Political Science 499CE - DemocracyPossibleEverywhere 1

Debates today rage about whether democracy is really possible in powerful authoritarian countries like China, in the oil-producing states of the Middle East, in the poorest countries of Africa, and even in wealthy but unequal societies like the United States. This course asks whether there are in fact economic, or associational preconditions for (or impediments to) the establishment or maintenance of democracy. This question is at the heart of one of today?s great political debates. It is also at the center of major methodological debates within the social sciences. The course thus offers an excellent opportunity to 1) learn something about one of the big political issues of the day, 2) examine key methodological issues involved in the study of democracy, and 3) evaluate critically various kinds of social-scientific explanation.

This course is open to Senior & Junior Commonwealth Honors College students only. This course meets weekly online via Zoom TuTh 10:00am-11:15am.