Political Science Course Descriptions
PSCI 5306 The American Legal System and the Practice of Law (3
semester hours) The American legal
system will be examined through seminar presentations by speakers experienced
in judging and in legal practice. (3-0) Y
PSCI 5307 Legal Reasoning and
Writing (3 semester hours) The process of reaching legal decisions by relying on
precedent, history, policy concerns, and tradition will be studied.
Additionally, techniques for researching and citing case law and statures will
be examined. (3-0) Y
PSCI 6300 Proseminar in Democratization, Globalization, and International
Relations (3 semester hours) Studies major
theories of democracy, democratization and globalization, relationships between
democratization and globalization, and their implications for citizen politics,
government performance, and regime legitimacy.(3-0) Y
PSCI 6301 Constitutional Law (3 semester hours) This class addresses the evolution of the American Constitution.
The course will examine major constitutional concepts that are important to an
understanding of American Government. Additionally, major interpretations
of the Constitution and the role of courts in the American legal system will be
explored. (3-0) Y
PSCI 6304 Internship in Constitutional
Law Studies (3 semester hours) Students will gain practical legal experience by
working as an intern in a law office, court, or in the office of a legal
organization such as a district attorney's or public defender's office. (3-0) Y
PSCI 6305 Workshop in Constitutional
Law Studies (3 semester hours) Students will
undertake a major research topic on a law-related matter which will develop
skills in legal research and writing, quantitative research, or field research.
(3-0) Y
PSCI 6306 Human Rights and
International Law (3 semester hours) This course explores international agreements and their effects
on individual rights in a variety of contexts such as international conflicts,
civil wars, and oppressive political regimes. (3-0) R
PSCI 6307 Proseminar in Decision Making and Public Management (3 semester hours) Examines current scholarship on
decisions made by public managers and associated efforts to calculate and
examine the relative risks involved with the outcomes of management decisions. Considers
management decisions that are internal to organizations, such as human resource
decisions, and external decisions such as environmental management. Examines the mathematics and science of risk management. (3-0) Y
PSCI 6309 International Political
Economy and Organizations (3 semester
hours) An overview of important developments in the study of conflict
and cooperation among countries, especially in the economic arena. (3-0) T
PSCI 6310 (POEC 6319) Political
Economy of Multinational Corporations (3 semester hours)The Political Economy of Multinational Corporations will
approach the rise of international firms and their behavior from a social
scientific approach, utilizing research in economics, political science, and
other disciplines. In addition to the historical rise of international firms,
the course covers the economic theory of the firm, MNCs as political actors,
the dynamics of foreign direct investment, and the relationship of MNCs to
developing countries. The aim of the course is to understand the causes and
effects of the behavior of transnational corporations, particularly in regard
to economic policy. (3-0) T
PSCI 6311 Judicial Politics Seminar (3 semester hours) The purpose of this
graduate seminar is to survey the different areas of empirical/quantitative
research in the subfield of judicial politics. The course will assess the courts as political institutions and examine
the interactions between the judiciary and other institutions. We will address the core theoretical debates
and assess key methodological issues concerning judicial decision-making in the
PSCI 6312 Comparative
Constitutions and Courts (3 semester hours) The purpose of this graduate seminar
is to survey the growing body of comparative research on constitutions and
courts. The course will examine both
qualitative and quantitative research that examines the development of
constitutions and courts, particularly in newly independent states or states
transitioning from authoritarian regimes. We will address the core theoretical debates and research concerning 1)
why states adopt these documents and legal institutions and 2) the role these
institutions ultimately play in transitioning states, especially in regard to
the rights protection. These
examinations will span comparative politics, international relations, and the
broader sub-field of public law. (3-0) R
PSCI 6313 (PA 6323 and POEC 6313) Proseminar in Public Policymaking and Institutions (3 semester hours) Surveys the major institutions
associated with policymaking, including Congress, the Presidency, the
bureaucracy, and interest groups. These institutions are studied by linking
them to the decision-making theories or organizations, social choice and incrementalism. (3-0) Y
PSCI 6314 Policy Processes,
Implementation and Evaluation (3
semester hours) Applies models of the policy system to the analysis of
legislative, administrative and judicial processes at different points in the
policy cycle. Uses case studies, empirical analysis, direct observation,
and group projects. Prerequisite:
PSCI 6313 or consent of instructor. (3-0) Y
PSCI 6323 Public Choice (3 semester hours) This course covers the application of economic reasoning to
non-market decision making in situations involving collective choice.
Topics include market and government failure, collective action, properties of
different voting rules, design of constitutions, and the behavior of
candidates, elected officials, bureaucrats, and voters.
Prerequisite: POEC 6307 Microeconomics (3-0) R
PSCI 6324 Local and State Government
and Politics (3 semester hours) Examines public
policy institutions and processes at the local and state levels in the
PSCI 6325 Decision Theory (3 semester hours) Explores the development of decision-making models and theories
across organizational and institutional environments. Includes details analysis of
decision making under conditions of certainty, risk and uncertainty. (3-0) T
PSCI 6330 Campaigns and Media
Relations (3 semester hours) This course surveys the state of the art research on campaigns
and elections in American politics with a focus on the relationship between the
modern campaign and the modern media. (3-0) T
PSCI 6331 Executives, Legislatures
and Public Policy (3 semester hours) An investigation of the role played by executives and
legislatures in shaping public policy in the
PSCI 6332 The
PSCI 6333 Political and Civic
Organizations (3 semester hours) An institutional
perspective on political parties, interest groups, and other organizations such
as labor unions and non-profit organizations that are important actors in
political and civic affairs. The emphasis is on internal operations of organizations,
their strategic behavior, and interactions with government, including both
regulation by the state and attempts to influence public decision makers. (3-0)
T
PSCI 6335 (POEC 6335) Institutions
and Development (3 semester hours) An overview of
leading theories, institutional perspectives, issues and policy debates
concerning urban, regional, national and global development. Topics may include
economic growth, technology and innovation, shifts in industrial structure,
spatially imbalanced change, and their welfare consequences. (3-0) T
PSCI 6336 (PA 6336) Bureaucracy and
Public Policy (3 semester hours) Examination of
processes involved in arriving at administrative decisions within the structure
of the regime. Reciprocal ties of influence and control between official
organizations and other public and private organizational actors, as well as
organizational dynamics such as communication, power, and decision making in
administrative agencies. (3-0) T
PSCI
6337 Comparative Institutions (3
semester hours) A comparative analysis of political and economic institutions
in different settings. Includes a
consideration of different theoretical approaches to the comparative study and
design of institutions in the
PSCI 6339 Election Law and Electoral
Systems (3 semester hours) An examination of election law in
PSCI 6340
PSCI 6341
PSCI 6642 Legislative Affairs
Internship (6 semester hours) The
Legislative internship is a 6-hour course offered during the summer term.
Students will work with the professor to identify an internship with a relevant
government office approved by the professor. Students will be asked to
participate in the daily operations of that office and learn the intricacies of
staffing from a first
hand perspective. (6-0) T
PSCI 6343 Law and The Policy Process (3 semester hours) Provides the
legal perspective on public policy and emphasizes the role of the judicial
system in the recent evolution of public policy in selected problem areas.
(3-0) T
PSCI 6350 Logic, Methodology, and
Scope of Political Science (3 semester
hours) Promotes understanding of how and why research projects are conducted,
and when and why research programs cease to contribute to knowledge production.
Attention also is paid to major modes of analysis in Political Science, the
state of the discipline, and future directions in field-specific, cross-field,
and cross-disciplinary research. (3-0) T
PSCI 6352 Empirical Democratic
Theory (3 semester hours) Encourages
critical and constructive thinking about complex and simple, as well as stable
and variable, developments in citizenship, government, and politics. Additional
consideration is given to formal, game-theoretic, and other approaches to
individual action, institutional design, and individual-institutional
interactions. (3-0) T
PSCI 6353 Mathematical Models in
Political and Social Science (3
semester hours) Introduces
students to a variety of models in the Economic, Political and Policy Sciences,
including primarily rational choice approaches but also some computational
work. The course will allow students to understand and compose rudimentary
models, including prisoner’s dilemma, assurance games, and strategic voting. (3-0)
PSCI 6357 (POEC 6357) Political
Economy of
PSCI 6360 Data Collection and
Analysis in Political and Social Science (3
semester hours) Provides students with basic understanding of methodological
issues in doing systematic empirical research. Covers the collection of survey and
aggregate data, measurement, descriptive and inferential statistics, and
introductory regression analysis. Uses
statistical software, such as SPSS and STATA, together with individual- and
aggregate-level data on government, politics, and public opinion. (3-0) Y
PSCI 6361 (POEC 6361) Political
Violence and Terrorism (3 semester
hours) In this discussion-based
seminar, we will cover the topics of terrorism, political violence, and civil
war. We will examine concepts, causes, and consequences of
different types of political violence. Additionally, we will discuss
topics relevant to research, including discussions of different approaches
(quantitative, qualitative, and formal) and a perusal of different data
sources. We will take advantage of literature from multiple
disciplines. (3-0) T
PSCI 6362 (POEC 6362) Political
Development (3 semester hours) This course surveys different perspectives on and theories of
political development. Topics covered include the role of the state,
democratization, political stability, civil society and environmental concerns.
(3-0) T
PSCI 6363 (POEC 6363) Conflict and
Development (3 semester hours) This module will explore the nexus between violent intrastate
conflict and development. It will examine some of the key conceptual frameworks
advanced to understand conflict and will explore specific themes which have
preoccupied researchers and policy practitioners in recent years. In addition
to assessing the economic costs of the conflicts, this course will also examine
the traditional factors that have been purported to explain the prevalence of
insurgency. (3-0) T
PSCI
6364 Public Opinion and Survey Research (3 semester hours) Introduces students to the principles
and practices of survey research.
Topics include the selection of an appropriate survey method, questionnaire
design and testing, response problems, interviews and surveys, and the analysis
of survey data, including those on political attitudes and public opinion
dynamics. Also examines how these data are used in developing successful
political campaign strategies. (3-0) T
PSCI 7316 Statistics in Law (3 semester hours) Course reviews topics in elementary statistics
and data analysis, and examines the use of statistics in the legal profession,
particularly in trials in appellate decisions, as well as in models of judicial
decision making. (3-0) T
PSCI 7320 (POEC 7320) International
Negotiations (3 semester hours) This course examines both the substance and the process of
international negotiations. Students study the theory and analysis of
negotiations and identify issues, interests and positions of the parties. The
course covers the substantive areas of arms control, trade, and environmental
negotiations. The course moves from the analysis of simple, bilateral
negotiations with only a few issues in contention to complex multilateral
negotiations. (3-0) T
PSCI 7350 Institutions and Citizen
Behavior (3 semester hours) Examines the
major theories, concepts and models associated with relationships between
public institutions and citizen behavior, particularly how such institutions as
elections, interest groups, political parties and social movements mobilize
behavior and how behavior, in turn, influences institutional processes and
outcomes. (3-0) T
PSCI 7352 Choice and Decision Making (3 semester hours) This course integrates theories of political choice with models
of decision making in the fields of social cognition, economics, and consumer
behavior. (3-0) T
PSCI 7360 Multivariate Models for
Analyzing Political and Social Science Data
(3 semester hours) Focuses on the specification and analysis of multivariate
models of individual- and aggregate-level data in the political and Economic,
Political and Policy Sciences. Topics covered include the analysis of
continuous and limited dependent variables, model diagnostics, model
comparison, and exogeneity testing. Introduces structural equation modeling, with emphasis on
the confirmatory factor analysis of multivariate measurement models. Prerequisite: PSCI 6360 or consent of instructor. (3-0) Y
PSCI 7372 Game Theory for Political
Scientists (3 semester hours) An introduction to formal models with more than one
decision-maker, this course will cover basic solution concepts in game
theory. The course will pay particular attention to applications in
political science, rather than the foundational models in economics. (3-0) T
PSCI 7381 Special Topics in Political
Science (3 semester hours) Topics vary
semester to semester and are rotated typically among the three fields of the
program. May
be repeated for credit to a maximum of 9 hours. (3-0) R
PSCI 7V83 Independent Study (3-9 semester hours) Provides faculty supervision of
student’s individual study of a topic that is directly relevant to dissertation
or practicum research and is agreed on by the student and the faculty
supervisor. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor and Political Science Program
Director. (May
be repeated for credit.) ([1-9]-0) R
PSCI
8381 Research Seminar in Political Science
(3 semester hours) Promotes faculty-student research collaboration and
students’ dissertation or practicum and professional development. (May be repeated for credit.) (3-0)
Y
PSCI
8V99 Dissertation or Practicum (1-9 semester hours) Provides faculty supervision of a
student’s dissertation research.
Prerequisite: Consent of instructor and student’s Advisory Committee. (May be
repeated for credit.) ([1-9]-0)
S