17.50 Introduction to Comparative Politics, Fall 2003
Author(s)
Lawson, Chappell H., 1967-; Rodden, Jonathan
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Alternative title
Introduction to Comparative Politics
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Why are some countries democratic and others not? How do political institutions affect economic development and political conflict? How do politics in the United States compare to politics in other countries? This class first reviews cultural, social, and institutional explanations for political outcomes. It then turns to more detailed examination of specific topics: ethnic conflict in India, democratic collapse in Weimar Germany, regional disparities in Italy, market-oriented reform (or lack thereof) in Brazil, corruption in Mexico, ethnic violence in Yugoslavia, the impoverishment of post-Communist Russia, and the prospects for democracy in China. Each of these examples is meant to stand in for a range of cases, allowing you to extrapolate to new material. At the end of the course, you should be able to analyze political events around the world, drawing on the theoretical explanations provided in the class.
Date issued
2003-12Other identifiers
17.50-Fall2003
local: 17.50
local: IMSCP-MD5-244170dec3242150d42cbff8463c550e
Keywords
Democracy, political institutions, economic development, political conflict, ethnic conflict, India, Weimar Germany, market-oriented reform, Brazil, Corruption, Mexico, ethnic violence, Yugoslavia, post-Communist Russia, China, Comparative government