POLS& 203: International Relations

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Class Program

Political Science

Credits

Weekly Contact Hours

Course ID

091947

Meets Degree Requirements For

Diversity,

Social Science

Description

Critically explore actors in international politics: individuals, states, and organizations. Investigate the impacts of colonialism and imperialism on ethnic/religious conflicts, extreme poverty, slave labor, and violence against women in the Global South. Examine key political theories of international relations: Marxism, Realism, Liberalism, and Feminism.

Grading Basis

Graded

Course Learning Outcomes

Gain historical understanding of the “nation-state” system that state authority and the relationships among states.

Understand several schools of thought regarding international behavior, including Liberalism, Realism, Constructivism, Feminism, and Radicalism.

Recognize the role and impact of individuals, Inter-government Organizations, and Non-governmental Organizations, in international relations.

List and describe the causes of conflict and war, as well as poverty, genocides, terrorism, and environmental degradation.

Explain economic relations among states and the international economic system dominated by former colonial powers and empires that perpetuates a cycle of poverty and violence in the Global South.

Understand and appreciate the social, political, and economic problems associated with the North-South gap, and their root causes.

Improve students’ research, analytical, computer and writing skills by requiring critique papers of leading political science articles as part of the course requirements.

Core Topics

Understanding International Relations—Actors and theories.
Power Politics
Alternatives to Power Politics
Foreign Policy and Processes.
International Conflict
Military Force
International Organizations and Law
Trade and Globalization
The North-South Gap.
Humanity at the Center of I.R. in the 21st Century.