PS 12
Introduction to Political Science
9 units (3-0-6)
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first, third terms
Introduction to the tools and concepts of analytical political science. Subject matter is primarily American political processes and institutions. Topics: spatial models of voting, redistributive voting, games, presidential campaign strategy, Congress, congressional-bureaucratic relations, and coverage of political issues by the mass media.
Instructors:
Ordeshook, Kiewiet
PS 97
Undergraduate Research
Unites to be arranged
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any term
Prerequisites: advanced political science and instructor's permission.
This courseoffers advanced undergraduates the opportunity to pursue research in political science individually or in a small group. Graded pass/fail.
PS 99 ab
Political Science Research Seminar
9 units (3-0-6)
Prerequisites: political science major; completion of a required PS course for major.
Development and presentation of a major research paper on a topic of interest in political science or political economy. The project will be one that the student has initiated in a political science course he or she has already taken from the PS courses required for the PS option, numbered above 101. This course will be devoted to understanding research in political science, and basic political science methodology. Students will be exposed to current research journals, work to understand a research literature of interest, and work to formulate a research project. Fulfills the Institute scientific writing requirement.
PS 101
Selected Topics in Political Science
Units to be determined by arrangement with the instructor
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offered by announcement
Instructor:
Staff
PS 120
American Electoral Behavior and Party Strategy
9 units (3-0-6)
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third term
A consideration of existing literature on the voting behavior of the citizen, and an examination of theoretical and empirical views of the strategies followed by the parties. Two substantial papers are expected of students.
Instructor:
Alvarez
PS 121
Congressional Policy Formation and Legislative Process
9 units (3-0-6)
Decision making in legislative bodies, with emphasis on the United States Congress. An investigation into the impact of congressional structure and practices on the policies adopted by the federal government. Not offered 2013-14.
PS 122
Political Representation
9 units (3-0-6)
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second term
Prerequisites: PS 12.
Theory, practice, and consequence of political representation in the electoral context. Topics include the concept of representation; how the degree of representation of various groups and interests (such as ethnic and racial) is affected by different electoral rules; and the impact of representation of minorities on public policies. The primary focus is on the empirical literature pertaining to the United States, but examples from other countries are also examined for comparative purposes. Not offered 2013-14.
PS 123
Regulation and Politics
9 units (3-0-6)
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second term
Prerequisites: PS 12.
This course will examine the historical origins of several regulatory agencies and trace their development over the past century or so. It will also investigate a number of current issues in regulatory politics, including the great discrepancies that exist in the cost- effectiveness of different regulations, and the advent of more market-based approaches to regulations instead of traditional "command- and-control." Not offered on a pass/fail basis. Not offered 2013-14.
PS 124
Political Economy
9 units (3-0-6)
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third term
The aim of this course is to introduce students to theoretical and applied research in political economy. The focus will be on formal analysis of the strategic interaction between rational individuals, political institutions, and economic outcomes. Some of the questions will be: Why do people vote? What are the incentives of elected politicians, and what is the effect of these incentives on the policies they will implement? To what extent do differences in political institutions account for differences in redistributive policies? Topics may include the theory of voting, models of direct democracy, models of electoral competition, the political economy of redistribution, and comparative political institutions. Not offered 2013-14.
BEM/PS 126
Business and Public Policy
9 units (3-0-6)
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third term
Prerequisites: PS 12, Ec 11 or equivalent.
This class studies the relationships among business, government, and interest groups as strategic actors in the nonmarket environment. Methods of influencing public policy are analyzed using the tools of modern political theory and economics frameworks. Topics may include media, private collective action, international business, and corporate social responsibility. Two written assignments will be collected and graded each week.
Instructor:
Georgiadas
An/PS 127
Corruption
9 units (3-0-6)
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third term
Prerequisites: AN 22 or PS 12.
Corruption taxes economies and individuals in both the developing and the developed world. We will examine what corruption means in different places and contexts, from grand financial scandals to misappropriation of development funds, ethnic patronage, and the theft of elections. How do we measure it? What are its costs and social consequences? What are its correlates? Does freedom of information matter? Students will read across a range of topics, and write an in-depth research paper on one topic. Limited enrollment. Not offered 2013-14
Instructor:
Ensminger
PS 130
Introduction to Social Science Surveys: Methods and Practice
9 units (3-0-6)
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third term
In this course, students will learn the basic methodologies behind social science survey analysis: self-completion and interview-assisted surveying, sampling theory, questionnaire design, theories of survey response, and the basic analysis and presentation of survey results will be covered, as well as contemporary research in survey methodology and public opinion analysis. Students will be involved in the active collection and analysis of survey data and the presentation of survey results; students will be required to complete an independent project involving some aspect of survey methodology. Not offered 2013-14.
PS 132
Formal Theories in Political Science
9 units (3-0-6)
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first term
Prerequisites: PS 12 or equivalent.
Axiomatic structure and behavioral interpretations of game theoretic and social choice models and models of political processes based on them.
Instructor:
Agranov
PS 135
Analyzing Legislative Elections
9 units (3-0-6)
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second term
The purpose of this course is to understand legislative elections. The course will study, for example, what role money plays in elections and why incumbents do better at the polls. It will also examine how electoral rules impact the behavior both of candidates and voters, and will explore some of the consequences of legislative elections, such as divided government. Not offered 2013-14.
PS/SS 139
Comparative Politics
9 units (3-0-6)
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second term
Prerequisites: PS 12 or SS 13.
The politics of non-American political systems with an emphasis on their electoral systems and methodologies for assessing their compliance with democratic standards. Students will be expected to develop data sets appropriate to analyzing elections in individual countries and offering an assessment of the pervasiveness of fraud in those elections. The student's grade will be determined by a final written report reporting the methodology and results of their analysis.
Instructor:
Ordeshook
PS 141
A History of Budgetary Politics in the United States
9 units (3-0-6)
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second term
This class will examine budgetary conflict at key junctures in U.S. history. Topics include the struggle to establish a viable fiscal system in the early days of the Republic, the ante bellum tariff, the "pension politics" of the post-Civil War era, the growth of the American welfare state, and the battle over tax and entitlement reform in the 1980s and 1990s.
Instructor:
Kiewiet
Law/PS/H 148 ab
The Supreme Court in U.S. History
9 units (3-0-6)
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second, third terms
The development of the Supreme Court, its doctrines, personalities, and role in U.S. history through analyses of selected cases. The first half of the course, which is a prerequisite for the second half but may also be taken by itself, will deal with such topics as federalism, economic regulation, political rights, and free speech. The second half will cover such issues as the rights of the accused, equal protection, and privacy.
Instructor:
Kousser
Ec/PS 160 abc
Laboratory Experiments in the Social Sciences
9 units (3-3-3); first, second, third terms
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Section a required for sections b and c
An examination of recent work in laboratory testing in the social sciences with particular reference to work done in social psychology, economics, and political science. Students are required to design and conduct experiments.
Instructor:
Plott
PS/Ec 172
Game Theory
9 units (3-0-6)
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second term
Prerequisites: Ec 11 or PS 12.
This course is an introduction to non-cooperative game theory, with applications to political science and economics. It covers the theories of normal-form games and extensive-form games, and introduces solutions concepts that are relevant for situations of complete and incomplete information. The basic theory of repeated games is introduced. Applications are to auction theory and asymmetric information in trading models, cheap talk and voting rules in congress, among many others.
Instructor:
Elliot
PS/Ec 173
Cooperation and Social Behavior
9 units (3-0-6)
Prerequisites: PS/Ec 172 or instructor's permission.
Game theoretic and evolutionary approaches to modeling various types of cooperative, altruistic, and social behavior. Emphasis on economic and political applications. Not offered 2013-14.
Published Date:
July 28, 2022