Schedule of Classes

The American political system: constitutional principles, political processes, and governmental policy making.

Political processes through which rapidly growing problems of the state and local governments are identified, fought over, and resolved.

Comparative analysis of selected political systems.

Recurrent concepts or issues in political thought and ways they have been treated by classic and contemporary writers. Obligation and the social contract, liberty, justice and equality, property, representation.

Introduction to political inquiry; research methods necessary for in-depth research.

Topics of special interest which may vary each time course is offered. Topic stated in current Schedule of Classes. May be repeated under a different topic for a maximum 6 hours credit.

A comparative introduction to the social and economic policies of such advanced industrial democracies as Japan, Britain, France, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, and the United States.

Formation of opinion, perception of political events, voting behavior, and political participation; significance for democratic government.

Organization and activities of modern political parties, forces shaping partisan organization and activities, and development of public policy. Emphasis on party politics in contemporary America, with attention to American political history and comparative party systems.

Nature, sources, and development of international law as it has been invoked in diplomatic practices, international adjudications, and national courts.

Political behavior of American trial courts and variables connecting them to the larger political system. Examples from criminal procedure and civil justice cases. Emphasis on police and prosecutorial discretion; recruitment of judges; juries; and social function of judgments and punishments.

Provides credit for students participating in the seminar component of the Washington Center program in Washington, D.C.

A study of the basic issues and techniques of public personnel administration: focus on the distinctive setting in which public managers function, theories of motivation in the work place, and the tasks commonly faced by human resource managers in the public sector.

Students work with selected political agencies, to study practical political problems from the perspective of the discipline. Course may be repeated for a maximum of six credit hours. Pass/Fail.

Individual in-depth work on a subject approved and supervised by a PLS faculty member. For highly qualified students.

Individual research for qualified students. May be repeated for a maximum of 6 hours credit.

Seminar in American Politics