Political Violence Course Description Course Aims Learning Outcomes

Transcription

1 Political Violence Name/Instructor: Sunhee Park Department: International Relations and European Studies Office: Nador u. 15 (Room #: 302) Office Hours: Monday 15:10-16:30 and Wednesday 13:00-14:20 or by appointment Semester: Fall 2012 Credits: 4 (8 ECTS) Course Schedule: Tuesday and Thursday 17:20-19:00 (Room #: FT 309) Course Description This course is intended to introduce students to various types of political violence that occur primarily at the domestic level. After a brief and general introduction to research design and practice, the first part covers studies of revolutions, including the definitions of revolution, causes and mobilization of revolutionary movements, and government choices to counter revolutionary movements. The second part covers research on coups, including how scholars define coups, the outcomes of coups, and explanations for the causes and mobilization of coups. The third part covers terrorism. This starts with a discussion of the definition of terrorism, and follows with the causes of terrorism and two approaches to the study of terrorist activity. The fourth part covers massacres, including definitions of massacre, the relationship between massacres and other types of political violence, the structural causes of massacres, the choices of groups involved, as well as the predictability of the magnitude of massacres. Course Aims This course aims to provide student an understanding of The major debates on various phenomena of political violence, The theoretical expectations to explain those phenomena, The various methodological approaches used to test these expectations, and The policy implications of these theoretical expectations Learning Outcomes Upon completing this course, students are expected to Have obtained basic knowledge of scholarly debates on the various phenomena of political violence, Be wary of the importance of choices of definition of concepts, spatial and temporal domains, and measurements that one chooses, Be able to think and debate analytically, Understand components of research design, Be able to construct research questions or puzzles of his/her own 1

2 Course Requirements (1) Attendance and Participation (20%): Students are required to attend the class physically and be ready to contribute to the discussion. (2) Reaction Paper (40%): Students are required to write a 2-3 page reaction paper by the midnight before class (20%). These papers should cover all of the required readings for the given class. To get the most out of these assignments, students are encouraged to not just summarize articles, but rather to focus on critiques, questions, and improvements. In addition, one student will be assigned to lead the discussion for each class (20%). (3) Final Paper (40%): This paper should be written in the style of a journal article on a topic approved by the instructor. Between weeks 5-7, students will make appointments to discuss their research paper ideas. Students are expected to prepare a brief summary of their research paper plans before the meeting. This will include a research question or a research puzzle and a brief description of research design plan. The purpose of this meeting is to guide students in meeting the instructor's expectations as early as possible. Papers can take various forms, and therefore the final paper will be evaluated based on its overall quality, including, but not limited to, the quality of the literature review, theoretical rigor, research method, and an original contribution to existing studies through theory development, modeling, statistical analysis, data collection, etc. There is not only one correct way to write original research that makes a contribution, but there are a variety of guidelines that can only be learned by doing and receiving feedback. Having students develop their research ideas in close consultation with the instructor is intended to introduce students to these guidelines in a way that will help them proceed successfully with future research. The preliminary version of the research paper will be presented at the end of the semester in front of the class. The final version of the research paper will incorporate the comments that you gather from the class. **** Syllabus is subject to change. Week 1-1 (September 18): Introduction This week will cover the goals of research design and practice as well as a course overview and discussion of assignments. King, Gary, Robert O. Keohane, and Sidney Verba Designing Social Inquiry: Scientific Inference in Qualitative Research. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Chapter 1. Zinnes, Dina. A Three Puzzles in Search of a Researcher. International Studies Quarterly 24(3): PART I: REVOLUTION Week 1-2 (September 20): Revolution_Definition This week will cover the various definitions of revolution. The purpose of this week is to gain better understanding for the idea that scholars might have in mind very different concepts even when they use the same word. Skocpol, Theda France, Russia, China: A Structural Analysis of Social Revolutions. Comparative Studies in Society and History 18(2):

3 Dix, Robert H Why Revolutions Succeed and Fail. Polity 16(3): Week 2-1 (September 25): Revolution_Opportunity This week will cover studies that discuss a few of the causes of revolution, focused primarily on structural factors. Re-read from previous week, Skocpol, Theda France, Russia, China: A Structural Analysis of Social Revolutions. Comparative Studies in Society and History 18(2): Kileff and Robinson The Elitist Thesis and the Rhodesian Revolution: Implications for South Africa. In Midlarsky, Manus I. ed Inequality and Contemporary Revolutions. Denver: University of Denver Press. pp Green, Jerrold D Countermobilization as a Revolutionary Form. Comparative Politics 16(2): Week 2-2 (September 27): Revolution_Mobilization This week will cover the limits of structural theories of revolution and literature on the issue of mobilization. Goodwin, Jeff and Theda Skocpol Explaining Revolutions in the Contemporary Third World. Politics and Society 17(4): Pfaff, Steve Collective Identity and Informal Groups in Revolutionary Mobilization: East Germany in Social Forces 75(1): Week 3-1 (October 2): Revolution_Repression This week will cover government choices to counter revolutionary movements. Goldstone, Jack A. and Charles Tilly Threat (and Opportunity): Popular Action and State Response in the Dynamics of Contentious Action. In Aminzade, Ronald R., Jack A. Goldstone, Doug McAdam, Elizabeth J. Perry, William H. Sewell, Jr., Sidney Tarrow, and Charles Tilly Silence and Voice in the Study of Contentious Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Kuran, Timur Now Out of Never: The Element of Surprise in the East European Revolution of World Politics 44(1): Documentary film Revolution in Cairo from PBS PART II: COUP Week 3-2 (October 4): Coup_Definition This week will cover various definitions of coup and introduce a dataset of coups. Belkin, Aaron and Evan Schofer Coup Risk, Counterbalancing, and International Conflict. Security Studies 14(1): Lewis-Beck, Michael, Erika Moreno and Jacque Amoreux Latin Rhythms: Coup Cycles in the Americas. Paper presented at the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, IL. 3

4 Powell, Jonathan M. and Clayton L. Thyne Global Instances of Coups from 1950 to 2010: A New Dataset. Journal of Peace Research 48(2): (For more information, Week 4-1 (October 9): Coup_Cause This week will cover studies that discuss a few of the causes of coups, focused on economic and political structural factors. O Kane, Rosemary H. T The Likelihood of Coups. Aldershot and Brookfield: Avebury. pp Jenkins, J. Craig and Augustine J. Kposowa The Political Origins of African Military Coups: Ethnic Competition, Military Centrality, and the Struggle over the Postcolonial State. International Studies Quarterly 36(3): Week 4-2 (October 11): Coup_Mobilization This week will cover the issue of mobilization, specifically the relationship between mobilization and the likelihood of coup occurrence. Deutsch, Karl W. Social Mobilization and Political Development. American Political Science Review 55(3): Fossum, Egil Factors Influencing the Occurrence of Military Coups D etat in Latin America. Journal of Peace Research 4(3): Week 5-1 (October 16): Coup_Successful vs. Failed Coup Attempts This week will cover the scholarly debate on how one can define whether a coup attempt is successful or not. McGowan, Patrick J African Military Coups D etat, : Frequency, Trends and Distribution. Journal of Modern African Studies 41(3): O Kane, Rosemary H. T The Likelihood of Coups. Aldershot and Brookfield: Avebury. pp PART III: TERRORISM Week 5-2 (October 18): Terrorism_Definition This week will cover various definitions of terrorism. Rosendorff, B Peter and Todd Sandler The Political Economy of Transnational Terrorism. Journal of Conflict Resolution 49(2): Kydd, Andrew H. and Barbara F. Walter The Strategies of Terrorism. International Security 31(1): Week 6-1 (October 23) Holiday Week 6-2 (October 25): Terrorism_Cause This week will cover studies that discuss a few of the causes of terrorism, focused on economic and political factors. 4

5 Piazza James A Rooted in Poverty? Terrorism, Poor Economic Development and Social Cleavages. Terrorism and Political Violence 18(1): Enders, Walter and Todd Sandler The Political Economy of Terrorism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp Week 7-1 (October 30): Terrorism_Strategic Approach This week will cover the strategic decision-making of groups that resort to terrorism. Crenshaw, Martha The Causes of Terrorism. Comparative Politics 13(4): Ross, Jeffrey Ian Structural Causes of Oppositional Political Terrorism: Towards a Causal Model. Journal of Peace Research 30(3): Week 7-2 (November 1) Holiday Week 8-1 (November 6): Terrorism_Organizational Approach This week will focus on organizational factors used to understand the terrorist decision-making. Crenshaw, Martha Theories of Terrorism: Instrumental and Organizational Approaches. Journal of Strategic Studies. 10(4): Hoffman, Bruce Inside Terrorism. New York: Columbia University Press. pp Documentary film The Men of The Central Group from PBS PART IV: MASSACRE Week 8-2 (November 8): Massacre_Definition This week will cover various definitions of massacre. Harff, Barbara and Ted Robert Gurr Toward an Empirical Theory of Genocide and Politicides: Identification and Measurement of Cases Since International Studies Quarterly 32(3): Lopez, George A A Scheme for the Analysis of Government as Terrorist. In Stohl, Michael and George A. Lopez. eds. The State as Terrorist: The Dynamics of Governmental Violence and Repression. Westport: Greenwood. pp Week 9-1 (November 13): Massacre_Opportunity This week will focus on theories of the political opportunity structure of massacres. Tarrow, Sidney Power in Movement: Social Movements and Contentious Politics. 2 nd edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp Kriesti, Hanspeter The Political Opportunity Structure of New Social Movements: Its Impact on Their Mobilization. in Jenkins, J Craig and Bert Klandermans. The Politics of Social Protest: Comparative Perspective on States and Social Movements. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. pp

6 Week 9-2 (November 15): Massacre_Government Choice This week will focus on theories of government choices to perpetrate massacres. Tarrow, Sidney Power in Movement: Social Movements and Contentious Politics. 2 nd edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp Melson, Robert F Revolution and Genocide. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp Week 10-1 (November 20): Massacre_Opposition Groups Choices This week will focus on theories of massacres perpetrated by opposition groups fighting against the government. Wood, Reed M Rebel Capability and Strategic Violence Against Civilians. Journal of Peace Research 47(5): Hultman, Lisa Keeping Peace or Spurring Violence? Unintended Effects of Peace Operations on Violence against Civilians. Civil Wars 12(1-2): Week 10-2 (November 22): Massacre_Relationship Between Massacre and Other Types of Political Violence This week will cover literature on the relationship between massacres and other types of political violence. Re-read from week 9-2, Melson, Robert F Revolution and Genocide. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp Valentino, Benjamin, Paul Huth and Dylan Balch-Linday Draining the Sea: Mass Killing and Guerrilla Warfare. International Organization 58(2): Documentary Film Ghost of Rwanda from PBS Week 11-1 (November 27): Massacre_Magnitude This week will cover whether the factors that explain the causes of massacres can also be used to explain their magnitude. Krain, Matthew State-Sponsored Mass Murder: The Onset and Severity of Genocides and Policides. Journal of Conflict Resolution 41(3): Eck, Kristine and Lisa Hultman One-Sided Violence Against Civilians in War: Insights from New Frailty Data. Journal of Peace Research 44(2): PART V: WRAP-UP Week 11-2 (November 29): Transnational Aspect of political violence This week will cover the implications of political violence for international politics. Walt, Stephen M Revolution and War. World Politics 44(3): Week 12-1 (December 4): Student Paper Presentation I Week 12-2 (December 6): Student Paper Presentation II 6