1

POLS 373 FOUNDATI ONS OF COMPARATI VE POLI TI CS

Introduction to Method, Theory and Issues in Comparative Politics

SPRING 2013


BASIC INFORMATION

Instructor: Timothy C. Lim Classroom: SH C-246
E-mail: tclim@calstatela.edu Day/Time: M/W 1:30-3:10
Website URL: http://instructional1.calstatela.edu/tclim Office: E&T 513 // x2242

Office hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3:30-5:30 and by
appointment
To schedule an appointment online, please go
to my Yahoo! Groups page at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Lim_csla

COURSE OVERVIEW

The primary aim of this is class is to make you a good
comparativist i.e., someone who is able to use various
intellectual or conceptual tools in the field of comparative
politics to better analyze, understand and/or explain
significant events and processes in various countries and
societies throughout the world. These significant or big
events and processes include democratization, state-building, ethnic and/or domestic conflict (including
terrorism), national poverty and capitalist development. The utility of comparative politics, however, is not
limited to analyzing big events or processes; indeed, a good comparativist will be able to apply his or her
knowledge and skills to a wide range of problems and issues, both big and small and at all levelsfrom the
local, to the national, to the global. Being a good comparativist, in this regard, means knowing how to think
about and analyze issues in a systematic and scientific manner.
Does being a good comparativist also require knowing a lot about different countries, societies, and peoples?
On one level, the answer is clearly yes. Certainly, most academic comparativists are experts or specialists
on particular countries, societies, and/or regions; more
importantly, it is from this in-depth knowledge of particular
places that the raw material, or empirical evidence, of much
comparative analysis comes. For the purposes of this course,
however, it is important to understand that prior knowledge of a
specific place is not a prerequisite to doing well. Indeed, on
another level, simply knowing about places is not enough; one
must also know how country-specific knowledge can be used
comparatively to gain a better understanding of the world
around us. This will be a main focus of our class.
With that in mind, in the first part of our course, we begin with an examination of several basic, but extremely
important (methodological) questions: Why compare? How should we compare? And what can or should we
compare? We also spend some time examining the major strategies of comparative analysisthe case study,
two-unit comparisons, multiple-unit comparisons, and mixed designs. Next, we will examine three major
theoretical traditions in comparative politics, which can be roughly divided into rationalist, cultural and structural
IMPORTANT! This course relies heavily
on e-mail communication. It is your
responsibility to ensure I have your
correct e-mail address and that you
are receiving my messages. If you are
not receiving course messages, notify
me by e-mail immediately.

2
approaches. You will be expected to apply one or more of the comparative strategies and theoretical approaches in various
assignments.
In the second part of our course, well explore several central questions in comparative politics explicitly using
the same methods and approaches studied in part one. These questions include, among others: Why are poor
countries poor? Why is East Asia rich? What makes a democracy? The examination of these questions will be
tightly structured and designed to help you gain a deeper and more substantial understanding of comparative
political analysis.
OSD POLICIES
Following university policy, reasonable accommodations will be provided to any student with documented
physical and learning disabilities. The Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD), located in Student Affairs
Room 115, coordinates all documentation of disabilities (323-343-3140). If you are in need of an accommodation,
you must go to the OSD first. No accommodations will be provided to students who fail to receive clearance from the OSD.
More info is available here: http://111.calstatela.edu/univ/osd/.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS/ASSESSMENTS

IMPORTANT NOTE: Be advised that I reserve the right to make re as onabl e changes to the course requirements and reading schedule
(including the correction of errors). This includes but is not limited to adding or eliminating assignments and reallocating the course percentage
of various assignments. Any changes, however, will be announced and discussed in class.

ATTENDANCE POLICY. Students are expected to attend all class sessions; however, attendance will not
be directly included in your course grade. Please make every effort to arrive on time. Class sessions will start
promptly at 1:30. It is disruptive to the class and to me when multiple students arrive late. It is equally
distracting when students leave early, or take breaks during class. Onc e i n c l as s , pl e as e make e ve ry e f f ort
t o s t ay i n c l as s unt i l t he e nd of t he s e s s i oni f you know you mus t l e ave e ar l y, i nf or m me be f or e hand
and s i t as c l os e t o t he e xi t door as pos s i bl e .

The details and requirements for each component of course
grading are as follows:

1. Quizzes/Reading Questions [25.0% of course
grade]. During the quarter, there will be up to 10
quizzes (perhaps more), most of which will be given on
an UNANNOUNCED basis. The quizzes will be
based on the assigned readings and/or previous lecture
or lectures (be advised that any material covered in our lectures is fair game for the quiz, as is any material
covered in previous readings). Throughout the quarter, quizzes may also include previously asked
review questions (questions that appeared on previous quizzes, but perhaps in slightly modified form).
The quizzes are not meant to be difficult: they will be composed of fill-in-the-blank, true/false, and short
answer questions. All of the short answer questions will come directly from the chapter questions in the
textbook. Some quizzes may be take-home. These will typically require you to write a short paragraph
on a specific topic/question. This will be due at the beginning of the next class sessionno take-home
quizzes will be accepted after the class has started.

Each quiz will be worth between 5 and 10 points. There will be no ABSOLUTELY make-up
quizzes, even if you have a justifiable reason for missing class. I will, however, drop your lowest
score when calculating the overall quiz score at the end of the quarter. Quizzes, when they are given, will
typically be distributed right at the beginning of each class session: this means that if you are late, you will
have missed the quiz for that day and your score will be 0.0.

MAKE SURE you read and understand the
grading requirements for this course!
This will help avoid misunderstandings
and problems later in the quarter. This is
your responsibility.

3
! All quizzes will be OPEN NOTE but you may NOT use your textbook or any material prepared by
the instructor (e.g., PowerPoint slides). YOU MAY NOT USE YOUR LAPTOP COMPUTER
OR ANY ELECTRONIC DEVICE WHILE TAKING THE QUIZ. I realize this is an
inconvenience, but it is the only way I can ensure that students are not using additional material
during the quiz. The solution is to print your notes before arriving in class.

! Be advised! I do not record quiz scores for students who leave class shortly after taking a quiz. To
reiterate: regardless of your score, you will receive 0 points on the quiz for that day if you do not
attend the bulk of the class and if you do not inform me that you need to leave early.

Reading Questions. In addition to the quizzes, you will also be assigned reading questions based on the
required readings or previous lecture. These are similar to quizzes, but all reading questions will be
completed on a take-home basis. You will be required to turn in your responses to the reading questions on
a regular basis; they will generally be due at the beginning of the class session. Reading questions will only be
accepted on the day they are due.

2. Ungraded Writing Assignments [10% of course grade]. During the quarter you will be required to
complete a number of ungradedbut requiredassignments. These assignments are generally designed
to be building blocks for your take-home essays. Details will be discussed in class. The assignments are
ungraded in that all students who meet the basic requirements will receive an automatic 10 points; but
they are required in that students who fail to turn the assignment in or who fail to complete one or more
of the basic requirements will either not receive any points or will receive a score of 8 points or less. All
ungraded assignments must be TYPED AND SINGLE-SPACED. In general, the ungraded assignments
should be between ! and one-full page.

3. Take-Home Essay Assignment [25.0% of course grade]. During the quarter you will have one take-
home essay assignment. This assignment will be relatively short (approximately 1~2 single-spaced pages),
and based on material covered in the course. Additional details will be discussed in class.

4. Final Examination [40% of course grade]. The final exam will be comprised of two take-home essays.
You will be required to write on two topics that demonstrate your mastery of the key concepts, principles
and frameworks of comparative politics. The essays will require you to incorporate material from the
entire quarter.

GRADING

Grading will be strictly determined by a weighted average of the scores you receive on the requirements above.
The scale is as follows (be advised that this scale differs from my previous courses):

A: 92.0% and above
A-: 88~91%
B+: 85~87%
B: 81~84%
B-: 77~80%
C+: 74~76%
C: 70~73%
C-: 67~69 %
D+: 63~66%
D: 59~62%
D-: 53~58%
F: 52 % and below

Note: Scores that fall between two cut-off points will be rounded to the nearest whole number (example: (e.g.
89.3 would be rounded to 89, while 89.7 would be rounded to 90) The instructor reserves the right to
make minor adjustments in the scale depending on the distribution of scores; such adjustments will always be
in favor of the students.

4
COURSE TEXTS

The following book is REQUIRED for the course:

Timothy Lim, Doing Comparative Politics: An Introduction to Approaches and Issues, 2
nd
edition (Boulder: Lynne
Rienner Publishers, 2010)

Additional readings distributed via the Internet.

READING SCHEDULE

BE ADVISED: While I make an effort to stay on track with the reading schedule, the discussion-based
nature of our class means that it is very likely we will get behind, sometimes significantly behind. In other
words, the reading schedule is SUBJECT TO CHANGE!

Session 1
April 2
Introduction to Course: A Primer on Comparative Politics
In our first session, we will conduct a thorough review of the syllabus and of the
requirements of the course. A short lecture on chapter one will follow. Students who miss
the first class session will be still be responsible for all the material covered in this first
class meeting.
Reading: None


Take-home quiz. Expect some questions for a first take-home quiz due on April
4. I will send the questions by e - mai l , so if you do not receive an e-mail from me
by Friday, January 13 make sure you contact me at tclim@calstatela.edu. Remember, take-
home quizzes are due at the beginning of the class session. To repeat: I do not accept late or e-
mailed take-home quizzes, and I do not accept quizzes from students who do not attend class!
[NOTE. Other take-home quizzes will be announced in class or by e-mail.] You will also
have your first ungraded essay due next week (see below).


Session 2
April 4
The Comparative Method: An Introduction
Reading: Ch. 1 (entire chapter; make sure to review all chapter questions on pp. 26-27)
During this session, we will view an excerpt from the film, Bowling for Columbine, directed
by Michael Moore

Session 3
April 9
Introduction to the Comparative Method
Reading: Ch. 2, pp. 32-46 Read all chapter questions (#1-6) for chapter 2these may
appear on an in-class quiz.
Session 4
April 11
The Comparative Method (cont)
Reading: Ch. 2, pp. 46-63 Read all chapter questions (#7-12) for chapter 2these may
appear on an in-class quiz.

Session 5
April 16
Evaluating Arguments from a Comparative Perspective
Reading: Review Figure 2.1, pp. 35-36 in chapter 2; also read the following online articles
(most are very short):

What Americans Keep Ignoring about Finlands School Success
(http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/12/what-americans-keep-
ignoring-about-finlands-school-success/250564/)

5
[OPTIONAL] Why Are Finlands Schools Successful?
(http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/Why-Are-Finlands-Schools-
Successful.html?c=y&story=fullstory)
Research on Milwaukee School Choice (http://www.weac.org/pdf/2011-
12/choice.pdf)
New Study Shows Higher Graduation, Achievement Rates for Milwaukee
Voucher Students (http://www.federationforchildren.org/articles/660)
Teacher, Leave Those Kids Alone
(http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2094427,00.html)
Lessons from PISA for the United States This is a very long report, but you only
need to skim one chapter, Ontario, Canada: Reform to Support High
Achievement in a Diverse Context, pp. 65-79. (You might want to skim other
chapters as well.) (http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/32/50/46623978.pdf)

DUE NEXT CLASS SESSION (April 16). Ungraded essay #1. Write a short critique
of John Stossel's argument in Stupid in America as a comparativist, focusing primarily on the
comparative methodological aspects of Stossel's argument. Your critique must be at least !-page,
SINGLE-SPACED, using 1 margins and 12-point font. Draw for the assigned (online) readings
for next week. Due at the beginning of class. NO LATE SUBMISSIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED!
NO EXCEPTIONS!

Session 6
April 18
Theory in Comparative Politics: A Primer
Reading: LIM, ch. 3, pp. 67-82 (finish the section on rational choice) Be prepared to
answer chapter questions #1-#7)

REMINDER: UNGRADED ASSIGNMENT (#1) DUE TODAY

Session 7
April 23
Theory in Comparative Politics: Major Research Traditions
Reading: LIM, ch. 3, pp. 82-100 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #7-#15

DUE NEXT CLASS SESSION (April 25) Ungraded essay #2. Poor countries are
poor because . In a short one or two short paragraphs (single spaced, about 1/2-page),
complete the foregoing sentence. That is, tell me why you think poor countries are poor. Provide a
brief discussion of what you consider to be the main factors in national poverty, and explain why
these factors are important.

Session 8
April 25
The Que s t i ons : Why are Poor Countries Poor? Intro and Rational Choice
Explanations
Reading: LIM, ch. 4, pp. 105-126 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #1-#7

REMINDER: UNGRADED ASSIGNMENT (#2) DUE TODAY

Session 9
April 30

The Que s t i ons : Why are Poor Countries Poor? Cultural and Structural Explanations
Reading: LIM, ch. 4, pp. 126-135 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #8-#10

DUE NEXT CLASS SESSION (May 2) Ungraded essay #3. Write a !- to one-page
(single-spaced) response to the question, Can East Asias economic success be repeated
among poor countries today? This essay may be written informally (but not sloppily). Unlike
previous ungraded essays, it must reflect at least one of the theoretical approaches (rational choice,
structural, or cultural). NOTE. This assignment is designed to serve as a prelude to your second graded essay.

Session 10
May 2
The Que s t i ons : Why is East Asia Rich?
Reading: LIM, ch. 5, pp. 139-154 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #1-#5
During class, we will watch an excerpt from the documentary, Asia Rising

6

REMINDER: UNGRADED ASSIGNMENT (#3) DUE TODAY

Session 11
May 7
The Que s t i ons : Why is East Asia Rich?
Reading: LIM, ch. 5, pp. 154-170; and Ornatowski, Confucian Ethics and Economic
Development (okay to skim; available online)

NOTE. The graded essay will be assigned when we finish this lecture. It will be due the following week.
Details will be announced by e-mail and/or in class.

Session 12
May 9
The Que s t i ons : Why is China Getting Richer? /// Di s c us s i on: Can East Asias
economic success be repeated among poor countries today?
Reading: LIM, ch. 5, pp. 169-177; and Hu, Why is China Growing so Fast? (available
online)

Session 13
May 14
OPEN Day. This day is set aside for catching up. If we are on schedule, however,
additional readings may be assigned.

DUE NEXT CLASS SESSION (May 16) Ungraded essay #4. What does the term
democracy mean? Write a short one-paragraph response (typed, single-spaced) to the
question. Do not simply repeat material from the bookfor this question, I want you to answer based on what you
think right now, before you do any additional reading.

Session 14
May 16
The Que s t i ons : What Makes a Democracy?
Reading: LIM, ch. 6, pp. 179-192 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #1-#5

REMINDER: UNGRADED ASSIGNMENT (#4) DUE TODAY

Session 15
May 21
The Que s t i ons : What Makes a Democracy?
Reading: LIM, ch. 6, pp. 192-205 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #6-#7

Session 16
May 23
The Que s t i ons : What Makes a Democracy?
Readings: LIM, ch. 6, pp. 205-218; and The Catholic Wave (available on CourseSite)
Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #8-#11

DUE NEXT CLASS SESSION (May 16) Ungraded essay #5. Assignment will be
announced.

Session 17
May 28
The Que s t i ons : What Makes a Terrorist?
Reading: LIM, ch 7, pp. 221-234 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #1-#5

Session 18
May 30

The Que s t i ons : What Makes a Terrorist?
Reading: LIM, ch 7, pp. 234-250 Be prepared to answer chapter questions, #6-#8

Session 19
June 4
The Que s t i ons : What Makes a Terrorist? (cont)

Session 20
June 6
Summi ng Up: The Future of Comparative Politics
Reading: LIM, ch. 9 (read entire chapter)

Final
Examination
June 11
The f i nal e xam i s s c he dul e d f or 1: 30 t o 4: 00 p. m.