BA Government

Political Science is a highly diverse field united around a core interest. Political scientists study power, and especially power used for public purposes: how it is created, organized, distributed, justified, used, resisted, and sometimes destroyed. American political science is traditionally divided into four subfields: American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Political Theory and Public Law. Students may choose to study within one of these subfields or may choose courses according to some other intellectual plan. This course will introduce students to the field of comparative government and politics through an examination of selected political systems. Special attention will be given to analytic techniques involved in the study of the field and to certain basic concepts, such as power and political culture, decision-making, and communications.