printer friendly pagePOLISCI 25N: The US Congress in Historical and Comparative Perspective
This course traces the development of legislatures from their medieval European origins to the present, with primary emphasis on the case of the U.S. Congress. Students will learn about the early role played by assemblies in placing limits on royal power, especially via the power of the purse. About half the course will then turn to a more detailed consideration of the U.S. Congress's contemporary performance, analyzing how that performance is affected by procedural legacies from the past that affect most democratic legislatures worldwide.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Cox, G. (PI)
POLISCI 35: Sustainability and Civilization (BIO 35, HISTORY 35)
Our civilization faces multiple sustainability challenges. Climate change often dominates public conversation, but in fact, a whole range of environmental, economic, political, and cultural trends threaten the structures that sustain the societies we know. These problems cannot be understood in isolation, because they interact in complex ways. Solving them will require collaboration across many different fields, from the natural and social sciences to the humanities. This one-unit course brings together over two dozen faculty from across the entire university for a series of interdisciplinary conversations around cross-cutting themes. Our aim is to encourage dialogue and perhaps even future collaborations among students and professors who might otherwise rarely interact in a classroom. All students are welcome, but frosh and sophomores may find the course especially useful as an introduction to a wide range of sustainability-related disciplines and teachers at Stanford.
Terms: Win
| Units: 1
POLISCI 102: Introduction to American Politics and Policy: In Defense of Democracy (AMSTUD 123X, PUBLPOL 101, PUBLPOL 201)
American democracy faces a series of unprecedented challenges. This course will identify the greatest areas of weakness in the American political system, make sense of the most pressing threats facing democracy, and contemplate how democracy can be strengthened. With this them - in defense of democracy - in mind, we will examine several questions: What guiding principles, norms, and institutions organize and structure American politics, and how do they affect the health and effectiveness of American democracy? What do patterns of political participation and representation in the United States tell us about the health of our democracy? How do partisan and social identities breed hostility and antagonism among the mass public? How does information from the media and other sources advance or frustrate democratic outcomes? What does increased violence - political, racially motivated, or otherwise - reveal about the trajectory of democracy in the United States? This is a course built on the science of politics, and our aim is to bring the scientific study of politics to bear on these pressing questions.
Terms: Win
| Units: 5
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Bonica, A. (PI)
;
Jefferson, H. (PI)
;
Belo-Osagie, A. (TA)
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Instructors:
Bonica, A. (PI)
;
Jefferson, H. (PI)
;
Belo-Osagie, A. (TA)
;
Fikejs, E. (TA)
;
Flores, C. (TA)
;
Sturdivant, M. (TA)
POLISCI 113: Understanding Russia: Its Power and Purpose in a New Global Order (INTLPOL 231B, INTNLREL 131, REES 231B)
Russia presents a puzzle for theories of socio-economic development and modernization and their relationship to state power in international politics. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 brought into being the new Russia (or Russian Federation) as its successor in international politics. Russia suffered one of the worst recessions and experienced 25 years of halting reform. Despite these issues, Russia is again a central player in international affairs. Course analyzes motivations behind contemporary Russian foreign policy by reviewing its domestic and economic underpinnings. Examination of concept of state power in international politics to assess Russia's capabilities to influence other states' policies, and under what conditions its leaders use these resources. Is contemporary Russia strong or weak? What are the resources and constraints its projection of power beyond its borders? What are the determinants of state power in international politics in the twenty-first century? This course is a combination of a lecture and discussion, and will include lectures, readings, class discussions, films and documentaries.
Terms: Win
| Units: 5
| UG Reqs: WAY-SI
Instructors:
Stoner, K. (PI)
POLISCI 114S: International Security in a Changing World (INTNLREL 114S)
International Security in a Changing World examines some of the most pressing international security problems facing the world today: nuclear weapons, the rise of China, the war in Ukraine, terrorism, and climate change. Alternative perspectives - from political science, history, and STS (Science, Technology, and Society) studies - are used to analyze these problems. The class includes an award-winning two-day international negotiation simulation.
Terms: Win
| Units: 5
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, GER:EC-GlobalCom, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Sagan, S. (PI)
;
Trinkunas, H. (PI)
;
Chen, A. (TA)
...
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Instructors:
Sagan, S. (PI)
;
Trinkunas, H. (PI)
;
Chen, A. (TA)
;
Kaufmann, J. (TA)
;
Salm, M. (TA)
;
Slate, D. (TA)
POLISCI 116M: Global Futures: History, Statecraft, Systems (HISTORY 105F, INTLPOL 222, POLISCI 316M)
Where does the future come from? It comes from the past, of course, but how? What are the key drivers of continuity or change, and how can we trace those drivers going forward, too? What are the roles of contingency, chance, and choice, versus long-term underlying structure? How can people, from whatever walk of life, identify and utilize levers of power to ty to shift the larger system? What is a system, and how do systems behave? To answer these questions and analyze how today's world came into being and where it might be headed, this course explores geopolitics and geoeconomics, institutions and technologies, citizenship and leadership. We examine how our world works to understand the limits but also the possibilities of individual and collective agency, the phenomenon of perverse and unintended consequences, and ultimately, the nature of power. Our goal is to investigate not just how to conceive of a smart policy, but how its implementation might unfold. In sum, this course aims to combine strategic analysis and tactical agility.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3-5
| UG Reqs: WAY-SI
POLISCI 117: Chinese Politics and Society: An Expert-Led Seminar (POLISCI 317)
This course provides an in-depth exploration of current issues in Chinese politics and society. Each week features an invited speaker - ranging from world-renowned scholars like Scott Rozelle, Chenggang Xu, and Perry Link, to practitioners and journalists who have deep insights into China. Topics covered include China's political economy, intra-party politics, post-1980 reforms, the urban-rural divide, environmental challenges, media freedom, student movements, and higher education in China. Discussions, moderated by the instructor and TA, follow each seminar. The class is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. Reading proficiency in Mandarin is a plus but not mandatory.
Terms: Win
| Units: 3-5
Instructors:
Xu, Y. (PI)
;
Luo, J. (TA)
POLISCI 120B: Campaigns, Voting, Media, and Elections (AMSTUD 162B, COMM 162, COMM 262)
(Graduate students enroll in
COMM 262.
COMM 162 is offered for 5 units,
COMM 262 is offered for 4 units.) This course examines the theory and practice of American campaigns and elections. First, we will attempt to explain the behavior of the key players -- candidates, parties, journalists, and voters -- in terms of the institutional arrangements and political incentives that confront them. Second, we will use current and recent election campaigns as "laboratories" for testing generalizations about campaign strategy and voter behavior. Third, we examine selections from the academic literature dealing with the origins of partisan identity, electoral design, and the immediate effects of campaigns on public opinion, voter turnout, and voter choice. As well, we'll explore issues of electoral reform and their more long-term consequences for governance and the political process.
Terms: Win
| Units: 5
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-SocSci, WAY-SI
POLISCI 124A: The American West (AMSTUD 124A, ARTHIST 152, ENGLISH 124, HISTORY 151)
The American West is characterized by frontier mythology, vast distances, marked aridity, and unique political and economic characteristics. This course integrates several disciplinary perspectives into a comprehensive examination of Western North America: its history, physical geography, climate, literature, art, film, institutions, politics, demography, economy, and continuing policy challenges. Students examine themes fundamental to understanding the region: time, space, water, peoples, and boom and bust cycles.
Terms: Win
| Units: 5
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, GER:EC-AmerCul, WAY-A-II, WAY-SI
Instructors:
Cain, B. (PI)
;
Fishkin, S. (PI)
;
Freyberg, D. (PI)
...
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Instructors:
Cain, B. (PI)
;
Fishkin, S. (PI)
;
Freyberg, D. (PI)
;
Kennedy, D. (PI)
;
Shelton, N. (PI)
;
Leonard, D. (TA)
;
Martinez, X. (TA)
;
Shelton, N. (TA)
POLISCI 124L: The Psychology of Communication About Politics in America (COMM 164, COMM 264, POLISCI 324L, PSYCH 170, PUBLPOL 164)
Focus is on how politicians and government learn what Americans want and how the public's preferences shape government action; how surveys measure beliefs, preferences, and experiences; how poll results are criticized and interpreted; how conflict between polls is viewed by the public; how accurate surveys are and when they are accurate; how to conduct survey research to produce accurate measurements; designing questionnaires that people can understand and use comfortably; how question wording can manipulate poll results; corruption in survey research.
Terms: Win
| Units: 4-5
| UG Reqs: WAY-SI
Instructors:
Krosnick, J. (PI)
;
Dalton, M. (TA)
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