Comparative Political Institutions

Description

This course examines the central issues in comparative political institutions across a range of jurisdictions and from a variety of perspectives. The course introduces core political institutions and discusses various approaches to their study. It deals with key concepts (majoritarian democracy vs consociationalism etc.) and institutional arrangements in a historical and comparative perspective. The course develops skills to equip student researchers with the conceptual tools to undertake insightful, critical, and original comparative work of their own in their final assessment. The overall aim of the course is to develop students' understanding and use of many general theoretical explanations surrounding debates in political institutions and to develop students' critical/analytical approach to many of the questions facing practitioners and scholars in the next decade. Learning Outcomes Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to: identify the concepts that influence the dynamics of political institutions; understand the sources of these concepts and their historical development; use these concepts in order to critically research, analyse, and evaluate major issues in political institutions; and develop skills for research, argument, and analysis in order to effectively communicate their own perspectives on key concepts and issues in political institutions.