The world is becoming increasingly integrated into a "global village;" what happens in other countries increasingly affects us.  Especially after September 11, we know too painfully how our personal security is linked to political processes in foreign countries.  Our economy is more and more internationalized; we are more dependent on imported products and we need foreign markets for our sales.  International economic competition influences which industries and companies flourish and collapse.  International migration links us to many countries and shapes our culture and labor markets.  Natural and man-made disasters in far corners of the earth are beamed into our living rooms nightly, challenging us with complex political and ethical dilemmas.  We often send soldiers, missiles, relief workers, FBI investigators, or other resources to distant corners of the earth, which we don't understand very well.

We need a better understanding of foreign governments and politics for us to function effectively in the newly emerging global system.  At the same time, we face complex problems in trying to develop a better society at home.  The experiences of other countries can give us positive and negative models as we try to perfect our policies.

This course introduces students to different types of political systems around the world.  We will use the classic analytical framework developed by Aristotle over 2,000 years ago, which considers:

• constitutional structures of the state
• patterns of political participation
• policy processes and results of policies, focusing on economic policy

When the course is completed, students should have a good understanding of different types of political systems.  They should understand the similarities and differences between presidential and parliamentary democratic systems. They should understand single member district and proportional representation voting systems, and how these systems are linked to two party and multi-party systems.  Students should also understand different types of authoritarian political systems, including the classic Stalinist system, one party mobilization systems, and market-leninism.  Students should also understand military coups and rule, cyclical shifts between military and civilian rule, personal autocracy,  kleptocracy, and recent trends towards democratization. They should understand why modernization sometimes intensifies ethnic and religious conflict.  They should understand how political leaders are selected in different types of political systems, and the roles of parties and elections.  Students should have a comparative insight into domestic and foreign policies.  They should understand the advantages and disadvantages of free markets and state planning and recognize the risks and benefits of increasing international interdependency.  (Consider this paragraph a preliminary study guide for the final exam.)

The course is an "International Studies" course within the Core Curriculum. 

For political science students, those who declared their major in Political Science after Aug. 31, 2005, are required to take both PS 52 (this course) and PS 53, International Politics.  Students who declared earlier need take either PS 52 or PS 53. 

The course has no prerequsites.

Disability Statement: This course is open to all students who meet the academic requirements for participation.  Any student who has a need for accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact the instructor privately to discuss the specific situation as soon as possible.  Contact Disability Resources and Services at 215-204-1280 in 100 Ritter Annex to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities. 

Statement on Academic Freedom:  Freedom to teach and freedom to learn are inseparable facets of academic freedom. The University has adopted a policy on Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities (Policy # 03.70.02) which can be accessed through the following link: http://policies.temple.edu/getdoc.asp?policy_no=03.70.02. 
 

REQUIRED TEXTBOOK

John McCormick, Comparative Politics in Transition. (Fifth Edition)  Belmont: Wadsworth, 2007.   ISBN-10: 0495007609   ISBN-13: 9780495007609.  

Available at the book store. One copy is on reserve in the library (4th edition).

Note: You may use a second-hand copy of a prior edition.  (Amazon.com has it listed.)  Of course the pagination is a little different for the reading assignments, and you'll have to make an adjustment.

Students in this course are expected to read the New York Times (or a paper with comparable international reporting such as the Wall Street Journal or Christian Science Monitor) regularly, paying special attention to articles about foreign politics.  The Times is available in the newspaper section downstairs in Paley library and is sold on campus in machines.  It is also on the internet at  http://www.nytimes.com.  Off campus students can get the Times delivered daily at a very advantageous student price in areas where there is regular home delivery. Contact the New York Times College Program 1-800-631-1222 for information.

COMPUTER UTILIZATION

Students who have not done so already should obtain a computer account and develop the necessary skills.  Temple University has frequent training programs and many computer laboratories available for student use.  Materials for this course, including lecture notes and study guides are available on the internet, at

http://astro.temple.edu/~bstavis/courses/polsci52.htm

I strongly encourage students to print the lecture notes from the web before class so they can concentrate on the discussion and not become pre-occupied taking notes.  I also urge that students print up the study guides for tests very early, and annotate them in class as various words and phrases are discussed.

Students are strongly encouraged to use email to contact the faculty and other students.  The class has a email listserv to facilitate class interaction.  All students should subscribe to the listserv at

http://listserv.temple.edu/archives/polsci52-stavis.html

Email sent to the class listserv will be delivered to everyone who is signed onto the list.  This provides a simple way for class discussions to be continued and for me to reach all students with new insights or suggestions.  This is especially useful when preparing for exams.  Send your comments to me and class members to:

 polsci52-stavis@listserv.temple.edu

Archives of listserv are located at:
 http://listserv.temple.edu/archives/polsci52-stavis.html
 (Make this a bookmark or a favorite place.)

The final use for computers in this course is for the short writing assignment.  It must be typed or printed by word processor.

CLASS ATTENDENCE

Class discussions and lectures will generally be more analytical and comparative than the readings.   Regular class attendance is necessary to master the materials of the course and is expected (except when not possible because of illness, funerals, job interviews, etc.) . Students are, of course, responsible for all material in all classes. Students who miss a class have the responsibility to find out from the class web site, classmates, or the instructor the material covered in that class.

OFFICE HOURS

Students are encouraged to contact me if they have any questions about the course.  In addition, Prof. Stavis can provide academic advising in Political Science and Asian Studies.  Please try to contact us in advance for appointments.  The times listed are generally convenient, but sometimes there are meetings or other obligations.  If these times don't work for you, other times can be scheduled.

Prof. Stavis:  bstavis@temple.edu,  215-204-7793

  normal office hours: Tuesday and Thursday,  1:30-2:15 and 4:15-5:00 and by appointment

WITHDRAWLS AND INCOMPLETES

If students who are properly enrolled in the course decide to withdraw from the course, they must be inform the instructor and submit appropriate forms to the academic advising office by the deadline, roughly in the ninth week of classes.  Failure to manage the paper work usually results in the couse staying on the transcript and the grade being an "F".  Students should be very careful to manage paper work properly within deadlines to avoid this unfortunate result.

Students who want a grade of Incomplete so that they have a little extra time to make up assignments or tests should discuss this with the instructor in advance.  The professor allows incompletes for medical or analogous problems that make the normal teaching calendar impossible.  University policy requires students to sign a contract with the professor concerning the work remaining, the time for completion, and the default grade if the work is not done.  Students should download the appropriate form, available at the bottom of the "Undergraduate Studies" page of the Political Science website: http://astro.temple.edu/~bstavis/ps/undergrad.htm .
 
 

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING

Requirements, their Due Dates, and weight in the final grade:
 

Testing: 

Brief multiple choice quizzes will be given to consolidate readings.  Tests and final exam (comprehensive) will also be multiple choice.  Study guides for the tests and examination are provided on the class web site.

Extra Credit/Substitute Quiz

The text book comes with a CD that has several resources, including "MicroCase," which provides four exercises.  Students may do these exercises and substitute grades for lower quiz grades, or receive 1 point extra credit for each exercise completed fully.  The exercise should be printed up and submitted to the instructor for grading.

Written Assignment:

Each student will do a written (1-2 page) report describing a pattern of political behavior related to foreign governments and politics that is illustrated by specific events in the news.  About one paragraph should summarize the events and the rest should explain the pattern of behavior that is illustrated.  The report must be based on at least TWO related articles in major national newspaper/service  (New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, Wall Street Journal), or foreign newspaper or magazines (BBC and The Economist are highly recommended), or an academic journal, and also include at least ONE citation to the textbook (3 footnotes total).  The report is due near the end of the semester.

Your report MUST use proper footnotes to cite the publications discussed.  Here is an example of proper citation for a newspaper.¹

1. Craig Whitney, "After Decade of Thatcherism, British Values have Changed," New York Times, May 2, 1989, p. 1, 5.

[Note: If you can't print in italics, simply underline the book, journal, or newspaper title.]

A book should be cited with publication information, including city, publisher, and year.  Generally, the footnote should come after all punctuation and a close quotation mark.  For example, Fallows wrote, "Asia is amazing."²

 2. James Fallows, Looking at the Sun, The Rise of the New East Asian
Economic and Political System (New York: Pantheon, 1994), p. 234.

Citations to professional journals are similar.  You should include volume and issue number, and put the date in parentheses.³

3. Abram Bergson, "Development Under Two Systems," World Politics 23:4 (July
1974), p. 579.

When you make another reference to the item you cited last, you can use this word, which is simply the Latin abbreviation for "in the same place."⁴

4. Ibid.

You can use Ibid also if you are referring to the same item, but a different page number.⁵

5. Ibid., p. 583.

To refer to something you have cited earlier, you can use the Latin abbreviation for the work (opus) cited.⁶

6.  Whitney, Op. Cit., p. 5.

(Normally, foreign words are italicized, but they are not in these cases because they are in "common usage.")

Alternatively, if you don't like Latin, you can abbreviate a prior citation this way.⁷

7. Whitney, "After Decade ...," p. 5.

When you site a web site, try to follow the normal format as much as sensible, and be sure to include the address, date of access, and some hint of ownership.⁸

8. Tom Fox, "It's not all cocaine, kidnapping and conflict," Guardian, January 17, 2002, http://www.guardian.co.uk/colombia/story/0,11502,635007,00.html.

Click here for more examples of footnote forms

Note that in all cases, the footnote comes at the end of the sentence, after punctuation and quotation marks.  Note also that all punctuation marks come before (inside) a quotation mark.  A footnote is like a sentence and ends in a period.

Follow this style PRECISELY (including commas, periods, etc.) or use the style from an academic journal such as the American Political Science Review or World Politics.  You are strongly urged to buy a style book that will give you complete rules for preparing papers for this course and all others you will do at Temple and beyond.  Two excellent ones are Kate Turabian, Student's Guide for Writing Papers or Chicago Manual of Style.  Both are available at the book store.  If you hand in a draft two weeks before the deadline, you can get comments to use in preparing your final draft.

Your report must be a finished piece of work, at an "adult standard" of presentation.  This means typed, double spaced, one side of the paper, reasonable margins (around 1 1/4" left and right), neat, accurately spelled, page numbers on the pages, and stapled together, etc.  If you are using a dot matrix printer, try to print the final draft using "high print density."  Do not use a plastic covers for your report; the covers just get in the way.

Adult level of presentation requires proper grammar, including agreement between subject and verb, consistency in verb tense, etc.  Poor spelling and typographic errors must be avoided.  Avoid confusion of the plural (...s) with the possessive singular (...'s) and possessive plural (...s').  Misuse of homonyms such as their-there-they're, its-it's, to-too-two, whether-weather, due-do-dew, principle-principal, site-sight-cite, red-read, son-sun, capitol-capital, steel-steal, etc., are unacceptable.  "Spell-checker" misses these errors.  You must proofread carefully.  Check out this site,  “Common Mistakes that Spell Checker Overlooks,” http://astro.temple.edu/~bstavis/courses/spell.htm.

In the long run, writing is one of the most valuable skills you will learn in college.  This course is not a writing or grammar course, but it does expect you to present yourself on paper in a mature way.  If you need additional help in writing, please visit the Writing Center (201 Tuttleman Hall, 204-0700) and arrange for specialized instruction (free). http://www.temple.edu/writingctr

MAKEUP POLICY

If realities of life (illness, funerals, etc.) create irreconcilable scheduling conflicts with tests, please contact an instructor IN ADVANCE. We will try to work out a suitable alternative, generally before the normal test time.  Students who missed classes should get notes from friends in the class or visit with either of the instructors during office hours.  Written assignments handed in late will be penalized.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

We learn in a group environment, but we must demonstrate our mastery of materials on an individual basis.  Misrepresenting other people's work as one's own ("copying" or "plagiarism") is a serious breach of academic integrity.  I manage the class on the basis of trust in each student's academic integrity, and this enables our class to be informal and flexible.  The other side of the coin is that any act that undermines this trust in academic integrity is a very disturbing and serious matter.

• All tests must reflect a student's own, individual work, and must be done in the specified time period.  Cheating or helping others cheat violates the spirit of trust that we all prefer.  Cheating will be considered an admission that a student does not understand the material, and grading will reflect this admission.

• Written assignments must be based on the student's own research and writing specifically for this course.  If you like what another author says and wish to use that material, you must use quotation marks and footnotes to show clearly the line between your own insights and the insights of someone else.  Linking yourself to what others have written is a sign of maturity.  However, failure to show these links clearly or to show the distinction between your own ideas and the work of others  constitutes plagiarism, which is a very serious violation of the principles of academic integrity.

• Papers written for other courses can not be submitted again for this course.

• One paper may not be submitted to two courses unless there is prior approval from both professors.

• You should listen to  Prof. Lehr's story concerning Prof. Lobachevsky's views and use of plagiarism, but do not follow his advice.

The study of politics inevitably touches on sensitive and controversial topics.  Indeed, a primary assumption in political science is that people have different and conflicting interests, reflecting their different conditions, needs, cultures, values, etc.  Political science analyzes the actual, empirical process by which these conflicting values are managed and resolved.   The discipline can not say what are the correct or good policy choices; at best it can suggest the likely outcome of policy choices.  Accordingly, in this course, we will strive to find agreement on descriptions of empirical reality and political dynamics and relationships.  We should expect disagreement on personal values and policy choices.   My job is to help you understand the logic of empirical processes and of alternative policy choices.  My personal values and preferences are irrelevant to this course.  Tests and written assignments will be cover the empirical aspects of politics and will have no connection to anyone's value or policy preferences. 
 

STRATEGIES FOR DOING WELL IN THIS CLASS

Ultimately, your grade depends on your ability to master the material, and to understand the analytical themes and how they are linked to concrete examples. Class discussion will focus on these themes.  The textbook is important reference material, but is not the course.  Students should not think that by memorizing the textbook that they have mastered the analytical themes of the course.

Ultimately, no matter how much I lecture, only you can actually integrate the analytical themes and actual examples into your own thinking.  As you read, ask yourself, "What is important here?  What are general principles and what are examples?  As you work with the study guide, ask yourself, "Why does Prof. Stavis want me to remember this name, date, or phrase?"  Focus on learning the concepts and the examples that demonstrate them, rather than trying to memorize disconnected facts.  The lectures will highlight the most important principles and examples, so regular class attendance is extremely useful to master the materials of the course and is expected.

Lecture notes for each class are available on the class web site.  You should print lecture notes before class and add to these notes during  class lectures.  This will be extremely useful in preparing for quizzes and tests.

Quizzes and tests will emphasize major concepts, institutions, and policies, as well as some names and dates that provide the vocabulary for understanding major themes.  Review your lecture notes and readings.  Use the study  guides to organize your review of materials for the tests.  If you master the study guide, you well be well prepared for the tests.   For the written assignment, follow precisely the instructions given above. If you approach the class in this spirit, you should find the class easy and you should do well.

GRADES

Grades will be assigned based on an evaluation of a student's mastery of the course material.  Grades will reflect the following levels of mastery:

A  A-      100-90
 Thorough understanding of all material; sound grasp of all theoretical
 and empirical materials. Expression of insights at an adult level of
 presentation.

B+ B B-     89-80
 Reasonably sound understanding of most conceptual principles and
 familiarity with most of the empirical materials.

C+ C C-     79-70
 Weak understanding of conceptual principles.  Marginal familiarity with
 empirical materials. 

D+ D D-     69-60
 Serious conceptual and/or factual errors

F           below 60
 Completely detached from the materials of the class