Research Design: Scope and Methods Professor: Abdullah Aydogan (Spring 2025)

This class aims to introduce students to the logic of social scientific inquiry and research design. Although it is a course in political science, our emphasis will be on the science part rather than the political part — we’ll be reading about interesting substantive topics, but only insofar as they can teach us something about ways we can do systematic research. This class will introduce students to a medley of different methods to conduct social scientific research.

Chinese Politics Professor: Junyan Jiang (Spring 2023)

This course offers a historical and thematic survey of Chinese politics and of salient issues in China’s public policy and governance. The first half of the course reviews the patterns and dynamics of political development in China, focusing mainly on the last two hundred years, during which the country has been on a rugged yet fascinating path toward modernity. We will examine major political events such as the decline and collapse of Imperial China, the rise of the Communist Party, the Cultural Revolution, and the post-Mao shift toward reform and opening. The second half of the course will look at various special topics, including the structure of the party and the state, the relationship between state and society, the modes of economic development, and the governance of the media and the Internet.

Introduction to Human Rights Professor: Andrew Nathan (Fall 2022)

The course analyzes the struggle over human rights as a process of norm contestation and norm change. We look at the laws and institutions that define human rights as an international regime, in the context of key intellectual controversies and political puzzles surrounding human rights theory and practice. The course examines how a variety of actors promote the development and application of human rights norms. In doing so, it analyzes some of the challenges of contemporary human rights advocacy.

Autocracy and Democracy Professor: Timothy Frye (Fall 2021)

With longstanding democracies in Europe and the US faltering, autocratic regimes in Russia and China consolidating, and hybrid regimes that mix elements of democracy and autocracy on the rise, scholars, policymakers, and citizens are re-evaluating the causes and consequences of different forms of government. This course is designed to give students the tools to understand these trends in global politics. Among other topics, we will explore: How do democracies and autocracies differ in theory and in practice? Why are some countries autocratic? Why are some democratic? Is the quality of democracy declining? How does economic inequality influence a country’s form of government? Is the current period of institutional foment different past periods of global instability? In addition to answer these questions, we will also examine the many difficult challenges in identifying the causes and consequences of different types of government.

Introduction to International Relations Professors: Katrin Katz (Spring 2021), Kimberly Marten (Fall 2020)

The course is divided into four parts. Part I introduces students to theories in the field of International Relations and applies these theories to a number of important cases, from the North Korea nuclear issue to China’s rise and the European Union in crisis. Part II reviews major historical events – including World War I, World War II, and the Cold War – and evaluates the lessons that these events offer in navigating present day issues. Part III explores the nature and evolution of international economic systems and considers the implications of globalization and the rise of populist nationalism for the current international order. Part IV explores a range of global issues and applies theoretical and historical insights from earlier sections of the course to evaluate what is happening, why, and what to do about contemporary challenges