States and Power in Politics

3-0-9 units · Graduate

Examines the origins of power in the political arena, especially with respect to the development of building modern, national states across regions at different levels of development. Focuses on conceptualizing and measuring political power; and on the range of political, economic, and social explanations that account for variation, including the role of tradition, charisma, technology, war, material endowments, geography, trust, ethnic diversity, and democratic regimes. Evaluates the quality of evidence for different accounts.