Fall 2018

A forum for the presentation and discussion of research in quantitativemodeling. Anyone working on quantitative modeling or empirical testing of quantitative models is welcome to attend. To receive credit for the course, a student must attend regularly, participate actively, and make at least two presentations per semester. Presentations can be of the student's own work-in-progress or of work by other scholars (including both influential/classic works or interesting current working papers).

Variable Unit Course: 1.0 to 3.0

Dissertation Writing Workshop for students in all empirical subfields.   Students working on all phases of their dissertations, from prospectus to post field work writing and post-research article preparation, are welcome.

How has religion shaped the structure of the international system? How should IR scholars approach the role that religion plays in contemporary affairs? How does religion constrain or motivate international conflict? This seminar seeks to guide students through readings in the social sciences, from psychology and sociology to anthropology and political science, that explore the intersection of religion and international relations. We will examine a variety of theoretical approaches to the topic of religion and global politics, explore religious origins of the modern state system, and analyze the influence of religion on historical and contemporary conflicts, with a particular focus on ethnic conflict, terrorism, and peacemaking. 

This course focuses on understanding the causes and consequences of state fragility in different parts of the world. Students who enroll in the course will examine a variety of policy options for helping fragile or failing states to build state capacity in areas such as security and public services. The course will afford students a unique opportunity to participate in international collaboration. The course will be prepared by faculty from University of California, Berkeley, National University of Singapore, and University of Tokyo. The three universities will collaborate in sharing a core syllabus, common course materials, and lectures across campuses. Students will also have the opportunity to work with colleagues from the other universities across the globe on group projects that lead to policy recommendations.

In this course, students will learn to explore, discuss, and better understand the relationship between racial/ethnic group formation, group-based beliefs and behavior, and politics. Our focus is on the US today, but with an appreciation of how the racial politics of the here and now is rooted in history and human psychology. We cover Black Politics, Latinx Politics, Asian American Politics, Native American Politics and White Politics, as well as general concepts of identity, immigration, citizenship, class, and intersectionality. We examine both how race and ethnicity affect politics, as well as how politics can shape the boundaries, definitions and behaviors of groups. These behaviors include voting, elite decisions, civic engagement, protests, and media content and usage.

Subfield: American Politics

Instructor: Kristine Kay

This course will study the foundational texts of modern political thought, including Machiavelli’s Prince, Hobbes’ Leviathan, Locke’s Two Treatises of Government, and Rousseau’s Social Contract.  Topics for study and examination will include the theory of the modern sovereign state; the origin of the state (especially the theory of the social contract); the concept of natural rights; theories of political liberty and equality; the permissibility of political resistance and revolution; early modern ideas of democratic and non-democratic forms of rule; religion and politics. 

Instructor: Rosemarie Wagner

This course provides an overview of California politics, with a focus on contemporary issues and an analysis of who wields power and why. Specifically, the course will focus on : the demographic, social and economic forces that shape the State's politics- the three official branches of state government (executive, legislative and judicial)- the three unofficial branches (the media, lobbyists and interest groups)- campaigns (candidates, initiatives, consultants, pollsters, political parties and money), local government, the state budget and education policies.

Subfield:   American Politics

Please note this description is from Fall 2013

The Middle East seems plagued by endless strife:  wars, civil wars, insurgencies, terrorism.  Is that perception true?  If so, why is this region so conflict-prone?   What factors motivate, constrain, and shape these conflicts?  How can policy makers influence war in the Middle East?  This undergraduate lecture class takes on these and other thorny questions.  It is a sequel to PS124A (“War!”) and builds on insights from that class to explore war in a particular part of the world.

This is not a class on Middle East politics.  It is an IR class focused less on the politics of particular states and more on relations between states, especially violent relations.  This is not a class on the Arab-Israeli conflict or on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  Both are important cases of war in the Middle East and will be explored alongside other significant conflicts in the region. 

Most importantly:  This is not a class designed to defend a specific claim or theory about conflict in the Middle East.  On the contrary, this is a social science class:   My goal is to teach the importance of exploring pressing policy questions by testing the strengths and weaknesses of competing and often contradictory theories in an even-handed manner.  At the same time, students will be expected to reach their own conclusions and produce pragmatic recommendations in the form of policy memoranda.

This class begins, like its counterpart, with a historical overview of war in the region.  The second part of the class introduces theories that complement and elaborate on theories from PS124A:  arguments about the relationship between war and resources, religion, authoritarianism, civil-military relations, territorial disputes, sovereignty, and power.  In the third part of the course, we will explore current policy concerns related to conflict in the region:  Nuclear proliferation, terrorism, the civil war in Syria, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, drone warfare, and the U.S. role in the region.

It is commonly said that justice requires giving people their due, but what are people due and in virtue of what? Is justice about maximizing happiness and minimizing harm? Is it about protecting
individual liberty? What about equality? What kind of equality? How should we conceive of equality across racial and gender lines? Are liberty and equality opposing political values? In a just society, how would basic liberties, educational opportunities, and income and wealth be distributed? We will pursue these questions by examining four leading theories in Western political thought – utilitarianism, libertarianism, egalitarian liberalism, and Marxism. To assess the strengths and weaknesses of these theories, we will discuss their implications for a range of controversial issues, including the regulation of sex, labor market regulations, public funding for education, affirmative action, and immigration.

Note: This course is room shared with Legal Studies 107

Instructor: Professor Christopher Kutz