Undergraduate Course: Comparative Politics in a Globalized World (PLIT08008)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 2 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 20 |
| Home subject area | Politics |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | This course will provide students with the conceptual knowledge and practical skills to understand comparative politics in a globalized world. It introduces the comparative method, and applies that method to core questions and issues of comparative and international politics. These questions will cover political regimes, state formation and institutions, political and economic development, democracy, order and violence. |
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | No |
Course Delivery Information
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| Delivery period: 2014/15 Semester 2, Available to all students (SV1)
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Learn enabled: Yes |
Quota: 350 |
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Web Timetable |
Web Timetable |
| Course Start Date |
12/01/2015 |
| Breakdown of Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 11,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 22,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
163 )
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| Additional Notes |
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| Breakdown of Assessment Methods (Further Info) |
Written Exam
40 %,
Coursework
60 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| No Exam Information |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course students should be able to:
-Recognise the diversity of political systems around the world and their key components (including institutions, actors, and culture);
-Explain why political systems differ, and how those differences shape domestic and global politics;
-Understand the logic of the comparative method and be able to apply it to real world events and outcomes;
-Assess the value of comparative political science for understanding current events and global relations;
-Effectively communicate comparative political analysis in written and oral forms |
Assessment Information
Report & poster project 30%
Essay 30%. This constitutes a formative feedback event.
Exam 40% |
Special Arrangements
| None |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
Week 1. Introduction : Studying comparative politics in a globalized world
Q: What makes a good comparativist; Why compare?
Week 2. The Comparative Method
Q: How to compare; how to study variation across and within states (case studies, two-unit comparisons, multiple-unit comparisons, and mixed designs)
ISSUES / QUESTIONS
Weeks 3/4. Comparative Political Systems (political culture, types of govt regimes)
Q: What makes a democracy; can democracy be imposed from abroad?
Weeks 5 -7 (week 6 is Reading/ILW) Comparative Institutions
(Constitutions, legislatures, parties; electoral systems, pressure groups)
Q: Where does power lie within states; why do institutions develop differently?
Weeks 8/9. Economic Development and Globalization
Q: What determines how states develop? Why are some countries rich while others are poor? Why does globalization affect states differently?
Week 10. Order and conflict
(How states impose order; sources of conflict)
Q: What causes revolutions? Why terrorism? Is terrorism changing in a globalized world?
Week 11. Conclusion & revision |
| Transferable skills |
Not entered |
| Reading list |
Lim, T.C. (2006), Doing Comparative Politics: An Introduction to Approaches and Issues (Boulder: Lynne Riener).
Hague, R and Harrop, M. (2013) Comparative Government and Politics, 9th ed.
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| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
2 lectures and 1 tutorial per week |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Christina Boswell
Tel: (0131 6)50 9924
Email: christina.boswell@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Andra Roston
Tel: (0131 6)50 3932
Email: Andra.Roston@ed.ac.uk |
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