Political Economy

Abstract

This seminar focuses on the interplay of political and economic factors in shaping policy outcomes at local to global levels. It concentrates on the application of economic logic to political questions and the influence of political processes and institutions on economic activity.

Objective

This seminar focuses on the interplay of political and economic factors in shaping policy outcomes at local to global levels. It concentrates on the application of economic logic to political questions and the influence of political processes and institutions on economic activity.

Content

This seminar focuses on the interplay of political and economic factors in shaping policy outcomes at local to global levels. It focuses on the application of economic logic to political questions and the influence of political processes and institutions on economic activity. It draws on a broad range of theoretical perspectives from comparative and international politics, positive political theory, public choice, and economics. We first review basic theoretical models from political science and economics and then use them to investigate a number of specific areas of interest. We examine the effects of special interests on government regulation of economic activity, the determinants of the size of government, economic growth and sustainable development, the politics of international trade and investment, and monetary and fiscal policy. We seek to make students familiar not only with the theoretical and methodological approaches used in this area of study, but also with important research issues in comparative and international political economy.

Resources