GRADUATE SCHOOL

Political Science and International Relations (Without thesis)

PSIR 503 | Course Introduction and Application Information

Course Name
Comparative Politics
Code
Semester
Theory
(hour/week)
Application/Lab
(hour/week)
Local Credits
ECTS
PSIR 503
Fall
3
0
3
7.5

Prerequisites
None
Course Language
English
Course Type
Required
Course Level
Second Cycle
Mode of Delivery -
Teaching Methods and Techniques of the Course Discussion
Critical feedback
Lecture / Presentation
Course Coordinator -
Course Lecturer(s)
Assistant(s)
Course Objectives This course introduces the major theoretical and methodological debates in comparative politics as well as the particular areas of research in the subfield. The objectives of this course include understanding the major concepts, debates, and approaches in comparative politics. Topics include the formation of nations and states, democracy, autocracy, party systems, electoral systems, executive and legislative institutions.
Learning Outcomes The students who succeeded in this course;
  • Will be able to explain the origins of nation-state.
  • Will be able to discuss how different regime types emerge.
  • Will be able to compare political institutions in different countries.
  • Will be able to use comparative research methods.
  • Will be able to compare and contrast different political systems across the world.
Course Description This course broadly covers the comparison of state institutions and political systems across countries. During the course the students are expected to read the assigned material and actively participate in class discussions. The general format of the course comprises lectures, class discussions of the assigned readings, and examinations. Attendance is required at all times. Some percentage of your final grade will be based on your attendance and class participation.

 



Course Category

Core Courses
X
Major Area Courses
Supportive Courses
Media and Management Skills Courses
Transferable Skill Courses

 

WEEKLY SUBJECTS AND RELATED PREPARATION STUDIES

Week Subjects Related Preparation
1 Introduction Presentation and an overview of the course
2 What is comparative politics? Caramani, Chaps 1- 3; Wilson, Matthew. 2017. “Trends in Political Science Research and the Progress of Comparative Politics,” PS: Political Science and Politics 50(4): 979-8; Mahoney, James, 2010. “After KKV: The New Methodology of Qualitative Research,” World Politics 62(1): 120-47.
3 Origins of State and Nation Caramani, Ch.4; Taylor, B.D. and Botea, R. 2008. Tilly Tally: War-making and State-making in the Contemporary Third World. International Studies Review 10(1): 27-56; Spruyt, Hendrik. 2011. “War, Trade and State Formation,” in Robert Goodin (ed) Oxford Handbook of Comparative Politics; Mylonas, Harris and Maya Tudor. 2021. “Nationalism: What We Know and What We Still Need to Know.” Annual Review of Political Science, 24:1, 109-132.
4 Regime types: Democratization and Democracy Caramani, Ch.5 Geddes, Barbara. 1999. ‘What Do We Know About Democratization After Twenty Years?’ Annual Review of Political Science, 2:115‐44; Collier, David and Steven Levitsky. 1997. Democracy with Adjectives: Conceptual Innovation in Comparative Research. World Politics 49(3): 430-51; Ziblatt, Daniel. 2006. "How Did Europe Democratize?" World Politics 58: 311–38.
5 Autocracy and Democratic Backsliding Caramani, Ch.6 Diamond, Larry. 2002. ‘Thinking about Hybrid Regimes.’ Journal of Democracy 13: 21‐35. Gandhi, Jennifer and Adam Przeworski. 2007. "Authoritarian institutions and the survival of autocrats." Comparative Political Studies 40(11): 1279-1301. ; Waldner, David and Ellen Lust. 2018. "Unwelcome change: Coming to terms with democratic backsliding." Annual Review of Political Science 21: 93-113.
6 Electoral systems Caramani, Ch.10 Boix, Carles. 1999. “Setting the Rules of the Game: The Choice of Electoral Systems in Advanced Democracies.” American Political Science Review 93 (3 Sep.): 609-624; Horowitz, Donald. 2003. "Electoral systems: A primer for decision makers." Journal of Democracy 14(4): 115-127.
7 Midterm Exam -
8 Political parties and party systems Caramani, Ch. 12-13 Urbinati, Nadia and Mark Warren. 2008. "The concept of representation in contemporary democratic theory." Annual Review of Political Science, 11: 387-412.
9 Legislative and Executive Institutions Caramani, Ch.7&8 Blais, André, Louis Massicotte and Agnieszka Dobrynska. 1997. ‘Direct presidential elections: A world summary.’ Electoral Studies 16(4): 441‐455. Linz, Juan. 1990. ‘The Perils of Presidentialism.’ Journal of Democracy 1(1): 51‐69.
10 Institutionalism: Old and New Hall, P. and Taylor, R. (1996) “Political science and the three new institutionalisms”, Political Studies, (44) 936-957. Selznick, P. (1996). Institutionalism" old" and" new". Administrative science quarterly, 270-277. Immergut, E. M. (1998). The theoretical core of the new institutionalism. Politics & society, 26(1), 5-34.
11 Social Movements Caramani, Ch.16 Tarrow, Sidney, and Charles Tilly. 2007. “Contentious Politics and Social Movements.” In Carles Boix and Susan Stokes, eds., Oxford Handbook of Comparative Politics. New York: Oxford University Press.
12 Economy and welfare state Caramani, Ch. 21. Burkhart, Ross E. 1997. ‘Comparative Democracy and Income Distribution: Shape and Direction of the Causal Arrow.’ Journal of Politics 59(1): 148‐164; Pierson, Paul. 1996. “The New Politics of the Welfare State.” World Politics 48, 2: 143-79. (37)
13 Student Presentations
14 Student Presentations
15 Review of the Semester
16 Final Exam

 

Course Notes/Textbooks

Course textbook is Daniele Caramani. 2008. Comparative Politics. (5th edition) Oxford: Oxford University Press.

All course readings are available at the University Library and as open sources.

Suggested Readings/Materials

Moore, Barrington, Jr. 1966. Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy: Lord and Peasant in the Making of the Modern World. Boston: Beacon Press.

Skocpol, Theda. 1979. States and Social Revolutions: A Comparative Analysis of France, Russia, and China. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Scott, James C. 1985. Weapons of the Weak. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Almond, Gabriel A., and Sidney Verba. 1989 [1963]. The Civic Culture: Political Attitudes and Democracy in Five Nations. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Gellner, Ernest. 2009 [1983]. Nations and Nationalism. Ithaca: Cornell University Press

Putnam, Robert D. 1993. Making Democracy Work: Civic Traditions in Modern Italy. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Lijphart, Arend. 1994. Electoral Systems and Party Systems: A Study of Twenty‐Seven Democracies, 1945‐1990. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Lijphart, Arend. 1999. Patterns of Democracy: Government Forms and Performance in Thirty-Six Countries. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Kitschelt, Herbert. 1994. The Transformation of European Social Democracy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Linz, Juan. 2000. Totalitarian and Authoritarian Regimes. Boulder: Lynne Rienner. 

Fukuyama, Francis. 2004. State‐Building: Governance and World Order in the 21st Century. Cornell University Press.

Acemoglu, Daron, and James A. Robinson. 2005. Economic Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Tarrow, Sidney. 2008. Power in Movement: Social Movements and Contentious Politics. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Lichbach, Mark Irving, and Alan S. Zuckerman. 2009. Comparative Politics: Rationality, Culture and Structure (2nd Edition). Cambridge University Press.

Bates, Robert H. 2009. When Things Fall Apart: State Failure in Late Century Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

WIMMER, Andreas. 2013. Waves of War: Nationalism, State Formation, and Ethnic Exclusion in the Modern World. Cambridge University Press.

WIMMER, Andreas. 2018. Nation Building: Why Some Countries Come Together While Others Fall Apart. Princeton University Press.

ACADEMIC HONESTY: Honesty and trust are the most fundamental pillars of learning and are necessary foundation for success and academic freedom in a university. Hence, any behavior that jeopardizes the learning environment by violating the rules of academic honesty will not be tolerated or condoned: Violations of academic honesty include but are not limited to: Cheating or facilitating cheating • looking or attempting to look at another student's answers or allowing others to copy one's answers, • copying other student’s in-class or take-home exam answers or letting others use take-home exam answers, • using "cheat sheet," pre-programmed calculator if not allowed by the instructor, • having someone else prepare the term project or homework or letting others use one’s homework/term project/paper, • Assistance of another person in preparation of a tem paper/homework/project if not allowed by the instructor, • Taking an exam for another student, • Purchasing term projects or homework or other assignments, • Signing in place of another student using their name/signature/student id number, Plagiarism • showing the work of another as one's own, • Not properly citing an earlier own work, • Submitting the same homework/paper/term project in one more one course if not allowed by the instructor, • Inaccurately or inadequately citing sources including those from the Internet, Violations of academic honesty can result in disciplinary action, as stated in the "Student Disciplinary Rules and Regulation" of the University. http://www.ieu.edu.tr/en/bylaws/type/read/id/13 and http://kariyer.ieu.edu.tr/en/bylaws/type/read/id/81 By enrolling in the University, each student is assumed to have read the rules and regulations regarding academic dishonesty, and lack of knowledge of this policy is not an acceptable defense.

 

EVALUATION SYSTEM

Semester Activities Number Weigthing
Participation
1
20
Laboratory / Application
-
-
Field Work
Quizzes / Studio Critiques
Portfolio
Homework / Assignments
1
20
Presentation / Jury
1
10
Project
Seminar / Workshop
Oral Exams
Midterm
1
20
Final Exam
1
30
Total

Weighting of Semester Activities on the Final Grade
4
70
Weighting of End-of-Semester Activities on the Final Grade
1
30
Total

ECTS / WORKLOAD TABLE

Semester Activities Number Duration (Hours) Workload
Theoretical Course Hours
(Including exam week: 16 x total hours)
16
3
48
Laboratory / Application Hours
(Including exam week: '.16.' x total hours)
16
0
Study Hours Out of Class
15
5
75
Field Work
0
Quizzes / Studio Critiques
0
Portfolio
0
Homework / Assignments
1
25
25
Presentation / Jury
1
5
5
Project
0
Seminar / Workshop
0
Oral Exam
0
Midterms
1
35
35
Final Exam
1
37
37
    Total
225

 

COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES AND PROGRAM QUALIFICATIONS RELATIONSHIP

#
Program Competencies/Outcomes
* Contribution Level
1
2
3
4
5
1 To improve theoretical and conceptual proficiencies on Political Science and International Relations and to ultimately deepen and develop intellectual interest X
2 To evaluate the relationships between factors in the field of Political Science and International Relations such as structures, actors, institutions and culture in a critical perspective X
3 To provide advanced competences to determine and question the theoretical and emprical gaps in Political Science and International Relations literature X
4 To identify the political and cultual conditions that generate discrimination mechanisms based on race, ethnic groups, gender and religion at national and international levels X
5 To provide competences to develop original arguments in order to fill the gaps in Political Science and International Relations literature X
6 To determine, collect, resolve, and interpret the data that would measure the theories and concepts as variables by using scientific research methods in Political Science and International Relations field X
7 To use confidently the terms and concepts of Political Science and International Relations X
8 To communicate systematically, in written, oral, and visual forms, contemporary developments in Political Science and International Relations to groups inside and outside the said discipline X
9 To take responsibility in an individual capacity and as part of a team in generating solutions to unexpected problems that arise in relation to politics in daily life X
10 To develop projects determining the institutional and political instruments for management of domestic and international conflicts X
11 To prepare an orginal thesis/term project about Political Science and International Relations in accordance with scentific criteria X
12 To design and carry out a scientific research project in the field of Political Science and International Relations X
13 To have ethical, social and scientific values in the stages throughout the processes of collecting, interpreting, disseminating and implementing data relevant to Political Science and International Relations X

*1 Lowest, 2 Low, 3 Average, 4 High, 5 Highest

 


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