UNDERGRADUATE COURSES
The Politics of Extractive Industries and Sustainable Alternatives—POS 301W
This writing seminar delves into political power dynamics surrounding hydrocarbon and mining development and transitions to sustainable energy sources. It pays special attention to communities impacted by development. Through study of cases from developing and advanced industrialized countries, the course takes seriously the power of extractive industries in creating and shaping the interests of actors at the subnational, national, and international levels. Within that broad paradigm, we examine the roles of state institutions, environmental organizations, and firms; alternative local economies that are present and/or envisioned by impacted communities; and the organizational capacity of communities and other actors that might rise up against large-scale development to protect livelihoods, seek compensation for the impacts of development, and/or protect the environment. With regard to transitions toward renewable energy, the course appreciates sustainable models as differing starkly from extractives while also recognizing some potential similarities across the two realms, including local impacts from infrastructure associated with green energy options. Class time is devoted to lecture, discussion, and writing instruction and exercises. The seminar fulfills Northern Arizona University’s Junior Writing Requirement.
Politics of Developing Nations—POS 361
This course focuses on politics in the Global South, with special attention given to the challenges that developing countries face in relation to economic development, internal security, state capacity, and democracy, and interactions among these phenomena. In class discussions and in your writing, you will compare and contrast different explanations for economic development, markets, regime type and quality, state-building, and internal (dis)order in the developing world. As part of this discussion, you will consider the potential influence of the power of domestic political institutions, domestic cultural factors, structural characteristics of the national and international economy, and the strategic calculation of self-interested individuals.
Comparative Politics—POS 260
This course is a rigorous introduction to the subfield of Comparative Politics, which is the comparative study of political systems and processes, across and within countries. It is meant to provide students a greater understanding of the diversity of political systems and processes around the world through comparisons, and to appreciate the difficulties of finding adequate approaches to understanding those systems and processes. The course focuses on “what?” “why?” and “how?” in the field of Comparative Politics. It is designed to prepare you to do the following, in class discussions and in your writing: (1) apply key concepts to describe what important political events you observe in different countries; (2) critique causal explanations for explaining why these events have occurred; (3) use the power of comparisons to rule in and out possible explanations; and (4) evaluate possible causal pathways—that is, how certain causes might contribute to certain outcomes—by drawing on logic and evidence. The course begins with an introduction to the comparative method. The remainder of the course is thematic, covering topics that include state building, regimes and regime change, political participation and representation, social movements, internal violence, revolutions, and political economy. The assigned readings analyze cases from the developed and developing worlds.
Studies in Latin American Politics—POS 366
Latin America has undergone dramatic shifts in development models, national political regimes, and patterns of representation during the 20th and early 21st centuries. The first half of this course tackles major political and economic trends in the region up to the 1990s, drawing on country examples. In studying regime questions, we will engage the origins and forms of authoritarianism—especially military rule—throughout much of the region during the 1960s and 1970s; and subsequent transitions to democracy. In political economy, we will study shifts from liberal economies to state-led development models beginning in the 1930s, and then the reopening of economies through “neoliberalism,” in the 1980s and 1990s. The second part of the course builds on those foundations by examining political trajectories since the 2000s. Social and political backlash against neoliberalism contributed to the rise of the “new left.” Some countries saw political polarization, the centralization of power in the executive, and associated backsliding toward authoritarianism, phenomena that highlight ongoing challenges in the region in the areas of civil-military relations, political institutions and representation, and the rule of law. The course fulfills the Cultural Understanding and Global requirement and falls under “critical thinking” in the Liberal Studies Essential Skills classification system.
Politics in the Andes—POS 301W
In recent decades, the Andean sub-region of Latin America has seen the collapse of traditional party systems, weak checks on executive power, and the emergence of strong indigenous movements, contributing to a substantial rise of the Left and backlash from the Right. Ongoing insurgencies—fed by legal and illegal economies and in some cases supported inadvertently by state actions—have raised dilemmas surrounding security, human rights, and national sovereignty. Interwoven throughout and contributing to these political developments is the region’s heavy reliance on extractive industries. This course focuses on politics in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, while speaking to the broader themes of development and inequality, political participation and representation, environmental justice, social movements, and security. This writing-intensive seminar fulfills the Junior Writing Requirement.
GRADUATE COURSES
Comparative Politics—POS 670
This graduate seminar is designed to train students in analyzing and conducting comparative research. Course readings are drawn from prominent scholarship in the field, especially from classic works on theoretical and methodological debates and approaches, political economy of development, state-market relations, state building, regime change, social movements, revolution, internal violence, political parties and party systems, systems of government, and electoral systems. By the end of the course, you should be able to (1) employ the comparative method and describe how it is used in different scholarly works to rule out and rule in alternative causal arguments, (2) classify research according to theoretical approach(es) used to explain political outcomes, (3) identify trade-offs involved when selecting different research methodologies, (4) summarize major substantive findings and debates about the political phenomena covered, (5) identify gaps in existing research, and (6) make progress toward filling a gap through a substantive research paper.
Political Development—POS 672
This graduate seminar analyzes politics in the developing world. It is organized in four thematic units: the state, political economy, regimes, civil society. Over the course of the semester, we will examine explanations for and social and political implications of formal and informal institutions, state capacity, non-state and anti-state systems of political order, regime change, grievances and social class mobilizing, extractive economies, economic development, and varying welfare states. The course is grounded in cutting-edge comparative research on regional, national, subnational, and local politics in Africa, Central Asia, East Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. Each book builds on prior research through deep conceptual and theoretical work. As a collection—and in several cases individually—the readings employ quantitative and qualitative methods; and draw on different theoretical traditions in Comparative Politics, taking seriously institutions, structural forces, culture, and individual rationality.
Professional Development Seminar—POS 691
This course provides advanced graduate students with an introduction to Political Science as a professional career. Throughout the course of the semester, you will gain skills in designing a college-level course, recognizing and employing different techniques for in-class instruction and class management, lecturing at the college level, presenting an academic conference paper, and summarizing your professional and intellectual accomplishments in standard formats within the profession.
The Politics of Extractive Industries and Sustainable Alternatives—POS 301W
This writing seminar delves into political power dynamics surrounding hydrocarbon and mining development and transitions to sustainable energy sources. It pays special attention to communities impacted by development. Through study of cases from developing and advanced industrialized countries, the course takes seriously the power of extractive industries in creating and shaping the interests of actors at the subnational, national, and international levels. Within that broad paradigm, we examine the roles of state institutions, environmental organizations, and firms; alternative local economies that are present and/or envisioned by impacted communities; and the organizational capacity of communities and other actors that might rise up against large-scale development to protect livelihoods, seek compensation for the impacts of development, and/or protect the environment. With regard to transitions toward renewable energy, the course appreciates sustainable models as differing starkly from extractives while also recognizing some potential similarities across the two realms, including local impacts from infrastructure associated with green energy options. Class time is devoted to lecture, discussion, and writing instruction and exercises. The seminar fulfills Northern Arizona University’s Junior Writing Requirement.
Politics of Developing Nations—POS 361
This course focuses on politics in the Global South, with special attention given to the challenges that developing countries face in relation to economic development, internal security, state capacity, and democracy, and interactions among these phenomena. In class discussions and in your writing, you will compare and contrast different explanations for economic development, markets, regime type and quality, state-building, and internal (dis)order in the developing world. As part of this discussion, you will consider the potential influence of the power of domestic political institutions, domestic cultural factors, structural characteristics of the national and international economy, and the strategic calculation of self-interested individuals.
Comparative Politics—POS 260
This course is a rigorous introduction to the subfield of Comparative Politics, which is the comparative study of political systems and processes, across and within countries. It is meant to provide students a greater understanding of the diversity of political systems and processes around the world through comparisons, and to appreciate the difficulties of finding adequate approaches to understanding those systems and processes. The course focuses on “what?” “why?” and “how?” in the field of Comparative Politics. It is designed to prepare you to do the following, in class discussions and in your writing: (1) apply key concepts to describe what important political events you observe in different countries; (2) critique causal explanations for explaining why these events have occurred; (3) use the power of comparisons to rule in and out possible explanations; and (4) evaluate possible causal pathways—that is, how certain causes might contribute to certain outcomes—by drawing on logic and evidence. The course begins with an introduction to the comparative method. The remainder of the course is thematic, covering topics that include state building, regimes and regime change, political participation and representation, social movements, internal violence, revolutions, and political economy. The assigned readings analyze cases from the developed and developing worlds.
Studies in Latin American Politics—POS 366
Latin America has undergone dramatic shifts in development models, national political regimes, and patterns of representation during the 20th and early 21st centuries. The first half of this course tackles major political and economic trends in the region up to the 1990s, drawing on country examples. In studying regime questions, we will engage the origins and forms of authoritarianism—especially military rule—throughout much of the region during the 1960s and 1970s; and subsequent transitions to democracy. In political economy, we will study shifts from liberal economies to state-led development models beginning in the 1930s, and then the reopening of economies through “neoliberalism,” in the 1980s and 1990s. The second part of the course builds on those foundations by examining political trajectories since the 2000s. Social and political backlash against neoliberalism contributed to the rise of the “new left.” Some countries saw political polarization, the centralization of power in the executive, and associated backsliding toward authoritarianism, phenomena that highlight ongoing challenges in the region in the areas of civil-military relations, political institutions and representation, and the rule of law. The course fulfills the Cultural Understanding and Global requirement and falls under “critical thinking” in the Liberal Studies Essential Skills classification system.
Politics in the Andes—POS 301W
In recent decades, the Andean sub-region of Latin America has seen the collapse of traditional party systems, weak checks on executive power, and the emergence of strong indigenous movements, contributing to a substantial rise of the Left and backlash from the Right. Ongoing insurgencies—fed by legal and illegal economies and in some cases supported inadvertently by state actions—have raised dilemmas surrounding security, human rights, and national sovereignty. Interwoven throughout and contributing to these political developments is the region’s heavy reliance on extractive industries. This course focuses on politics in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, while speaking to the broader themes of development and inequality, political participation and representation, environmental justice, social movements, and security. This writing-intensive seminar fulfills the Junior Writing Requirement.
GRADUATE COURSES
Comparative Politics—POS 670
This graduate seminar is designed to train students in analyzing and conducting comparative research. Course readings are drawn from prominent scholarship in the field, especially from classic works on theoretical and methodological debates and approaches, political economy of development, state-market relations, state building, regime change, social movements, revolution, internal violence, political parties and party systems, systems of government, and electoral systems. By the end of the course, you should be able to (1) employ the comparative method and describe how it is used in different scholarly works to rule out and rule in alternative causal arguments, (2) classify research according to theoretical approach(es) used to explain political outcomes, (3) identify trade-offs involved when selecting different research methodologies, (4) summarize major substantive findings and debates about the political phenomena covered, (5) identify gaps in existing research, and (6) make progress toward filling a gap through a substantive research paper.
Political Development—POS 672
This graduate seminar analyzes politics in the developing world. It is organized in four thematic units: the state, political economy, regimes, civil society. Over the course of the semester, we will examine explanations for and social and political implications of formal and informal institutions, state capacity, non-state and anti-state systems of political order, regime change, grievances and social class mobilizing, extractive economies, economic development, and varying welfare states. The course is grounded in cutting-edge comparative research on regional, national, subnational, and local politics in Africa, Central Asia, East Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. Each book builds on prior research through deep conceptual and theoretical work. As a collection—and in several cases individually—the readings employ quantitative and qualitative methods; and draw on different theoretical traditions in Comparative Politics, taking seriously institutions, structural forces, culture, and individual rationality.
Professional Development Seminar—POS 691
This course provides advanced graduate students with an introduction to Political Science as a professional career. Throughout the course of the semester, you will gain skills in designing a college-level course, recognizing and employing different techniques for in-class instruction and class management, lecturing at the college level, presenting an academic conference paper, and summarizing your professional and intellectual accomplishments in standard formats within the profession.
