Course Description
Theories and practices of political institutions, behavior, or policy making in the United States.
Athena Title
Special Topics in Amer Pol Hon
Prerequisite
(POLS 1101 or POLS 1101E or POLS 1101S or POLS 1105H) and permission of Honors
Semester Course Offered
Not offered on a regular basis.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
Democracy and Representation Institutional Development Leadership Accountability Performance Elections Policy-Making Separation of Powers The learning objectives include understanding the causes and implications of political institutions and political behavior that is not covered by other courses in political science. Students should gain an understanding of the relationships between political phenomena, the effect of government institutions on political behavior, and how political behavior makes American democracy unique.
Topical Outline
History Primary voting, Iowa and New Hampshire rules Momentum, dynamics, strategy The invisible primary Campaign ads Early primaries Alternative voting systems Resource allocation strategies Super Tuesday 2008: The impact of divisive primaries General election voting and strategy Do campaigns matter? Conventions General election ads Congressional campaigns Identifying and measuring campaign effects General election campaigns 1980-1996: strategy, debates, ads General election campaigns 2000-2004: strategy, debates, ads Systematic and unsystematic campaign effects The Electoral College analysis of 2008 strategy, polls, and ads
Syllabus