83.02 Politics and Markets (Identical to PBPL 81.9)
Someone once said, There is a place for the market, and the market must be kept in its place. In this course, we explore the policy debates in the U.S. over the proper role of government in promoting market efficiency and protecting citizens from the adverse consequences of market competition. We begin with an effort to define the scope of the private and public sectors. We then consider an array of policy instruments to correct market failures and redistribute income. Finally, we examine the use of market-oriented approaches to policy problems, such as cost-benefit analysis, vouchers, and pollution rights. Dist: SOC; WCult: NA / W..
83.06 Political Communication
This course will evaluate the nature of political communication in the American political process. We will examine the relationships between evolving communication technology, political advertising, campaign finance, the mass media, public opinion, and public deliberation. We will pay particular attention to the methods by which politicians attempt to communicate with the public in order to win campaigns, the communication strategies they use to keep their positions once in office, the role of both traditional and new media, and how the current practice of political communication affects the role of the public in american democracy. Dist: SOC, WCult: NA and W
83.09 Congress by Comparison: Empirical Analyses
In this course we will seek to understand Congress from an empirical perspective. Rather than simply explain how Congress does (and doesn't) work, we will examine the particular constraints that make the legislative process so difficult in the United States. We will examine other democracies such as Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France as sources of comparison and study the growing literature that tests theories of legislative behavior. We will make use of the immense amount of Congressional data available seeking appropriate explanations of our own to compare with our readings. Government 10 strongly recommended. Dist: SOC; WCult: NA.
83.16 Voting Irregularities and Issues in Electoral Reform
This political research seminar will provide students with an introduction to the study of voting irregularities like uncounted votes, recounts, and voting technology problems. These sets of issues, among many others, are prominent in ongoing academic and policy debates on electoral reform. Readings in the seminar will focus on the history of American voting, historical election disputes, the 2000 presidential election, the 2004 presidential election, and the 2004 Washington gubernatorial election. Beyond its readings the seminar will require all students to write a research paper on an ostensibly problematic aspect of voting that affects American elections. Prerequisite: Government 10. Dist: SOC, WCult: NA / W
83.17 The American Voter Through Time
The American Voter Through Time will investigate the characteristic American voter beginning when public opinion data were collected (the middle of the 20th century) to today. Such data were made available because the behavioral revolution in the social sciences encouraged the quantitative measurement of public opinion. This movement provided academic researchers a wealth of data with which to study the American voter. The earliest scholars analyzed these data and found evidence of an American public largely devoid of sophisticated political thinking. From this groundbreaking study, other scholars argued that the unsophisticated electorate of the 1950's gave way to a more sophisticated audience in more politically charged times (1990s and 1970s). Another group of scholars took issue with the early thesis of unsophisticated voters on methodological grounds. They argued that the data were not properly analyzed. Using more advanced technology, scholars continued to try to understand the American electorate. Today, most arguments focus on the degree to which the American public has polarized along political and ideological lines. This course will survey all this research. It will investigate both the substantive and methodological arguments that have been debated as scholars seek to understand the attitudes and behaviors of the characteristic American voter as well as how it has changed over time. Students who have a deep interest in history will be encouraged to research the characteristics of the American voter before data were available using historical records for their class project.
83.18 Politics and Policy in the American States
Students in the seminar will use materials drawn from the State Politics and Policy Quarterly (SPPQ) to intensively study American state politics and policy. Further we will examine newly-submitted manuscripts. We will alternate class sessions between (1) the study of published articles in SPPQ and the literature that the article is embedded in, and (2) sessions devoted to newly submitted manuscripts by examining why the author chose to study this topic (the intellectual "origin" of an argument); why the American states provided a significant advantage in this study (study of the states as comparative advantage); the methodological choices of the author; and, in the end, what have we learned from the manuscript about politics and policy in the states.It will be a two-term seminar (meeting in both winter and spring terms). It will meet once a week throughout both terms, but earns one course credit. Dist: SOC, WCult: NA and W
83.19 American Political Behavior
Do most Americans have real opinions on political issues, or are their opinions transient and heavily influenced by the media and political elites? What are Americans' opinions on important issues? Do the media determine the issues people care about, or does public concern about an issue drive media coverage? How can we measure people's attitudes, preferences, and opinions? How and why are Democrats, Republicans, and Independents different? Why do some people vote while others do not? Do people in "red states" and "blue states" differ in their political attitudes? If so, why? We will explore these questions and others from a social science perspective. We will read answers to these questions from journalists, political practitioners, and academic researchers, formulate our own hypotheses, and test these hypotheses using data that are available or that we will uncover. Completion of Government 10 or its equivalent is highly recommended before taking this course. Dist: SOC, WCult: NA and W
83.20 Law and Political Institutions *new*
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