Topics in Comparative Political Economy (Fall 2019)

Abstract

The seminar examines central topics in comparative political economy research. Students will learn the analytical skills to understand the relationships affecting individuals, political and economic institutions and policy outcomes. Through reading, writing, and seminar participation, they will evaluate concepts, theoretical approaches, and empirical research most relevant to the field. One of the seminal questions in the study of politics: Who gets what, when and how? Comparative political economy focuses on the comparative study of distributional outcomes across countries by assessing differences in the relationships among individuals, institutions and the economy. Why are some countries wealthier than other? Why do some democracies redistribute more than others? What is the relationship between inequality and growth? Why do some people want more redistribution than others? In the first half of this seminar, students will systematically assess these and other questions in a way that prepares them to conduct their own research projects in the second half of the seminar.