comparative politics

PLSC 300C: Political Violence
Professor Tezcur
TTh 2:30pm / LSC

This course introduces students to scholarly and public debates on the role of violence in political conflicts. It primarily focuses on intrastate political violence. It addresses the following questions: How has the nature of political violence evolved since the 19^th century? What are different forms of political violence? How does violence differ from other types of political action? Under what conditions do organizations pursue violent methods to achieve political goals? Why do individuals join violent political organizations that often entail high risks? On what moral grounds is political violence justified? The course engages with scholarly literature from a variety of disciplines including political science, economics and sociology. The empirical studies come from all major regions of the world especially from the countries with Muslim majority populations.

PLSC 349: Eastern European Politics
Professor Avdeyeva
T 4:15pm / LSC

1989 saw one of the most surprising developments of contemporary politics--the collapse of communist regimes across East Central Europe. To explain and understand how these developments came about, this course examines the history and politics of the region, comprising Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary, with references to Bulgaria, Romania, and the former Yugoslavia.  The course will first examine the era of state socialism--the communist ascendancy, Stalinist rule, and the conflicts between state and society that erupted as a result. It will then focus on the reasons behind the collapse of the communist regimes, and the subsequent developments: the introduction of democracy and the free market, the development of political party systems, constitutions, and economic transformation.  In comparing the different trajectories these polities and economies took before and after 1989, we will focus first on the relationship between state and society, and the nature of the political and economic institutions of state socialism. In the second part of the course, we will focus on the processes of democratic transition, economic reform, and the major dilemmas they create.

PLSC 355C: Women & Politics--A Cross-National Perspective
Ms. Sholar
MWF 12:35pm / LSC

This course examines the role of women in international political life.  Our goal is to understand how and why women throughout the world participate in politics.  We will examine a set of inter-related questions:  What strategies have women used to gain political power?  Besides women’s participation in the traditional spheres of what is considered politics—women as voters and politicians—are there other, informal ways that women have become “political” actors?  How do different political systems and political cultures influence women’s status and power?  How does the presence or absence of women from decision-making power affect public policy and the quality of women’s lives?  What barriers continue to exist to women’s full political participation and representation, and what (if anything) can be done to overcome these obstacles?  Students will reflect upon similarities and differences among women both across societies and within a single society, using the experience of American women as a reference point. 

PLSC 355C: Women & Politics--A Cross-National Perspective
Professor Matland
W 4:15pm / LSC

 

In many countries women hold 30-40% of the major political positions and female heads of state are increasingly common.  Yet, there are countries such as the United States where there has never been a female head of state and representation is far lower, barely reaching double digits.  Why are women so poorly represented in some countries and well represented in others?  How does women's representation matter?  We spend time on both of these questions looking at explanations for the considerable variation in women's access to positions of formal political power across countries.  The course will consider the determinants of and consequences of women's participation not just in the developed countries, but also in the developing world. 

PLSC 359: Revolutions
Ms. McKeever
MWF 1:40pm / LSC

This course will explore major works on the theory of revolutions. We will conduct a review of historical revolutions, but will focus heavily on recent revolutions. In particular, we will study the roles that private citizens, peasants, the educated elite, media, and past revolutions play in current uprisings. Students will leave the course with a better understanding of why and how revolutions occur.

PLSC 360: Western European Politics
Professor Mahler
T 4:15pm / LSC

This course begins with an introduction to the comparative politics of developed democracies.  It then offers a closer look at political institutions, processes, behavior and policy in the three representative Western European countries, Britain, France and Germany.  Finally, the course compares several major policy issues in the context of Western Europe as a whole, including the macroeconomy; education, health and social policies; political participation and institutions; demographic trends; defense and foreign policy; and “moral” issues.

PLSC 394: Comparative Family Policy
Ms. Sholar
MWF 9:20am / LSC

This course examines the changing structure of the family and the implications for family policy.  We will compare and contrast social policy intended to address family issues in a variety of nations primarily—but not exclusively—in the Western democratic world.  In this way, we can observe the effects of changing political and socio-economic contexts on both the process of policy formation and the impact that government policies have on family life.  During the course we will explore key issues such as the changing definition of family, the conflict between work and family obligations, policies for working parents, marriage, divorce, welfare, and population decline.  With the knowledge that we gain, we will attempt to design social policy recommendations that could better serve the needs of contemporary families.