Course objectives
This course will expose students to a consistent analytical approach to the study of political institutions and processes, as well as their interactions with society and the economy. The focus will be on 1) the derivation of models of political behavior and 2) their application to understanding historical instances of political institutions and development.
Readings
- Shepsle, K. A. (2010). Analyzing politics (2nd Edition). Norton.
- Buchanan, J. M., & Tullock, G. (1962). The calculus of consent. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
- Barzel, Y. (2002). A theory of the state: economic rights, legal rights, and the scope of the state. Cambridge University Press.
- North, D. C., Wallis, J. J., & Weingast, B. R. (2009). Violence and social orders: A conceptual framework for interpreting recorded human history. Cambridge University Press.
- Selection of papers from academic journals in economics and political science.
Topics
- Social choice theory
- Democratic decision-making
- Constitutional political economy
- Political property rights
- Bureaucratic behavior
- Rent-seeking
- Theories of regulation
- Civil war and political order
- Historical case studies
Grading
The course grade will be a weighted average of 1) weekly quizzes based on the content of the assigned readings (20%); 2) two homework sets (30%); 3) a final paper on a topic in political economy (50%).