Young protestors succeeded in unseating some long time rulers but in other cases tense standoffs have evolved. This course takes those events as a starting point to examine the broader political history of revolts and revolutions in the global south. The first part of the course examines some of the classic social science debates about what constitutes revolution, what leads to revolution, and what the effects can be. The second part of the course analyzes specific cases in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia to understand the causes and consequences of revolt and revolution. What drives everyday persons to brave the dangers of protest? When and why do political leaders decide to resist or reform? What happens when revolts fail? What happens when they succeed? Material for the course will include classic social science narratives, revolutionary polemics, popular analyses of events since 2011, examples of social media as political action, and first person narratives. Offered as POSC 360 and POSC 460. Counts for CAS Global & Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 376
United States Foreign Policy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45
Focus on U.S. foreign policy making with a dynamic network of executive and congressional actors and organizations; analysis of traditional and contemporary U.S. foreign policies from nuclear defense to current economic resource issues; future role of the United States in world affairs. Offered as POSC 376 and POSC 476.

POSC 378
International Relations Theory
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 1:00-2:15
This course is a seminar in international relations theory. As such, we will bring a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on issues and debates in the area of international relations by systematically studying the evolution of the world system.  The seminar is roughly divided into a first half focusing on war and the political system, and a second half focusing on trade, finance and the economic system.  Each section devotes particular attention to ethical problems associated with political and economic issues.  This course should develop students’ ability to read and critically evaluate academic literature in the field of international relations, and enable students to produce a scholarly paper on one substantive area of the field. Offered as POSC 378 and POSC 478.

POSC 379
Introduction to Middle East Politics
Pete Moore
TR 10:00-11:15
This is an introductory course about Middle East Politics, in regional as well as international aspects.  In this course we will explore broad social, economic, and political themes that have defined the region since the end of World War Two.  Since this is an introductory course, a major goal will be to gain comparative knowledge about the region’s states and peoples.  The countries that comprise the modern Middle East are quite diverse; therefore, we will only be able to focus on a few cases in depth.  A second goal is to use the tools and theories social scientists employ to answer broad questions related to the region, such as: How have colonial legacies shaped political and economic development in the Middle East?  How do oil, religion, and identity interact with politics?  How have external powers affected the region’s political development?  What do the uprisings of 2011 hold for the region’s future? Offered as POSC 379 and POSC 479.

POSC 382A
Child Policy
Gabriella Celeste
MW 4:50-6:05
This course introduces students to issues in public policy that impact children and families. Local, state, and federal child policy will be considered, and topics will include, for example, policies related to child poverty, education, child welfare, juvenile justice, and children’s physical and mental health. Students will learn how policy is developed, how research informs policy and vice versa, and a framework for analyzing social policy. Recommended preparation: One social sciences course or consent. Offered as ANTH 305, CHST 301, and POSC 382A.

POSC 386
Making Public Policy
Joseph White
MWF 10:35-11:25
This course examines the notion that policy is the rational, impartial counterpart to the political arena.  We will ask: How are public policies made?  Why do some issues make it on to the agenda, while others do not?  Can we separate facts from values, or are both always contested?  We will examine how decision-making in a group introduces distinct challenges for policymaking.  The course focuses on widely applicable themes of policymaking, drawing on both domestic and international examples. Offered as POSC 386 and POSC 486.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:30

This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Pete More
MW 12:45-2:00

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45                     

Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 322/422
Political Movements and Political Participation
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00-2:15

Political Movements and Political Participation is concerned with the variety of ways citizens engage in collective activism in the United States and across national boundaries, and with the conditions under which citizens identify common concerns and join together in political movements to bring about change.  The course begins with an examination of three general bodies of theory and research on political movements: resource mobilization, political opportunity structures, and cultural framing.  We will also investigate frameworks of political participation for understanding the relationships among different expressions of collective activism and representation.  In the context of these sometimes competing theories, we will consider 1) the conditions under which political movements are likely to emerge, as well as the circumstances in which collective political action is precluded; 2) how citizens come to recognize collective grievances and shared political identities; 3) the strategies and tactics of organized movements, and their likelihood of political success; and 4) the relationship between political movements, political parties, and the state. 

POSC 323/423
Judicial Politics
Michael Wager
TR 5:30-6:45

Rejecting the view that judges mechanically apply the law, the study of judicial politics seeks to understand the behavior of judges as political actors with policy goals. Topics include judicial selection and socialization, judicial policy change, judicial strategy (especially the strategic interaction of judges on multi-judge panels), the interaction of courts in hierarchical judicial systems, the policy impact of judicial decisions, and the courts’ interactions with coordinate branches of government (the executive, Congress, state governments, state courts). Primary focus will be on the federal judiciary, with some discussion of state judicial systems.

POSC 327/427
Civil Liberties in America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45

Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment: liberty of religion through the establishment and free exercise clauses, freedoms of speech and the press, of assembly and association.  The “pure tolerance” view examined against subversive speech, “fighting words,” libel, and obscenity.  Survey of content-neutral regulation, symbolic expression, and current efforts to limit expression (campus speech codes and the feminist anti-pornography movement).

POSC 349/449
Political Science Research Methods
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05

This course examines approaches that political scientists use to understand events and processes.  In doing so, the course provides students with skills helpful to completing senior projects, such as the ability to evaluate and conduct research.  Through exercises and projects, students will take part in the research process from constructing a question to developing a research design to interpreting results.  Students will learn and apply key techniques, including inductive and deductive reasoning, hypothesis construction, operationalization of concepts, measurements, sampling and probability, causal inference, and the logic of controls.  They will produce materials common to the discipline, such as research designs.

POSC 351/451
Modern Political Thought
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 3:20-4:35

The topic of this course is global justice and international political theory. It is organized around the question of what obligations, if any, do we have that extend beyond our borders. In a globalized world it is worth challenging assumptions we make about rights and justice. To do so, the class begins by looking historically to a tradition pessimistic about international morality, realism, followed by the response from liberals and their project for perpetual peace. Following, we will examine debates on international law, human rights, development, feminism, cosmopolitanism, migrants and refugees, and the environment. In each case, we will ask in what ways these discourses challenge how we think about global interconnectedness and how such relations should be organized. Classes will be discussion-driven and students will be responsible for producing a major piece of writing. The class assumes no prior experience with political philosophy or theory.

POSC 367/467
Western European Political Systems
Girma Paris
MWF 2:15-3:05

Comparative analysis of sociopolitical systems of selected Western European industrial democracies, using North American systems as a point of comparison.

POSC 370H/470H
China’s Foreign Policy
Paul Schroeder
TR 10:00-11:15

The rise of China is evident in the country’s more forward and robust foreign policy that began in 1979.  At every turn, nations throughout the world must now consider China wherever their interests are at stake, be it Korea and Northeast Asia, Indochina and Southeast Asia, India/Pakistan and South Asia, or Afghanistan and Iran in the Middle East, not to mention the many African states that welcome Chinese investment but chafe at China’s presence.  Further, China is increasingly aggressive in international trade, a major determinant of its foreign policy.  This course describes the key factors that make up Chinese foreign policy, including its cultural tradition, policy-making institutions, the role of the military, and domestic determinants of foreign policy.  The course also examines China’s ever-changing foreign policy strategies, from an aggressive posture to charming its neighbors only to become more strident once again.  The course will also examine China’s role involving possible mercantilism, currency manipulation, and the hunt for traditional and alternative energy sources.  Throughout the course, we will pay attention to how China’s foreign policy relates to international relations theories and what strategies might be used to manage China’s growing role in international affairs.

POSC 370M/470M
Theories of Political Economy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45

This course is a SAGES departmental seminar in political economy that brings a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on the relations between market and state in the contemporary world. It focuses on three questions: What have been the major debates concerning the role of the government in the economy?  How were these debates resolved in the compromise of embedded liberalism, and What experiences have individual states had with these questions of political economy? To answer these questions, we will read original literature to uncover the connections among politics, economics, and the world of ideas that has resulted in the political debates we confront today.

POSC 374/474
Politics of Development in the Global South
Paul Schroeder
TR 2:30-3:45

This course considers several global issues that impact economic and political development.  This course examines the nature of failed or fragile states; the Washington/Beijing development models;  poverty; public health; water; the quest for energy and natural resources; education; environmental degradation; the role of the military; international trade; and the development of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). Offered as ETHS 374.

POSC 383/483
Health Policy and Politics in the United States
Joseph White
MWF 9:30-10:20

Overview of the principal institutions, processes, social forces, and ideas shaping the U.S. health system.  Historical, political, economic, and sociological perspectives on the health system are explored as well as the intellectual context of recent policy changes, challenges, and developments.  Students will acquire a sense of how health services are financed and delivered in the U.S.  They will also learn how to assess its performance compared to that of other similar countries.

POSC 385/485
Doing Government Work: Public Administration in the U.S.
Joseph White
MW 12:45-2:00

This course focuses on how governments, particularly governments in the United States, do their work.  The topic is often called “public administration,” or “implementation,” or “bureaucratic politics.”  It involves what James Q. Wilson calls government “operators” such as teachers, public health doctors, agricultural extension agents, grant administrators and Seal teams.  Their actions depend on their own values; conflict among political authorities, and on what is needed to perform specific tasks.  We will begin by discussing the challenges of organizing to do anything, or organization theory; turn to the peculiar political context of administration in the United States; and apply these understandings to specific government activities.  Students should emerge with a better understanding of why government agencies do what they do, and why they succeed or fail.

POSC 388/488
Politics, Policy, and the Global Environment
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 11:40-12:30

In 1992, the international community committed itself to the goal of preventing dangerous anthropogenic climate change and reaffirmed this in Paris in 2015. Yet in October 2018, the IPCC warned us that we are very rapidly running out of time to achieve these commitments and that doing so will require unprecedented effort. Why is it that more than a quarter century after committing to do something, we find ourselves receiving such warnings? The purpose of this course is to provide a set of answers to this question from the perspective of political science. Our focus will be on exploring the range of ways in which we attempt to collectively govern climate change, framed by the question of is there a pathway to successful climate governance? Starting with the international regime, we will go on to examine other means of collective governance, from transnational municipal networks, global activism, to corporate social responsibility, as well as our international efforts to deal with global issues surrounding geoengineering, climate conflict, and refugees. The workload for this course assumes advanced standing but no prior experience with political science. Offered as ESTD 388.

POSC 389/489
Special Topics in American Politics and Policy: Race, Immigration and American Political Development
Girma Paris
MWF 10:35-11:25

This course takes a historical look at the politics of race and immigration as a means of not only detailing its history but in brining into relief the historical lineage of contemporary issues in the politics of race and the politics of immigration. The course will look at the historical origins of (but not limited to) the following contemporary issues: undocumented immigration, nativism. refugee policy, police brutality, residential segregation, mass incarceration and socioeconomic gaps that correlate with race and ethnicity. A secondary goal of the course is to show how historically the politics of race and immigration have interacted and/ or reinforced policy developments in the other. This has led to political developments in race/ immigration often reinforcing or spurring political development in the other. In addressing this secondary goal, the course will investigate the institutional and political foundations of the socio economic hierarchies that have developed along race and ethnic lines. Written assignments, class discussion and class examinations will be oriented towards the investigatory aims of these two goals.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:30

This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Pete More
MW 12:45-2:00

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45                     

Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 322/422
Political Movements and Political Participation
Karen Beckwith
TR 1:00-2:15

Political Movements and Political Participation is concerned with the variety of ways citizens engage in collective activism in the United States and across national boundaries, and with the conditions under which citizens identify common concerns and join together in political movements to bring about change.  The course begins with an examination of three general bodies of theory and research on political movements: resource mobilization, political opportunity structures, and cultural framing.  We will also investigate frameworks of political participation for understanding the relationships among different expressions of collective activism and representation.  In the context of these sometimes competing theories, we will consider 1) the conditions under which political movements are likely to emerge, as well as the circumstances in which collective political action is precluded; 2) how citizens come to recognize collective grievances and shared political identities; 3) the strategies and tactics of organized movements, and their likelihood of political success; and 4) the relationship between political movements, political parties, and the state. 

POSC 323/423
Judicial Politics
Michael Wager
TR 5:30-6:45

Rejecting the view that judges mechanically apply the law, the study of judicial politics seeks to understand the behavior of judges as political actors with policy goals. Topics include judicial selection and socialization, judicial policy change, judicial strategy (especially the strategic interaction of judges on multi-judge panels), the interaction of courts in hierarchical judicial systems, the policy impact of judicial decisions, and the courts’ interactions with coordinate branches of government (the executive, Congress, state governments, state courts). Primary focus will be on the federal judiciary, with some discussion of state judicial systems.

POSC 327/427
Civil Liberties in America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45

Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment: liberty of religion through the establishment and free exercise clauses, freedoms of speech and the press, of assembly and association.  The “pure tolerance” view examined against subversive speech, “fighting words,” libel, and obscenity.  Survey of content-neutral regulation, symbolic expression, and current efforts to limit expression (campus speech codes and the feminist anti-pornography movement).

POSC 349/449
Political Science Research Methods
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05

This course examines approaches that political scientists use to understand events and processes.  In doing so, the course provides students with skills helpful to completing senior projects, such as the ability to evaluate and conduct research.  Through exercises and projects, students will take part in the research process from constructing a question to developing a research design to interpreting results.  Students will learn and apply key techniques, including inductive and deductive reasoning, hypothesis construction, operationalization of concepts, measurements, sampling and probability, causal inference, and the logic of controls.  They will produce materials common to the discipline, such as research designs.

POSC 351/451
Modern Political Thought
Matthew Hodgetts
MW 3:20-4:35

The topic of this course is global justice and international political theory. It is organized around the question of what obligations, if any, do we have that extend beyond our borders. In a globalized world it is worth challenging assumptions we make about rights and justice. To do so, the class begins by looking historically to a tradition pessimistic about international morality, realism, followed by the response from liberals and their project for perpetual peace. Following, we will examine debates on international law, human rights, development, feminism, cosmopolitanism, migrants and refugees, and the environment. In each case, we will ask in what ways these discourses challenge how we think about global interconnectedness and how such relations should be organized. Classes will be discussion-driven and students will be responsible for producing a major piece of writing. The class assumes no prior experience with political philosophy or theory.

POSC 367/467
Western European Political Systems
Girma Paris
MWF 2:15-3:05

Comparative analysis of sociopolitical systems of selected Western European industrial democracies, using North American systems as a point of comparison.

POSC 370H/470H
China’s Foreign Policy
Paul Schroeder
TR 10:00-11:15

The rise of China is evident in the country’s more forward and robust foreign policy that began in 1979.  At every turn, nations throughout the world must now consider China wherever their interests are at stake, be it Korea and Northeast Asia, Indochina and Southeast Asia, India/Pakistan and South Asia, or Afghanistan and Iran in the Middle East, not to mention the many African states that welcome Chinese investment but chafe at China’s presence.  Further, China is increasingly aggressive in international trade, a major determinant of its foreign policy.  This course describes the key factors that make up Chinese foreign policy, including its cultural tradition, policy-making institutions, the role of the military, and domestic determinants of foreign policy.  The course also examines China’s ever-changing foreign policy strategies, from an aggressive posture to charming its neighbors only to become more strident once again.  The course will also examine China’s role involving possible mercantilism, currency manipulation, and the hunt for traditional and alternative energy sources.  Throughout the course, we will pay attention to how China’s foreign policy relates to international relations theories and what strategies might be used to manage China’s growing role in international affairs.

POSC 370M/470M
Theories of Political Economy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45

This course is a SAGES departmental seminar in political economy that brings a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on the relations between market and state in the contemporary world. It focuses on three questions: What have been the major debates concerning the role of the government in the economy?  How were these debates resolved in the compromise of embedded liberalism, and What experiences have individual states had with these questions of political economy? To answer these questions, we will read original literature to uncover the connections among politics, economics, and the world of ideas that has resulted in the political debates we confront today.

POSC 374/474
Politics of Development in the Global South
Paul Schroeder
TR 2:30-3:45

This course considers several global issues that impact economic and political development.  This course examines the nature of failed or fragile states; the Washington/Beijing development models;  poverty; public health; water; the quest for energy and natural resources; education; environmental degradation; the role of the military; international trade; and the development of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). Offered as ETHS 374.

POSC 383/483
Health Policy and Politics in the United States
Joseph White
MWF 9:30-10:20

Overview of the principal institutions, processes, social forces, and ideas shaping the U.S. health system.  Historical, political, economic, and sociological perspectives on the health system are explored as well as the intellectual context of recent policy changes, challenges, and developments.  Students will acquire a sense of how health services are financed and delivered in the U.S.  They will also learn how to assess its performance compared to that of other similar countries.

POSC 385/485
Doing Government Work: Public Administration in the U.S.
Joseph White
MW 12:45-2:00

This course focuses on how governments, particularly governments in the United States, do their work.  The topic is often called “public administration,” or “implementation,” or “bureaucratic politics.”  It involves what James Q. Wilson calls government “operators” such as teachers, public health doctors, agricultural extension agents, grant administrators and Seal teams.  Their actions depend on their own values; conflict among political authorities, and on what is needed to perform specific tasks.  We will begin by discussing the challenges of organizing to do anything, or organization theory; turn to the peculiar political context of administration in the United States; and apply these understandings to specific government activities.  Students should emerge with a better understanding of why government agencies do what they do, and why they succeed or fail.

POSC 388/488
Politics, Policy, and the Global Environment
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 11:40-12:30

In 1992, the international community committed itself to the goal of preventing dangerous anthropogenic climate change and reaffirmed this in Paris in 2015. Yet in October 2018, the IPCC warned us that we are very rapidly running out of time to achieve these commitments and that doing so will require unprecedented effort. Why is it that more than a quarter century after committing to do something, we find ourselves receiving such warnings? The purpose of this course is to provide a set of answers to this question from the perspective of political science. Our focus will be on exploring the range of ways in which we attempt to collectively govern climate change, framed by the question of is there a pathway to successful climate governance? Starting with the international regime, we will go on to examine other means of collective governance, from transnational municipal networks, global activism, to corporate social responsibility, as well as our international efforts to deal with global issues surrounding geoengineering, climate conflict, and refugees. The workload for this course assumes advanced standing but no prior experience with political science. Offered as ESTD 388.

POSC 389/489
Special Topics in American Politics and Policy: Race, Immigration and American Political Development
Girma Paris
MWF 10:35-11:25

This course takes a historical look at the politics of race and immigration as a means of not only detailing its history but in brining into relief the historical lineage of contemporary issues in the politics of race and the politics of immigration. The course will look at the historical origins of (but not limited to) the following contemporary issues: undocumented immigration, nativism. refugee policy, police brutality, residential segregation, mass incarceration and socioeconomic gaps that correlate with race and ethnicity. A secondary goal of the course is to show how historically the politics of race and immigration have interacted and/ or reinforced policy developments in the other. This has led to political developments in race/ immigration often reinforcing or spurring political development in the other. In addressing this secondary goal, the course will investigate the institutional and political foundations of the socio economic hierarchies that have developed along race and ethnic lines. Written assignments, class discussion and class examinations will be oriented towards the investigatory aims of these two goals.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Girma Parris
MWF 10:35-11:25

This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 9:30-10:20

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Matthew Hodgetts
MWF 3:20-4:10
Paul Schroeder
MWF 11:40-12:30                                

Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 308/408
The American Presidency
Joseph White
TR 1:00-2:15

Introduction to the institutions and processes that make up the political environment of nonprofit and other organizations in the United States, beginning with an examination of the role of civil society in a democracy and continuing with the framing of issues, role of political entrepreneurs and organized interests, elections, the legislative process and strategies for influencing it, and the roles of executive institutions and the courts.

POSC 321/421
News Media and Politics
Girma Parris
MWF 2:15-3:05

This course traces the evolution of the media from an appendage of the American Party system to the so called fourth branch of government and how its influence on the political system has changed with its maturation. A central theme of the course will be an investigation of the changing normative conceptions concerning the role of the media in a popular democracy: When did fake news become objective journalism? Is the news now fake or objective? And why does this matter? These are some of the issues that students will address in class and in written assignment/ class examination.

POSC 325/425
American Constitutional Law
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45

An introductory survey of U.S. constitutional law.  Special attention given to the historical, philosophical, and political dimensions of landmark Supreme Court cases. Judicial review, federalism, separation of powers, due process, and equal protection.  Supreme Court’s involvement in major political controversies: the New Deal, abortion, physician-assisted suicide, school desegregation, and affirmative action.

POSC 341/441
Elections, Voter, and Political Parties
Karen Beckwith
MW 12:45-2:00

Rights of the accused as outlined in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments.  Topics covered are (1) arrests, searches, and seizures, (2) the privilege against compelled self-incrimination, (3) the rights to counsel, confrontation, and jury trial, and (4) the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments.  Case-specific approach but presents interplay of history, philosophy, and politics as background of each topic.

POSC 354/454
Political and Social Philosophy
Laura Hengehold
TR 4:00-5:15

Justification of social institutions, primarily political ones. Such distinctions as that between de facto and legitimate authority; analysis of criteria for evaluation, such as social justice and equality; inquiry into theories of justification of the state; theory of democratic government and its alternatives. Readings from classical and contemporary sources. Recommended preparation: PHIL 101.

POSC 364/464
Dictatorship and Democracy in Modern Latin America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 5:30-6:45

Examination of political leadership in 20th-century Latin America, exploring the nature, causes, and consequences of dictatorship and democracy in the region, moving from the collapse of oligarchic rule and the emergence of populism in the 1930s and 1940s, to the end of democracy and establishment of military regimes in the 1960s and 1970s, and ultimately to the contemporary processes of democratization and economic liberalization.

POSC 370D/470D
The Politics of China
Paul Schroeder
MWF 2:15-3:05

Now more than ever, the Chinese state and society are facing tremendous economic, social, and political challenges.  This course presents an overview of current issues facing the People’s Republic, including a changing (or not) political culture, policy processes and outcomes at the national and local levels, reform and economic growth, the resultant societal changes and pressures, and the consequent challenges the Communist Party faces as demand for political reform grows.  The class involves a mixture of lectures and discussion and draws on a combination of primary and secondary sources, including current news reports and films. Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 370F/470F
Financial Politics in the United States and the World
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45

This course explores how political institutions make policy in the financial area with particular emphasis on the United States.  Using a bureaucratic politics framework, it examines money, banks and the securities industry by integrating a wide range of literature in economics and political science.  Specific objectives include familiarizing students with different approaches to the political economy of finance from different disciplines, exploring the historical evolution of finance, examining the changing relationship between public and private authority within the financial system, considering how politics operates in a crisis, and evaluating the role of international financial institutions in the global economy.  By taking this course, students will equip themselves for further research into politics and economics, as well as offer them tools to analyze future policy developments as they unfold.

POSC 370J/470J
International Law and Organizations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45

Study of international organizations and international law as two means for regulating and coordinating nation-state behavior. History of the two techniques will be traced, covering 19th century efforts at cooperation, the League of Nations and the United Nations, regional and specialized global organization. The functions of international law in global politics will be stressed, with primary focus on the evolving role of law in dealing with global problems, e.g., war, the environment, economic cooperation, and human rights.

POSC 379/479
Introduction to Middle East Politics
Pete Moore
TR 10:00-11:15

This is an introductory course about Middle East Politics, in regional as well as international aspects.  In this course we will explore broad social, economic, and political themes that have defined the region since the end of World War Two.  Since this is an introductory course, a major goal will be to gain comparative knowledge about the region’s states and peoples.  The countries that comprise the modern Middle East are quite diverse; therefore, we will only be able to focus on a few cases in depth.  A second goal is to use the tools and theories social scientists employ to answer broad questions related to the region, such as: How have colonial legacies shaped political and economic development in the Middle East?  How do oil, religion, and identity interact with politics?  How have external powers affected the region’s political development?  What do the uprisings of 2011 hold for the region’s future? Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 380A
State and War in Africa and the Middle East
Pete Moore
TR 1:00-2:15

The Middle East, North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa remain the most volatile and conflict prone regions of the world.  Traditional approaches to war and state conflict have emphasized systemic variables, such as balance of power, military capabilities, perceptions, the security dilemma, and of course anarchy.  While these concepts have generated much academic interest, their ability to explain and understand conflict in the developing world is severely limited.  This is due to the basic fact that nearly all conflict in the world today is not between states but is taking place within state boundaries.  What drives these conflicts?  Are there common factors and patterns within the Middle East and Africa?  How does sub-state conflict affect political and economic development?  What are the most likely resolution strategies?  Recommended preparation: POSC 379. Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 382A
Child Policy
Gabriella Celeste
MW 5:30-6:45

This course introduces students to issues in public policy that impact children and families. Local, state, and federal child policy will be considered, and topics will include, for example, policies related to child poverty, education, child welfare, juvenile justice, and children’s physical and mental health. Students will learn how policy is developed, how research informs policy and vice versa, and a framework for analyzing social policy. Recommended preparation: One social sciences course or consent.
Also offered as ANTH 305 and CHST 301.

POSC 395
Special Projects

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Study of a topic of particular interest, or an approved internship. The student must submit to the departmental office a project prospectus form, approved and signed by the faculty supervisor, no later than the end of the second week of classes. The prospectus must outline the goals of the project and the research methodology to be used and is part of the basis for grading. The prospectus form is available from the departmental office of from the department’s Web page.

POSC 396
Senior Project SAGES Capstone
Times as Arranged

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Capstone experience for political science majors or senior POSC minors as part of the SAGES program, providing opportunity to do an in-depth paper on a topic of particular interest to them. Students must obtain approval from a faculty project advisor and list that advisor on the registration form. The advisor must sign and student submit to the department a prospectus including goals, schedule, and research methodology. This paper should demonstrate, and ideally even extend, the skills and expertise developed over the course of study in the department. Upon completion of the capstone, students will be expected to present their work in a public forum. Recommended preparation: Junior or Senior political science major or senior political science minor and departmental prospectus form. Counts as SAGES Senior Capstone.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Girma Parris
MWF 2:15-3:05

This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Yu Jung (Julia) Lee
TR 10:00-11:15

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45                               

Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 310/410
Congress in an Era of Polarization
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05

A study of Congress in the modern era with emphasis on the development of polarization, procedural changes, conflict between the legislative and executive branches during divided government, and the current state of representation.

POSC 319
Politics and Money
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:20

An experimental version of POSC319, built around the use of modern science fiction literature to explore topics in money, politics and power.  Readings will consist of novels by authors including John Scalzi, Neal Stephenson, Charles Stross and others, which address critical concepts about money, politics and power.  Readings will be accompanied by lectures on the underlying social scientific concepts, seminar-based discussion of how these concepts work within the novels and how they relate to modern politics, and student presentations in which students discuss articles from political science journals on topics related to those concepts.

POSC 348/448
History of Modern Political and Social Thought
Miriam Levin
M 3:20-5:50

This course explores the responses of philosophers, economic theorists, culture critics, public policy makers and urban planners to changes in western society wrought by industrialization by focusing on their concerns with governance, social reform and control, production and consumption, alienation, the deteriorating environment, and the possibility of progress itself. Cross-listed as HSTY 348, HSTY 448.

POSC 353/453
Political Thought and Political Change in China
Paul Schroeder
MWF 11:40-12:30

“No state is forever strong or forever weak,” said Han Feizi, China’s great legalist philosopher. He believed that as a country’s conditions changed, the laws and institutions had to change to meet these new circumstances. China today faces new circumstances that have caused deep and broad challenges to its people. This has prompted serious debate among intellectuals, leaders, and average citizens about the possibility for and direction of political reform. But what might that reform look like, and how would it be conceived, if it could overcome the current barriers? This seminar will provide a fuller understanding of China’s potential for political change by examining Chinese political thought from Confucius, Mencius and Han Feizi through Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping. These and other political philosophies have influenced China’s political culture, which will influence the form of any change.

POSC 360/460
Revolts and Revolutions in Global Perspective
Pete Moore
MW 3:20-4:35

The Arab protests of 2011 gripped the attention of the world. Young protestors succeeded in unseating some long time rulers but in other cases tense standoffs have evolved. This course takes those events as a starting point to examine the broader political history of revolts and revolutions in the global south. The first part of the course examines some of the classic social science debates about what constitutes revolution, what leads to revolution, and what the effects can be. The second part of the course analyzes specific cases in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia to understand the causes and consequences of revolt and revolution. What drives everyday persons to brave the dangers of protest? When and why do political leaders decide to resist or reform? What happens when revolts fail? What happens when they succeed? Material for the course will include classic social science narratives, revolutionary polemics, popular analyses of events since 2011, examples of social media as political action, and first person narratives. Counts for CAS Global & Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 363/463
Comparative Analysis of Elections and Electoral Systems
Karen Beckwith
MW 12:45-2:00

Elections involve more than a simple act of voting to express individual preferences. The rules under which worldwide elections are held determine who controls the executive and how votes are converted into legislative seats. The mechanics of various electoral arrangements will be examined in detail and the consequences for the political system discussed in terms of strategies and desired outcomes on the part of contestants. Students will research individual countries and analyze recent elections from both qualitative and quantitative perspectives, including introduction to geospatial data for mapping variations in electoral behavior. Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 370A/470A
Political Economy
Elliot Posner
TR 10:00-11:15

Focus on debates concerning the proper relationship between political and economic systems, including conservative, liberal, and radical perspectives. The politics of international economics and the economics of international politics receive separate attention. The course concludes with study of “modern” political economy and the application of economic theory to the study of political systems.

POSC 370C/470C
The United States and Asia
Paul Schroeder
MWF 10:35-11:25

Survey and analysis of U.S.-Asia relations in the post-World War II period. Focus specifically is on the interaction of politics and economics in the United States’ relations with Japan, China, and Southeast Asian countries. Topics will include the role of Asia in U.S. Cold War policies, the dynamics of U.S.-Japan alliance politics, post-Cold War issues involving U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, a history and analysis of economic conflict cooperation, and an examination of the move toward Asia-Pacific “regionalism.”

POSC 371/471
Natural Resources and World Politics
Pete Moore
MW 12:45-2:00

Examination of the political causes and ramifications of the uneven distribution of the valuable natural resources for modern industrial societies. Strategic and military issues and the exploitation of the sea bed. Examination in some detail of selected commodity issues, including petroleum, copper and uranium.

POSC 373/473
Politics of the European Union
Elliot Posner
TR 2:30-3:45

Study of the origins, operations, and prospects for the European Union. This can include the historical context for the effort to restrict national rivalries (which fueled two world wars) and create common interests; the diplomatic challenges in finding common ground; the tasks and processes of governance within the EU, including its governing institutions, enforcement of terms for European Monetary Union and the operations of its bureaucracies; the social pressures that create policy challenges (such as agriculture policy and immigration); broad tensions within the enterprise (e.g., “broadening” vs. “deepening”), and the EU’s potential place in international politics, especially the efforts to create a common foreign and security policy and the possible implications of the Euro for international political economy.

POSC 374/474
Politics and Development in the Global South
Yu Jung (Julia) Lee

Exploration of the post-World War II emergence of the Global South nations of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Eastern Europe arena. Cross-listed as ETHS 374.

POSC 377/477
Politics of Russia
Kelly McMann
TR11:30-12:45

Russia faces three problems: the creation of a sovereign state, the development of a new political system, and the restructuring of its economy. In this course we will challenge the assumption that the outcome of these three transitions will be a strong, democratic, capitalist country. We will ask whether civil war, organized crime, an immature party system, poor social services, and nomenklatura privatization bode poorly for these three transformations. Counts for CAS Global & Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 378/478
International Relations Theory
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45

This course is a seminar in international relations theory. As such, we will bring a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on issues and debates in the area of international relations by systematically studying the evolution of the world system. The seminar is roughly divided into a first half focusing on war and the political system, and a second half focusing on trade, finance and the economic system. Each section devotes particular attention to ethical problems associated with political and economic issues. This course should develop students’ ability to read and critically evaluate academic literature in the field of international relations, and enable students to produce a scholarly paper on one substantive area of the field. Counts as SAGES Departmental Seminar.

POSC 395
Special Projects

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Study of a topic of particular interest, or an approved internship. The student must submit to the departmental office a project prospectus form, approved and signed by the faculty supervisor, no later than the end of the second week of classes. The prospectus must outline the goals of the project and the research methodology to be used and is part of the basis for grading. The prospectus form is available from the departmental office of from the department’s Web page.

POSC 396
Senior Project SAGES Capstone
Times as Arranged

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Capstone experience for political science majors or senior POSC minors as part of the SAGES program, providing opportunity to do an in-depth paper on a topic of particular interest to them. Students must obtain approval from a faculty project advisor and list that advisor on the registration form. The advisor must sign and student submit to the department a prospectus including goals, schedule, and research methodology. This paper should demonstrate, and ideally even extend, the skills and expertise developed over the course of study in the department. Upon completion of the capstone, students will be expected to present their work in a public forum. Recommended preparation: Junior or Senior political science major or senior political science minor and departmental prospectus form. Counts as SAGES Senior Capstone.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Karen Beckwith
MWF 10:35-11:25

This course provides an overview of governmental institutions and processes in the United States, the political forces that combine to shape them, and how we might best understand the system that government and politics create.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Pete Moore
TR 2:30-3:45

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Elliot Posner
TR 10:00-11:15
Paul Schroeder
MWF 11:40-12:30                                

Why do countries fight wars?  Can nuclear proliferation be curtailed?  Does trade help developing countries or harm them?  This survey of the field of International Relations examines “big questions” in world politics.  It introduces themes including the rise, development and changes of the nation-state system; patterns and causes of international conflict and cooperation; international law, organizations, and transnational institutions; the roles of both state and non-state actors in international politics; and the methods used to understand this field.

POSC 306/406
Interest Groups in the Policy Process
Joseph White
MW 12:45-2:00

Introduction to the institutions and processes that make up the political environment of nonprofit and other organizations in the United States, beginning with an examination of the role of civil society in a democracy and continuing with the framing of issues, role of political entrepreneurs and organized interests, elections, the legislative process and strategies for influencing it, and the roles of executive institutions and the courts.

POSC 321/421
News Media and Politics
Girma Parris
MWF 9:30-10:20

This course traces the evolution of the media from an appendage of the American Party system to the so called fourth branch of government and how its influence on the political system has changed with its maturation. A central theme of the course will be an investigation of the changing normative conceptions concerning the role of the media in a popular democracy: When did fake news become objective journalism? Is the news now fake or objective? And why does this matter? These are some of the issues that students will address in class and in written assignment/ class examination.

POSC 326/426
Constitutions in Practical Politics
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00-5:15

Overview of ancient Greek and Roman constitution-making, medieval principles, emergence of modern constitutionalism, and the constitutionalist vision of the American and French Revolutions. Examination of contemporary constitutional issues and developments in countries such as Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ethiopia, India, and the United States. Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 328/428
Topics in Civil Liberties
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45

Rights of the accused as outlined in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments.  Topics covered are (1) arrests, searches, and seizures, (2) the privilege against compelled self-incrimination, (3) the rights to counsel, confrontation, and jury trial, and (4) the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments.  Case-specific approach but presents interplay of history, philosophy, and politics as background of each topic.

POSC 349/449
Research Methods
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:30

This course examines approaches that political scientists use to understand events and processes.  In doing so, the course provides students with skills helpful to completing senior projects, such as the ability to evaluate and conduct research.  Through exercises and projects, students will take part in the research process from constructing a question to developing a research design to interpreting results.  Students will learn and apply key techniques, including inductive and deductive reasoning, hypothesis construction, operationalization of concepts, measurements, sampling and probability, causal inference, and the logic of controls.  They will produce materials common to the discipline, such as research designs. SAGES departmental seminar.

POSC 370H/470H
China’s Foreign Policy
Paul Schroeder
MW 12:45-2:00

The rise of China is evident in the country’s more forward and robust foreign policy that began in 1979.  At every turn, nations throughout the world must now consider China wherever their interests are at stake, be it Korea and Northeast Asia, Indochina and Southeast Asia, India/Pakistan and South Asia, or Afghanistan and Iran in the Middle East, not to mention the many African states that welcome Chinese investment but chafe at China’s presence.  Further, China is increasingly aggressive in international trade, a major determinant of its foreign policy.  This course describes the key factors that make up Chinese foreign policy, including its cultural tradition, policy-making institutions, the role of the military, and domestic determinants of foreign policy.  The course also examines China’s ever-changing foreign policy strategies, from an aggressive posture to charming its neighbors only to become more strident once again.  The course will also examine China’s role involving possible mercantilism, currency manipulation, and the hunt for traditional and alternative energy sources.  Throughout the course, we will pay attention to how China’s foreign policy relates to international relations theories and what strategies might be used to manage China’s growing role in international affairs.

POSC 370M/470M
Theories of Political Economy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 4:00-5:15

This course is a SAGES departmental seminar in political economy that brings a wide range of theoretical perspectives to bear on the relations between market and state in the contemporary world. It focuses on three questions: What have been the major debates concerning the role of the government in the economy?  How were these debates resolved in the compromise of embedded liberalism, and What experiences have individual states had with these questions of political economy? To answer these questions, we will read original literature to uncover the connections among politics, economics, and the world of ideas that has resulted in the political debates we confront today. . SAGES departmental seminar.

POSC 375/475
The International Politics of Technology
Elliot Posner
TR 2:30-3:45

Technology is deeply political.  Nowhere is this statement more evident than in the realm of international relations, where governments perceive technology as a source of power and wealth and a symbol of relative position and modernity.  Yet for centuries skeptics have questioned the economic rationale of government technology policies.  Still, to this day, countries support emulation, innovation and a host of other strategies as means for catching up with leading nations or locking in current advantages.  What lies behind such policies?  What do they accomplish?  And what are the domestic and international politics surrounding them? After reading classic arguments, including texts by Adam Smith, Alexander Hamilton and Friedrich List, students will consider 20th and 21st century debates and an array of experiments tried by poor, middle-income and rich countries.  Cases include the development of new industries; the imposition of sanctions; the dilemma of dual technologies and military spillovers; the forging of national champions; the reorganization of banks and the creation of international financial centers; the copying of regional clusters (e.g. Silicon Valley) and stock markets (e.g. the Nasdaq); and the extraterritorial extension of domestic regulation and governance techniques.  There are no prerequisites and first year students are welcome. SAGES departmental seminar.

POSC 376/476
United States Foreign Policy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45

Focus on U.S. foreign policy making with a dynamic network of executive and congressional actors and organizations; analysis of traditional and contemporary U.S. foreign policies from nuclear defense to current economic resource issues; future role of the United States in world affairs.

POSC 379/479
Introduction to Middle East Politics
Pete Moore
TR 10:00-11:15

This is an introductory course about Middle East Politics, in regional as well as international aspects.  In this course we will explore broad social, economic, and political themes that have defined the region since the end of World War Two.  Since this is an introductory course, a major goal will be to gain comparative knowledge about the region’s states and peoples.  The countries that comprise the modern Middle East are quite diverse; therefore, we will only be able to focus on a few cases in depth.  A second goal is to use the tools and theories social scientists employ to answer broad questions related to the region, such as: How have colonial legacies shaped political and economic development in the Middle East?  How do oil, religion, and identity interact with politics?  How have external powers affected the region’s political development?  What do the uprisings of 2011 hold for the region’s future? Counts as CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 382A
Child Policy
Gabriella Celeste
MW 3:20-4:35

This course introduces students to issues in public policy that impact children and families. Local, state, and federal child policy will be considered, and topics will include, for example, policies related to child poverty, education, child welfare, juvenile justice, and children’s physical and mental health. Students will learn how policy is developed, how research informs policy and vice versa, and a framework for analyzing social policy. Recommended preparation: One social sciences course or consent. Cross-listed as ANTH 305 and CHST 301.

POSC 383/483
Health Policy and Politics in the United States
Joseph White
MWF 3:20-4:10

Overview of the principal institutions, processes, social forces, and ideas shaping the U.S. health system.  Historical, political, economic, and sociological perspectives on the health system are explored as well as the intellectual context of recent policy changes, challenges, and developments.  Students will acquire a sense of how health services are financed and delivered in the U.S.  They will also learn how to assess its performance compared to that of other similar countries.

POSC 384/484
Ethics and Public Policy
Jeremy Bendik-Keymer
MW 3:20-4:35

Evaluation of ethical arguments in contemporary public policymaking discourse.  That is, approaches to evaluating not only the efficiency of policy (Will this policy achieve its end for the least cost?) but also the ethics of policy (Are a policy’s intended ends ethically justified or “good,” and are our means to achieve those ends moral or “just”?).  Overview of political ideologies that supply U.S. political actors with their ethical or moral arguments when proposing and implementing public policy, followed by an application of these differing perspectives to selected policy areas such as welfare, euthanasia, school choice, drug laws, censorship, or others. Cross-listed as PHIL 384/484.

POSC 389
Special Topics in American Politics and Policy: Race, Immigration and American Political Development 
Girma Parris
MWF 2:15-3:05

This course takes a historical look at the politics of race and immigration as a means of not only detailing its history but in brining into relief the historical lineage of contemporary issues in the politics of race and the politics of immigration. The course will look at the historical origins of (but not limited to) the following contemporary issues: undocumented immigration, nativism. refugee policy, police brutality, residential segregation, mass incarceration and socioeconomic gaps that correlate with race and ethnicity. A secondary goal of the course is to show how historically the politics of race and immigration have interacted and/ or reinforced policy developments in the other. This has led to political developments in race/ immigration often reinforcing or spurring political development in the other. In addressing this secondary goal, the course will investigate the institutional and political foundations of the socio economic hierarchies that have developed along race and ethnic lines. Written assignments, class discussion and class examinations will be oriented towards the investigatory aims of these two goals.

POSC 391/491
Special Topics in Comparative Politics: The Poltiics and Government of India
Julia Lee
MW 3:20-4:35

As the world’s largest democracy, India is a prominent country in global affairs today. This course provides an introduction to the political structure and policymaking process that shape development in contemporary India. The main questions we address are: How has India’s democracy thrived in a country with numerous religious, linguistic, ethnic, and economic groups? How does politics help explain India’s rapid economic growth on one hand and widespread poverty on the other? What are the major challenges of India’s democracy today? Some of the topics we will cover include: colonial legacies, government institutions, elections and political parties, decentralization, identity politics, poverty, civil society, and corruption. Using India as a guide, the course will cover concepts and themes that are useful for analyzing politics in other developing countries.

POSC 391/491
Special Topics in Comparative Politics: Women and Politics in Global Perspective
Julia Lee
TR 1:00-2:15

This course is an introduction to the comparative study of women’s participation in politics from an international perspective. The main questions we focus on are: Does the descriptive representation of women lead to their substantive representation? Do gender quotas promote women’s representation? Do women make a difference once elected to office? What are the main obstacles to women’s representation? How has public opinion changed with respect to women in politics? The course will provide an opportunity for students to read and discuss empirical, qualitative, and theoretical scholarship on the role of women in politics with a focus on developing countries. Course readings are organized under four sections: representation and impact, women’s political participation, culture and attitudes toward women, and transnational issues concerning women. As part of the course grade, students will be expected to write an original research paper.  No prerequisite.

POSC 395
Special Projects

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Study of a topic of particular interest, or an approved internship. The student must submit to the departmental office a project prospectus form, approved and signed by the faculty supervisor, no later than the end of the second week of classes. The prospectus must outline the goals of the project and the research methodology to be used and is part of the basis for grading. The prospectus form is available from the departmental office of from the department’s Web page.

POSC 396
Senior Project SAGES Capstone
Times as Arranged

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Capstone experience for political science majors or senior POSC minors as part of the SAGES program, providing opportunity to do an in-depth paper on a topic of particular interest to them. Students must obtain approval from a faculty project advisor and list that advisor on the registration form. The advisor must sign and student submit to the department a prospectus including goals, schedule, and research methodology. This paper should demonstrate, and ideally even extend, the skills and expertise developed over the course of study in the department. Upon completion of the capstone, students will be expected to present their work in a public forum. Recommended preparation: Junior or Senior political science major or senior political science minor and departmental prospectus form. Counts as SAGES Senior Capstone.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Joseph White
TR 1:00-2:15

The U.S. political system was created to bring cooperation, the ability to work together for public ends, out of conflict, the disagreements about ends and means that were common in 1787 and at least as common now. That is the fundamental task of government, and how well that works depends on how much people disagree (beliefs) the rules of the game (how political authority is exercised), and the policy environment (the severity of problems, such as economic conditions or security threats). For this class the basic questions involve what Americans fight about through politics, how decisions are made, whether decisions tend to favor some groups of people over others, and whether decisions can be made at all.

With those questions in mind we will survey the basic institutions and dynamics of the U.S. political system. These include public and elite attitudes and why they matter; how attitudes are mobilized to influence the government, through political parties, interest groups and the media; the separated institutions that share powers to make governmental decisions, such as Congress, the presidency, courts and government agencies: and the elections which link mobilized attitudes to who holds office in the government.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Kelly McMann
TR 10:00-11:15

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts for CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45

This course is a survey of international relations.  It will address the major questions about the ways that states interact: what is anarchy, and what are its consequences?  Can we mitigate its effects, and if so how?  Has globalization—the increasing flows of goods, people and knowledge across borders—changed the nature of the way states relate to each other?  Has the rise of non-state actors diminished the authority of the state?  This course will take up these large questions by examining the nature of anarchy and sovereignty and their effects in world politics.  It will also ask under what conditions can international cooperation—through treaties, laws and less formal arrangements—help provide peace, security and prosperity.  The course will cover the fundaments of the discipline, including a review of the theoretical approaches and major questions in contemporary international relations.  We will also look at specific issues in contemporary world politics such as human rights, environmental protection and other issues decided upon by the class.

POSC 319/419
Politics and Money
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05

One of the most famous definitions of politics comes from Harold Laswell, who described it as the struggle over “who gets what, when, how.”  Money is at the center of most political conflict.  It is a resource, a motivation, and an end unto itself.  This course will examine the role of money in politics, with particular emphasis on American politics.  We will discuss the role of money in elections, in the policy-making process, and what it means for representation.  The course will begin with the question of the role that financial consideration play in public opinion and voting behavior.  We will then address the role that money plays in election results, both in terms of its role in financing campaigns, and the relationship between the state of the economy and election results.  Finally, we will discuss the policy-making process.  In that context, we will address the role that interest groups play in the process, and how the quest for economic benefits for one’s constituency motivates the behavior of elected officials.  We will conclude by discussing how policy changes at the systematic level occur and the influence that various groups have on policy outcomes.

POSC 322/422
Political Movements and Protest
Karen Beckwith
MW 12:45-2:00

Political Movements and Political Participation is concerned with the variety of ways citizens engage in collective activism in the United States and across national boundaries, and with the conditions under which citizens identify common concerns and join together in political movements to bring about change.  The course begins with an examination of three general bodies of theory and research on political movements: resource mobilization, political opportunity structures, and cultural framing.  We will also investigate frameworks of political participation for understanding the relationships among different expressions of collective activism and representation.  In the context of these sometimes competing theories, we will consider 1) the conditions under which political movements are likely to emerge, as well as the circumstances in which collective political action is precluded; 2) how citizens come to recognize collective grievances and shared political identities; 3) the strategies and tactics of organized movements, and their likelihood of political success; and 4) the relationship between political movements, political parties, and the state.

POSC 323/423
Judicial Politics
Michael Wager
M 7:00-9:30

Rejecting the view that judges mechanically apply the law, the study of judicial politics seeks to understand the behavior of judges as political actors with policy goals. Topics include judicial selection and socialization, judicial policy change, judicial strategy (especially the strategic interaction of judges on multi-judge panels), the interaction of courts in hierarchical judicial systems, the policy impact of judicial decisions, and the courts’ interactions with coordinate branches of government (the executive, Congress, state governments, state courts). Primary focus will be on the federal judiciary, with some discussion of state judicial systems.

POSC 327/427
Civil Liberties in America
Laura Tartakoff
TR 11:30-12:45

Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment: liberty of religion through the establishment and free exercise clauses, freedoms of speech and the press, of assembly and association.  The “pure tolerance” view examined against subversive speech, “fighting words,” libel, and obscenity.  Survey of content-neutral regulation, symbolic expression, and current efforts to limit expression (campus speech codes and the feminist anti-pornography movement).

POSC 358/458
Political Strategy
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:30

This course examines practical applications of prominent political science theories.  It is partly a how-to course covering a broad range of political activities, but the primary objective is to link practical issues with theories to help you understand why events happen the way they do.  The course focuses on American politics, but the materials will be applicable to a wide range of situations.  The course is a seminar requiring regular student presentations that will generate discussion about the readings and current events. Papers consist of analysis of current events, and require students to analyze the strategies used by prominent figures in the context of the theories we discuss in class. 

POSC 369/469
Ehtnicity, Gender, and Religion in Latin American Politics and Society
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:00-5:15

This course focuses on aspects of Latin America’s social and political realities and dilemmas.  It will first explore race, gender, and religion, and then tackle revolution, democracy and populism.  Throughout, the entire region’s history, geography, and culture(s) will be considered; for example, the European and indigenous legacies in Mexico and Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Ecuador; the Asian presence in Peru and Brazil; the African contributions to Cuba and Brazil, female heads of state, such as Nicaragua’s Violeta Chamorro, Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, Costa Rica’s Laura Chinchilla, and Brazil’s Dilma Rousseff.  The class will explore Liberation Theology and the new Pope’s worries about the declining number of Catholics in the region.
Today’s multiparty democracy in Mexico, Hugo Chavez’s 14-year rule in Venezuela, and Cuba’s international humanitarian aid would not be possible without revolution(s) and populism.  They are intertwined with ethnicity, gender, and religion.

POSC 370F/470F
Financial Politics in the United States and the World
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 2:30-3:45

This course explores how political institutions make policy in the financial area with particular emphasis on the United States.  Using a bureaucratic politics framework, it examines money, banks and the securities industry by integrating a wide range of literature in economics and political science.  Specific objectives include familiarizing students with different approaches to the political economy of finance from different disciplines, exploring the historical evolution of finance, examining the changing relationship between public and private authority within the financial system, considering how politics operates in a crisis, and evaluating the role of international financial institutions in the global economy.  By taking this course, students will equip themselves for further research into politics and economics, as well as offer them tools to analyze future policy developments as they unfold.

POSC 373/473
Politics of the European Union
Elliot Posner
MW 12:45-2:00

The evolution of the European Union ranks among the most significant developments in contemporary European and international history.  Yet scholars have disagreed about nearly every important aspect of the EU’s origins, nature and implications; And now they argue about whether and how it can endure a conjuncture of challenges and crises. The seminar’s readings, discussions and written assignments will introduce students to the main debates by addressing five questions:  What is the EU? What accounts for its origins and evolution?  How does the EU work and what does it do?  What impact has it had on the national societies, polities and economies of Europe?  How does the EU influence relations among members, neighboring countries, global society and international politics and economics?  The class will cover topical contemporary developments including the politics surrounding the massive inflow of refugees, the ongoing banking crises, security threats from Russia and extremists, the UK’s departure and authoritarian tendencies of some member state governments.

POSC 374/474
Politics of Development in the Global South
Paul Schroeder
TR 1:00-2:15

Exploration of the post-World War II emergence of the Global South nations of Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Eastern Europe arena.

POSC 386/486
Making Public Policy
Joseph White
TR 10:00-11:15

Politics is about who wins, who loses, and why.  Policy, by contrast, is often depicted as more “neutral;” policies are the means through which political decisions are carried out.  In this class, we examine the notion that policy is the rational, impartial counterpart to the political arena.  We will ask: How are public policies made?  Why do some issues make it on to the agenda, while others do not?  Can we separate facts from values, or are both always contested?  We will examine how decision-making in a group introduces distinct challenges for policymaking.  The course focuses on widely applicable themes of policymaking, drawing on both domestic and international examples.

POSC 390/490
Special Topics in IR: Power, Law, and International Order
Elliot Posner
MW 3:20-4:35

This special topics seminar in International Relations varies from semester to semester depending on the interests of the department’s faculty.  Students may take the course more than once (for up to 9 credits) so long as the topics are different.

In the spring of 2017, the seminar will focus on three topics related to the concept of international order.  The first – its contested nature – addresses deep scholarly divisions over the meaning of international order; its relationship to peace, stability, prosperity and war; whether it can be engineered by world leaders and, if so, how; and where it should rank in the hierarchy of their goals.  The second topic – governance – explores how international law and institutions intersect with a changing distribution of power among states.  Most analysts have focused on formal international organizations (such as the World Trade Organization), asking whether they can accommodate “rising” powers (mainly China but also Brazil, India and Russia).  This unit will instead give special attention to informal organizations (that is, non-treaty-based ones) and international soft law (that is, agreed, codified, yet non-binding rules), on the one hand, and authoritarian regimes such as China and Russia, on the other.  Does regime type matter?  The final topic – transnationalism – considers the potential ordering effects of cross-border networks (housed in international human rights and environmental advocacy organizations, industry and professional associations or regulatory bodies) and their ideas.  Do these networks foster similarity (in political culture, regulatory approaches, domestic state-society-market relationships, etc.) that subsequently supports international cooperation and institutional order?  The readings for this seminar will draw from classic works and contemporary research.

POSC 395
Special Projects

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Study of a topic of particular interest, or an approved internship. The student must submit to the departmental office a project prospectus form, approved and signed by the faculty supervisor, no later than the end of the second week of classes. The prospectus must outline the goals of the project and the research methodology to be used and is part of the basis for grading. The prospectus form is available from the departmental office of from the department’s Web page.

POSC 396
Senior Project SAGES Capstone
Times as Arranged

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Capstone experience for political science majors or senior POSC minors as part of the SAGES program, providing opportunity to do an in-depth paper on a topic of particular interest to them. Students must obtain approval from a faculty project advisor and list that advisor on the registration form. The advisor must sign and student submit to the department a prospectus including goals, schedule, and research methodology. This paper should demonstrate, and ideally even extend, the skills and expertise developed over the course of study in the department. Upon completion of the capstone, students will be expected to present their work in a public forum. Recommended preparation: Junior or Senior political science major or senior political science minor and departmental prospectus form. Counts as SAGES Senior Capstone.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Justin Buchler
MWF 11:40-12:30

The U.S. political system was created to bring cooperation, the ability to work together for public ends, out of conflict, the disagreements about ends and means that were common in 1787 and at least as common now. That is the fundamental task of government, and how well that works depends on how much people disagree (beliefs) the rules of the game (how political authority is exercised), and the policy environment (the severity of problems, such as economic conditions or security threats). For this class the basic questions involve what Americans fight about through politics, how decisions are made, whether decisions tend to favor some groups of people over others, and whether decisions can be made at all.

With those questions in mind we will survey the basic institutions and dynamics of the U.S. political system. These include public and elite attitudes and why they matter; how attitudes are mobilized to influence the government, through political parties, interest groups and the media; the separated institutions that share powers to make governmental decisions, such as Congress, the presidency, courts and government agencies: and the elections which link mobilized attitudes to who holds office in the government.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Kelly McMann
TR 10:00-11:15

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts for CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations
Paul Schroeder
MWF 10:30-11:25                                  
Elliot Posner
TR 1:00-2:15

This course is a survey of international relations.  It will address the major questions about the ways that states interact: what is anarchy, and what are its consequences?  Can we mitigate its effects, and if so how?  Has globalization—the increasing flows of goods, people and knowledge across borders—changed the nature of the way states relate to each other?  Has the rise of non-state actors diminished the authority of the state?  This course will take up these large questions by examining the nature of anarchy and sovereignty and their effects in world politics.  It will also ask under what conditions can international cooperation—through treaties, laws and less formal arrangements—help provide peace, security and prosperity.  The course will cover the fundaments of the discipline, including a review of the theoretical approaches and major questions in contemporary international relations.  We will also look at specific issues in contemporary world politics such as human rights, environmental protection and other issues decided upon by the class.

POSC 308/408
The American Presidency
Joseph White
MWF 9:30-10:20

The sources of, strategies of, and restraints on presidential leadership in the United States. Emphasis on problems of policy formation, presidential relations with Congress and executive agencies, and the electoral process.

POSC 325/425
American Constitutional Law
Laura Tartakoff
TR 4:30-5:45

An introductory survey of U.S. constitutional law. Special attention given to the historical, philosophical, and political dimensions of landmark Supreme Court cases. Judicial review, federalism, separation of powers, due process, and equal protection. Supreme Court’s involvement in major political controversies: the New Deal, abortion, physician-assisted suicide, school desegregation, and affirmative action.

POSC 343/443
Public Opinion
Justin Buchler
MWF 2:15-3:05

Examination of theories, concepts and empirical research related to attitudes and the political behavior of mass publics.

POSC 346/446
Women and Politics
Karen Beckwith
MW 12:45-2:00

Women and Politics involves a critical examination of the impact of gender on the forms and distributions of power and politics, with primary reference to the experience of women in the United States. Major concerns of the course include what we mean by “sex,” “gender,” and “politics”; the relationship between women and the state; how women organize collectively to influence state policies; and how the state facilitates and constrains women’s access to and exercise of political power. The course is organized around four foci central to the study of women and politics. The first section of the course focuses on what we mean by “women,” “gender,” and “politics.” In this section, we will consider how these concepts intersect and the ways in which each may be used to deepen our understanding of the workings of governments and political systems, and of women’s relative political powerlessness. The second section of the course employs these concepts to understand the (re) emergence of the US feminist movement, its meanings, practices, and goals, and its transformation across US political history. In the third section, we turn to conventional electoral politics, focusing on women’s candidacies, their campaigns, and women’s voting behavior. In the final section of the course, we consider those general factors that might provide for increased gender equality and improved life status for women, in global, comparative perspective. SAGES departmental seminar.

POSC 349/449
Research Methods
Kelly McMann
TR 11:30-12:45

This course examines approaches that political scientists use to understand events and processes. In doing so, the course provides students with skills helpful to completing senior projects, such as the ability to evaluate and conduct research. Through exercises and projects, students will take part in the research process from constructing a question to developing a research design to interpreting results. Students will learn and apply key techniques, including inductive and deductive reasoning, hypothesis construction, operationalization of concepts, measurements, sampling and probability, causal inference, and the logic of controls. They will produce materials common to the discipline, such as research designs. SAGES departmental seminar.

POSC 370A/470A
Political Economy
Elliot Posner
TR 10:00-11:15

Focus on debates concerning the proper relationship between political and economic systems, including conservative, liberal, and radical perspectives. The politics of international economics and the economics of international politics receive separate attention. The course concludes with study of “modern” political economy and the application of economic theory to the study of political systems.

POSC 370D/470D
Politics of China
Paul Schroeder
MWF 11:40-12:30 pm

Now more than ever, the Chinese state and society are facing tremendous economic, social, and political challenges. This course presents an overview of current issues facing the People’s Republic, including a changing (or not) political culture, policy processes and outcomes at the national and local levels, reform and economic growth, the resultant societal changes and pressures, and the consequent challenges the Communist Party faces as demand for political reform grows. The class involves a mixture of lectures and discussion and draws on a combination of primary and secondary sources, including current news reports and films.

POSC 370J/470J
International Law and Organizations
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 1:00-2:15

Study of international organizations and international law as two means for regulating and coordinating nation-state behavior. History of the two techniques will be traced, covering 19th century efforts at cooperation, the League of Nations and the United Nations, regional and specialized global organization. The functions of international law in global politics will be stressed, with primary focus on the evolving role of law in dealing with global problems, e.g., war, the environment, economic cooperation, and human rights.

POSC 371/471
Natrual Resources and World Politics
Pete Moore
MW 12:45-2:00

Examination of the political causes and ramifications of the uneven distribution of the valuable natural resources for modern industrial societies. Strategic and military issues and the exploitation of the sea bed. Examination in some detail of selected commodity issues, including petroleum, copper and uranium.

POSC 376/476
United States Foreign Policy
Kathryn Lavelle
TR 11:30-12:45

Focus on U.S. foreign policy making with a dynamic network of executive and congressional actors and organizations; analysis of traditional and contemporary U.S. foreign policies from nuclear defense to current economic resource issues; future role of the United States in world affairs.

POSC 379/479
Introduction to Middle East Politics
Pete Moore
MW 4:50-6:05

This is an introductory course about Middle East Politics, in regional as well as international aspects. In this course we will explore broad social, economic, and political themes that have defined the region since the end of World War Two. Since this is an introductory course, a major goal will be to gain comparative knowledge about the region’s states and peoples. The countries that comprise the modern Middle East are quite diverse; therefore, we will only be able to focus on a few cases in depth. A second goal is to use the tools and theories social scientists employ to answer broad questions related to the region, such as: How have colonial legacies shaped political and economic development in the Middle East? How do oil, religion, and identity interact with politics? How have external powers affected the region’s political development? What do the uprisings of 2011 hold for the region’s future?

POSC 395
Special Projects

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Study of a topic of particular interest, or an approved internship. The student must submit to the departmental office a project prospectus form, approved and signed by the faculty supervisor, no later than the end of the second week of classes. The prospectus must outline the goals of the project and the research methodology to be used and is part of the basis for grading. The prospectus form is available from the departmental office of from the department’s Web page.

POSC 396
Senior Project SAGES Capstone
Times as Arranged

(Requires consent and a permit from instructor)  Capstone experience for political science majors or senior POSC minors as part of the SAGES program, providing opportunity to do an in-depth paper on a topic of particular interest to them. Students must obtain approval from a faculty project advisor and list that advisor on the registration form. The advisor must sign and student submit to the department a prospectus including goals, schedule, and research methodology. This paper should demonstrate, and ideally even extend, the skills and expertise developed over the course of study in the department. Upon completion of the capstone, students will be expected to present their work in a public forum. Recommended preparation: Junior or Senior political science major or senior political science minor and departmental prospectus form. Counts as SAGES Senior Capstone.

All courses are offered for 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted. 

POSC 109
The U.S. Political System                                                                                      
Joseph White
TR 2:45-4:00 

The U.S. political system was created to bring cooperation, the ability to work together for public ends, out of conflict, the disagreements about ends and means that were common in 1787 and at least as common now. That is the fundamental task of government, and how well that works depends on how much people disagree (beliefs) the rules of the game (how political authority is exercised), and the policy environment (the severity of problems, such as economic conditions or security threats). For this class the basic questions involve what Americans fight about through politics, how decisions are made, whether decisions tend to favor some groups of people over others, and whether decisions can be made at all.

With those questions in mind we will survey the basic institutions and dynamics of the U.S. political system. These include public and elite attitudes and why they matter; how attitudes are mobilized to influence the government, through political parties, interest groups and the media; the separated institutions that share powers to make governmental decisions, such as Congress, the presidency, courts and government agencies: and the elections which link mobilized attitudes to who holds office in the government.

POSC 160
Introduction to Comparative Politics                                                                      
Pete Moore
MW 12:30-1:45 

Comparative politics is the study of processes and institutions within countries.  Prompted by real-world puzzles, comparativists investigate broad, theoretical questions:  What constitutes a revolution, and why do revolutions occur?  How does one country become more democratic than another?  Why do relations between some ethnic groups turn violent?  This course introduces some of the central puzzles and theories of comparative politics in order to help students better understand world events. Counts for CAS Global and Cultural Diversity Requirement.

POSC 172
Introduction to International Relations                                      
Elliot Posner
MW 3:00-4:15