POLI 242 - Political Economy of Development

This course will help you answer questions about politics and economics in the developing world. For example: What explains global disparities in peace and prosperity? Is democracy good for the poor? Does foreign aid work? Our main objective is to use social science to describe and explain development outcomes. Although we will also address what can be done to solve problems such as poverty and civil war, this course will not provide any panaceas. If you finish the term unsatisfied and frustrated, you will have done something right! You will have begun to understand the complexity of development issues, which will equip you to contribute in a sophisticated way to ongoing scholarly and policy-oriented debates. Every year. (4 Credits)