Time Schedule:
Margaret Levi
POL S 589
Seattle Campus
Evaluating research in political economy as well as developing research problems. Topics vary with instructor and with current problems in the literature.
Class description
Description Special Topics in Political Economy: Political Accountability, Trust, and Cooperation. There is a strong claim made by some social scientists that trust is essential for cooperation and trustworthiness the basis of accountability. The concepts of trust and trustworthiness have received renewed investigation in the past few years, and this seminar will be evaluating some of that work. We shall consider micro, macro and micro-macro approaches to these key concepts and the extent to which trust, trustworthiness, cooperation, and accountability affect each other and under what conditions. We shall be drawing from a range of disciplines and of methodological approaches, including game theoretic, experimental, survey, and qualitative case study.
Student learning goals
General method of instruction
Recommended preparation
Texts. Robert Bates, Avner Greif, Margaret Levi, Jean-Laurent Rosenthal, and Barry Weingast, Analytic Narratives. Peter Hedstrom and Richard Swedberg, Social Mechanisms. New book manuscripts by Andrew Bennett and by Alexander George and by Stathis Kalyvis. Packet of readings.
Class assignments and grading
Assignments. 20-25 page paper
