Undergraduate Course: Theories of Power (SCIL10046)
Course Outline
School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
Summary | Power is a central concept for social and political analysis. This course introduces you to major issues in the theorisation of power in the social sciences. It does this first through an examination of definitions, key concepts, and debates, and then through closer attention to selected theorists chosen to highlight different perspectives on the study of power. This year we focus on: Steven Lukes, Michel Foucault, Dorothy Smith, Pierre Bourdieu, G. William Domhoff, and Michael Mann. Students are encouraged to think in particular about three themes: (1) how to relate concepts and theories to practical research contexts, (2) connections between studying power at micro and macro scales, and (3) the difficulties of understanding how power works in liberal forms of society. |
Course description |
Not entered
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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 | Visiting students should have at least 3 Sociology or closely related courses at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this). We will only consider University/College level courses. |
Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course students should be able to: identify and critically assess major themes in the theorisation of power; formulate a position on the value and importance of contending conceptions of power; analyse the ways substantive fields of research inform conceptions of power, and how specific conceptions of power may shape empirical research.
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Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
Course organiser | Prof Jonathan Hearn
Tel: (0131 6)50 4242
Email: J.Hearn@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Elaine Khennouf
Tel: (0131 6)50 8428
Email: Elaine.Khennouf@ed.ac.uk |
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