Comparative Politics of Development

3 credits

This is a course about power, politics, and global development. Why are some countries rich and others poor? Why do some communities have few resources while their neighbors have plenty? To answer these questions, we will start by critically examining what development is and how it can be measured. Then we will examine theories linking politics to development. We will explore the effects of colonialism, geography, natural resource wealth, regime types, and foreign aid, among others. The readings from this course draw from political science, economics, anthropology, and history. During this semester we will examine both the deep roots of global inequality and engage with active policy debates about development.