Development Studies Program

COURSES OF INTEREST TO DEVELOPMENT STUDIES M.A. CANDIDATES

The following is a partial list only, and will need to be updated periodically. You are encouraged to search for other offerings in the University Course Announcement. If you find other courses that appear to fit the program or your particular interests, feel free to discuss them with the graduate advisor.


AN (Anthropology) 210 Seminar on the Americas
Focuses on long-standing concerns in Latin American studies and elsewhere relating to so-called public and private spheres. In particular, explores popular perceptions, practices, and transformations regarding engendered boundaries of "lo civil y lo domestico."

AN 237 Colonialism and Neocolonialism
A seminar addressing the concepts of colonialism, postcolonialism, and nationalism. The nature of colonial "rule of law," the stages of the dissolution and formation of "African" native states, and the notion of "traditional" power are all examined.

DS (Development Studies) 198 Senior Seminar in Development Studies
An integrative seminar designed for concentrators working on senior projects. Others with comparable backgrounds may enroll with written permission. Begins with a review of theoretical and methodological literature on development studies. Features guest presentations on approaches to development research by development studies faculty. Written and oral presentations of student research projects will be the central focus of the latter part of the course.

EC (Economics) 150 Current Global Economic Challenges
Uses economic tools to analyze economic policies in LDCs and in transition economies, with some focus on international issues. Topics include domestic taxation, international trade and industrialization policies, privatization, fiscal and monetary policy, balance of payments and exchange rate policy, and policies for long-run growth. Theory and applications both covered. Emphasis on tools rather than on case studies.

EC 151 Economic Development
The economic problems of less developed countries and the theory of economic development, with emphasis on the roles played by agriculture, industry, and foreign trade. Also: education, health, employment, and migration; capital accumulation; income distribution; institutional aspects, the role of price distortions; trade policies; social discount rates, investment criteria, and the general issue of state intervention.

EC 153 Health, Hunger and the Household in Developing Countries
Microeconomic analysis of household behavior in low income societies emphasizing the economic determinants of health and nutrition and the evaluation of policy. The relationship among health, nutrition, fertility, savings, schooling, labor productivity, wage determination, and gender-based inequality. Emphasizes theoretically-based empirical research.

EC 158 Comparative Economic Systems
Recent histories, institutional structures, and performance of industrialized economies of the East and West. The Marxian critique of capitalism; the theory of centrally planned economies; the Soviet economy; and problems of reform. Workers' self-management as an alternative industrial order.

EC 159 Economy of China since 1949
The organization, structure and performance of the economy of the People’s Republic of China. Transition to socialism; industrial strategy; the commune system; ideology and economics; and the continuing reforms in agriculture and industry.

EC 160 Economics of the Middle East
A survey of the economies of the Middle East. Examines various aspects of the economic realities of the region, including economic and human development, water and food security, the economics and politics of oil, population growth and labor mobility, education, the role of the state, economic reform, the political economy of conflict and peace, and the prospects for regional integration.

EC 251 Economic Development I
Economic growth in low income countries. Topics include labor markets, household economics, health and nutrition, population growth, migration, human capital formation. (Pre-requisite: Economics 205-206)

EL (English) 276, Section 2 Post-Colonial Theory
Critique of colonialism in the 20th century. Analyses of economics, culture, psychology, nationalism, and the subject of colonialism and decolonization, placing postcolonial theory in the historical and global context of the anticolonial discourse and critique of imperialism. Lenin, Frank,Wallerstein, Amin, James, Memi, Ngugi, Retamar, Fanon, Nandy, Mariategui, Said, Guha, Spivak, Beverley, Chatterjee, Ileto, Bhabha, Mohanty, Moreiras, Mitter, Escobar, Kumar, and Mattelart.

EL 276, Section 9 Post-Colonial Studies
Focus on postcolonial cities and cultural citizenship - specifically the convergence, in discourse, of bodies and cities through the shared motifs of disease, waste, desire, memory, visuality, and circulation. Also considers the shadow- and underground-selves of the imperial/ neocolonial city; namely the indenture plantation, harem, prison, and shantytown. Writers: Bhabha, Beyala, DeCerteau, Fanon, Lorde, Rhys, Rushdie, Spivak, Saro-Wiwa, among others.

ES (Environmental Studies) 201 Special Topics in Environmental Studies
This seminar is intended for graduate students and exceptional undergraduates in Environmental Studies. A theme will be chosen each year by the faculty and members of the seminar. (Note: ordinarily, the course will count towards the Development Studies degree only when the subject is related to development.) Each student will have responsibility for researching an important issue related to this theme, presenting it to the seminar and writing a significant paper about it. May be repeated for credit. Written permission required.

HI (History) 144 Islamic History, 1400-1800
A survey of the major Islamic polities and societies of the Nile-to-Oxus region from 1400 to 1800; their culture, socioeconomic conditions, and development up to the eve of the modern era. Particular attention is given to the Mamiuk and Ottoman Middle East, Safavid Iran, and Mughal India.

HI 147 Southern African History (Afro-American Studies 147)
Course focuses on South Africa after 1500, beginning with settlement at the Cape and interactions between whites, slaves, and members of Khoisan and Bantu societies. The mineral revolution is emphasized as a turning point leading to imperialism and greater segregation. The course closes with exploration of black experiences under Apartheid and the transition to majority rule.

HI 151 China 1750-1911: The End of the Traditional Order
China's traditional polity and culture in the late imperial age; indigenous sources of disruption; the impact of Western imperialism; Confucian restoration, and first efforts at "Westernization;" early revolutionary ideas and movements.

HI 197 Undergraduate Seminars on Interpretations of History
The offerings change from year to year. Offerings relating to countries and regions in the developing world, and some offerings on Europe in the period of its development, can be used toward the Development Studies masters degree. A sampling of recent offerings follows.

Sec. 02 African Women's History
This course will examine the role of women in African history. It will consider some individual women, but the general experience of women will occupy more of our attention. The course will be a seminar organized around weekly themes, which will cover various time periods and regions of sub-Saharan Africa. Themes will include: the theoretical challenges of African women's history, agricultural production, slavery, the colonial economy and society, nationalist politics, religion, sexuality and reproduction. Enrollment limited to 25. Written permission required.

Sec. 04 African Environmental History
A seminar on the history of interactions between humans and the environment in sub-Saharan Africa. The course begins with consideration of theory in environmental history, and continues by exploring important facets of the relationship between people and nature in Africa, including cultivation, pastoralism, disease, hunting, mining, export crop production, population, famine, and conservation. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 13 China's Confucian Tradition
Focuses on cultural history—an examination of Confucianism as a social and cultural institution within late imperial history, from the middle period (T'ang/Sung dynasties) to modern times. Previous exposure to Chinese thought or history is highly desirably. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 36 Topics in the History of the People's Republic of China
An examination of the economic, social, and cultural consequences of the deradicalization of the Communist revolution, and of the protest movements of the 1980s, against the background of earlier 'Maoist' history. Prerequisite: HI 152. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 39 Identity Conflicts in Middle East History, 1900-Present: A Proseminar Through Memoirs, Novels, and Films
A critical study of selected memoirs, novels, and films (in English translation) as mirrors of identity conflicts and problems in Middle Eastern history since 1900. How competing political agendas and ideologies, differences in social background, gender and education, and changing conditions help shape, reshape, and also blur collective as well as individual identities. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 46 Origins of the Chinese Way
An examination of the classical thinkers and ideas that shaped traditional Chinese responses to such questions as What is the good society? How do we achieve it? and How do we know whether/when the ruler should be obeyed? Original texts (in translation) to be read include The Analects of Confucius, the works of Mencius, Hsun-tzu, Mo-tzu, the Tao Te Ching and the Chuang-tzu, and selections from the Shih-chi. Secondary readings will be used to establish the historical context. No previous knowledge of Chinese history is assumed. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 52 Red, White, and Black in America
The seminar will examine relations along red, white, and black peoples in the Americas form the eighteenth through the mid-nineteenth century. Among the topics examined will be slavery (of Africans and Indians by Europeans, and of Africans by Indians), religious syncretism, racial hierarchies, maroons, and communities of mixed race persons. This is a limited enrollment course with preference given to seniors in Afro-American Studies, American Civilization, and History. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 74 The Age of Rebellion in Latin America, 1750-1850
A seminar devoted to the period in which Latin America gained its independence but lost its political stability. Among the topics discussed are popular rebellions against Bourbon rule, the independence of Spanish America, the age of caudillos, and the changing nature of peasant revolts in the 19th century. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

PS 148 (Political Science) Theories of International Relations in the 20th Century
Places the major intellectual contributions to international relations during the 20th century in their appropriate historical context and considers the development of challenges and new theoretical syntheses. International security and political economy are given particular attention, but the formation of political al community and the global environment are also considered.

PS 182 Research Seminars

Sec. 06 The International and Domestic Politics of the Latin American Debt Crisis
The onset of Latin American debt crisis in 1982 precipitated dramatic economic and political change throughout the region. The crisis and the ensuing policy changes, in turn, have had important effects on Latin American society and politics. The objective of this course is to provide students with the opportunity to assess the causes and consequences of this watershed period in Latin American development. Enrollment limited to 20. Permission required.

Sec. 10 Coping with Nationalism
The tensions and conflicts engendered by nationalism--the pursuit of self-determination by ethnonational groups--have become the major security concern of states in the post-Cold War era and the major contributor of wars and refugees. After considering the various theories on the nature and rise of nationalism, the course examines the sources, management, and prevention of ethnonational conflicts, with an emphasis on power sharing. International law, and the involvement of external actors. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 12 Comparative Policy and Politics of East Asia
A comparative analysis of major public policies in East Asia under different political systems (communism, authoritarianism, colonial rule, ad competitive democracy). Policy areas will include economic development, civil rights, social welfare, educational reform, security policy, and international trade. The seminar will examine the structure and process of agenda building and policy formulation, and assess policy performance in the context of national priorities and institutional patterns.

Sec. 19 The Political Economy of East and Southeast Asia
The seminar will discuss one of the central issues in the development debate: why and how East Asia has risen so far and so fast up the value-added hierarchy of nations in the past 30 years. We shall examine a range of contributions from economics, political science, and sociology, including market, statist, and world system approaches. Prerequisites: EC 111, plus one of EC 121, 154, or 155. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 25 (Spring 2002) Mexican Political Development
Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 26 (Fall 2000) Human Rights and Justice After Political Transitions
Is it ever appropriate, on ethical or pragmatic grounds, not to punish gross human rights violations? This seminar examines attempts by successor governments and international actors to deal with past human rights atrocities in Rwanda, El Salvador, Bosnia and other cases. It examines options like truth commissions, international tribunals, and police and judicial reforms. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 26 (Spring 2001) War and Peace in the Middle East
An intensive discussion of the causes, consequences, and efforts to resolve ongoing areas of conflict in the Middle East. Deploying theoretical approaches from political science, focuses on the Arab-Israeli conflicts and the two Gulf Wars. Considers transnational threats to stability in the region, including terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the Islamist challenge. Prior coursework in either political science or the Middle East is desirable. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 31 (Spring 2002) Globalization
What is 'globalization'? Is market capitalism the only viable economic system? Is democracy a universal human ideal? What does global capitalism do to a culture? Is the Westphalian idea still viable? Is it possible to conceive of political power in ways that make no direct reference to claims of territory? Should there be a new political constitution on a global scale? Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 32 (Spring 2002) Contraband Capitalism: States and Illegal Global Markets
This course explores the clandestine side of the global economy (including flows of drugs, people, weapons, and money) and state policing efforts. We will examine the organization of these activities, how they intersect with the state and legal economy, their relationship to armed conflicts, and how they shape (and are shaped by) domestic and international politics. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 34 (Spring 2002) Politics in South Africa
This seminar will examine a variety of themes in contemporary South African politics emerging since the collapse of apartheid, in the late 1980's. These will include international sanctions, democratization, confronting the political evils of the past, power-sharing and constitution-making, and the formulation of economic policies in a context of marked disparities of wealth. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

PS 213 International Relations Theory
The development of theories of international political security, international political economy, international political community, and international political ecology will be situated in their historical origins, antecedents, and contemporary directions.

PS 219 Welfare States in Old and New Democracies
Why were welfare states constructed? Why have they taken such a variety of forms? Can they survive the ongoing ideological, political, and economic challenges to their legitimacy and viability? An examination of these questions, looking at explanations from statist-institutional, class-political, economic-developmental, and cultural perspectives. Cases drawn from United States, Western Europe, post-socialist Eastern Europe and Russia, and possibly Latin America.

PS 221 Globalization and its Discontents
Examines trends in he world economy and in national capitalism. Takes a critical view of the popular argument that globalization is causing a systemic convergence of national capitalism towards the Anglo-American form. Written permission required.

PB (Portuguese and Brazilian Studies) 160
Sec. 2 Brazil and Africa in the Making of the Southern Atlantic World
Survey of the making of the Southern Atlantic World during the early modern period based on the interaction between the Portuguese, Africans, and Brazilian. Topics include slavery and African agency, the role or merchant communities, Indian answers to European encounters, economic cycles, colonial powers and forms of resistance, the conflicts between the Crown, the settlers and the missionaries, and the formation of colonial elites in the quest of a new nation. Conducted in English.

Sec 7 The Afro-Luso-Brazilian Triangle
Examines three historical components of the South Atlantic in terms of history, culture, and contemporary political and economic consequences. European colonialism in Africa and Brazil constitutes the baseline for this exploration, but the long and tardy nature of Portuguese colonialism in Africa in comparison with other European colonial powers, especially in its post-World War II manifestations, is our starting point.

Sec. 8 The United States and Latin America
U.S.-Latin American relations became a major theme in hemispheric history in the mid-19th century and has remained such down to today. The evolution of this relationship is traced in its economic, diplomatic, cultural, and military dimensions.

Sec 9 National Identities of Brazil and Mexico
Brazil and Mexico are the two most populous and most industrialized countries in Latin America and both also have significant populations of non-European origin. Yet their national identities have evolved in different directions. This seminar explores possible explanations, focusing on historical parallels and divergences.

Sec. 10 Race and Ethnicity in Brazilian History
Brazil has long been noted as one of the more interesting ‘laboratories’ of race relations, having produced a society of mixed origins: European, African, and Indigenous. This seminar explores that theme, as well as the changing influence of ethnicity in modern Brazil.

Sec. 12 Contemporary Afro-Latin American Issues
Examines socioeconomic, sociopolitical, and cultural issues that confront Afro-Latin Americans in present-day Latin America, specifically, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela. Of particular interest is the complex question of identity. Can the public expression of the African component of group identity legitimately exist within an overarching national identity? Familiarity with Latin America through study, residence, or heritage is helpful but not required.

Sec. 19 Portugal and the Discovery of the World
Explores the Portuguese presence in Africa, Asia, and America, 1415-1808. Examines different phases in the context of geographical regions, subsequently integrating the different regions into a multi-continental, multi-oceanic, global system. Explores political, commercial, military, cultural, and social dimensions. Emphasizes European/non-European contacts and interactions. No knowledge of Portuguese required. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 20 Twentieth Century Brazil
Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 21 The Struggle For Human Rights in Brazil: Democracy Without Citizenship
Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 26 National Identities of Brazil and Mexico
Brazil and Mexico are the two most populous and most industrialized countries in Latin America and both also have significant populations of non-European origin. Yet their national identities have evolved in different directions. This seminar explores possible explanations, focusing on historical parallels and divergences. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

PB 165 Colonial Brazil 1500-1800
Major trends in the history of colonial Brazil (c. 1500-c. 1800). Topics included: Indian civilizations, slavery, patterns of colonization, political institutions, missionary activities, and colonial identifies. Comparison with other colonial societies is emphasized. Conducted in English. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

PB 180 Concentration Seminar in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies
Sec. 01 "Que pais é este?" 20th-Century Definitions of Brazil and Brazilianness This seminar will focus on three major areas: the portraits of Brazil from the late 1930s to the early 1960s, mainly by left-learning intellectuals; the economic and political model of Brazil imposed by the military regime of 1964-1985; and the subversion of the official definitions of Brazil in the "anti-histories" of the Abertura period (1975-1985). Materials will be drawn from the social sciences, history, literature, and film, both by Brazilians and Brazilianists. Authors to be considered include Sergio Buarque de Holanda, Gilberto Freire, Vianna Moog, Paulo Freire, Golbery do Couto e Silva, Roberto da Matta, Joao Ubaldo Ribeiro, Richard Morse, and others. Conducted in Portuguese.

PY (Psychology) 172 Stereotyping and Intergroup Relations
Introduces classic theories of prejudice and stereotyping (e.g., psychoanalytic or sociological theories), and then focuses on cognition-based approaches to stereotype formation and change. The relevance of central aspects of stereotyping (e.g., in-group bias, perceptions of group homogeneity) will be examined with respect to person perception and intergroup conflict. Models of peacemaking (contact, cooperation) will be discussed. Prerequisite: PY 220 Graduate Core in Social Psychology; a survey course examining classic and contemporary research in social psychology, including attitude formation and change, person and self
perception, stereotyping, and intergroup relations.

RS (Religious Studies) 188

Sec. 1 Music, Drama, and Religion in India
Music and drama (including dance drama) have played central roles in Indian religious life from ancient times. They have expressed and nourished a wide range of devotional emotions toward various Hindu deities, as well as functioned as meditative modes of attaining an impersonal spiritual goal, the unitive experience of pure consciousness. The seminar explores these diverse forms of religious experience as they are produced and enhanced by the aesthetic means of music and drama. Audiovisual materials will provide a vivid sense of these aesthetic-religious performance forms.

Sec. 2 (Fall 2001) Women, Gender, and Religion in India
Introduces theoretical issues in the study of religion and gender and explores these issues in the cultural context of Hindu India. Considers conceptions of divinity as female as well as what the actual social statuses and religious roles of women have been. An advanced seminar that presupposes substantial previous work in one of two areas: South Asian Studies or women's studies. Previous work in religious studies also helpful.

Sec. 23 Islamic Legal History
The emergence, role, and significance of nationalism and fundamentalism in the Muslim world in a broadly comparative framework. The intellectual, socioeconomic, and political bases of transformation of religious and political identities; and the multifaceted manifestations of Islamic fundamentalism in the modern world. Case studies include Egypt, Iran, and Pakistan; some attention also given to examples drawn from elsewhere in the Muslim world as well as to those form other religious traditions. Prerequisite: RS 5 or equivalent background. Enrollment limited to 20.

RS 291 Independent Research

Sec. 16 Confucian Texts
Sec. 17 Taoist Texts
Sec. 18 Indian Buddhist Texts
Sec. 19 Chinese Buddhist Texts
Sec. 20 Japanese Buddhist Texts
Sec. 31 Conceptions of Self: East and West
Sec. 38 African Philosophical and Religious Thought
Sec. 39 Black Theology

SO (Sociology) 187 Seminars

Sec. 15 (Fall 2001) Sociological Perspectives on Poverty
Examines the personal experiences of socioeconomic status, with focus on the lower tiers of the hierarchy. We distinguish three levels of poverty: the working poor, marginal workers, and the underclass. Analysis will make use of issues of gender and family, race and ethnicity, and urban and rural settings. We investigate sociological perspectives on the problem of homelessness. Prerequisite: SO 1 or 2. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required. AMP

Sec. 19 African Development and Demography
Focuses on the relationship between socioeconomic developments in Africa and their demographic transitions. Particular emphasis will be placed on cultural issues in the analysis of population changes (mortality, morbidity, migration, family, and fertility) in the contexts of economic growth and dependency. Theories of development will be evaluated in the context of African demography; African population patterns will be assessed in their developmental diversity.

Sec. 23 Business Networks in Asia
Examination of business networks including commercial and investment bankers, brokers, exporters/importers, and corporate investment bankers, brokers, exporters/importers, and corporate managers within and among Asian cities. These business actors are place din social organizational, economic, and political contexts. Broad social networks included overseas and mainland Chinese, Japanese, and "foreign" networks from outside Asia, such as the United States and Britain. Pivotal nodes covered including Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Shanghai, Bangkok, and Jakarta. Seminar-discussion format. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

Sec. 27 (Spring 2001) Globalization, Nationalism, and Identity
Examines the relationship between the globalizing economic processes and the politicization of identities as an arena of the new forms of the differential access to power and exercise of hegemony. Case studies from East-Central Europe and developing countries illuminate the ongoing resurgence of 'ethnic' nationalisms against the background of the relationship between the nation-state and global processes of economic modernization. Prerequisites: One course from among HI 1, 143, SO 15, 127, 160. Enrollment limited to 20. Written permission required.

SO 208 Principles of Population
An advanced introduction to the theoretical and substantive issues in the social scientific study of population. Major areas within sociology are integrated with the study of population. Major areas within sociology are integrated with the study of population, including the comparative-historical analysis of development, family processes, social stratification, ethnicity, ecological studies, and social policy. Primarily for first-year graduate students.

SO 209 Culture and Social Structure
An analysis of the interrelations of religious ideas, value patterns and various forms of knowledge on the one hand, and of the societal structures and changes in organizations and roles on the other hand. Offered in alternate years.

SO 215 Socioeconomic Analysis of Development
This course compares economic and sociological perspectives on the problems of development. Topics included problems of conceptualization and measurement, entrepreneurship, capital accumulation, labor forces utilization, income distribution, the role of the states, and the impact of international economic relations on developing countries. Prerequisite: a basic undergraduate micro-macro economics course or permission.

SO 217 Topics in Societal Analysis

Sec. 01 States and Social Change
Examines recent developments in the theory and comparative historical analysis of states and state-society relations. Special themes include: the rise of the early modern state: democratization; the development of social welfare states; states and markets in development. Seminar.

SO 223 Techniques of Demographic Analysis
Procedures and techniques for the collection, evaluation, and analysis of demographic data; census and vital registration systems, surveillance systems, and population surveys are considered. Both direct and indirect method of estimation are investigated. Students learn measures of population and composition and fertility, morality, and migrations; construction of life tables, population estimates and projections.

SO 226 Family, Population, Gender, and Development

Sec. 3 Structural Equation Models in the Social Sciences
Structural equation models as used in the social sciences and methodological issues pertaining to such models. Topics include the logic of causal modeling; theories and models; recursive and non-recursive structural equation systems (path analysis); reduced form equations; the problem of identification; unobserved variables and the analysis of covariance structures (using LISREL). Written permission required for undergraduates.

Sec. 10 Event History Analysis
An introduction to hazard models and their application to event history data in sociology. Topics include survival distributions, standard parametric models, discrete time approaches, partial likelihood models, and the introduction of covariates. Attention is given to practical application and the estimation of these models with software packages, where possible.