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Political SciencePOLS 102 COMPARATIVEGOVERNMENT (3)Three hours lecture/discussion per weekThis course introduces the student tothe contemporary study of comparativepolitics. The theme for the course willbe democratization and democracy.Topics will include political institutions(constitutions, executives, legislatures,courts, and political parties), politicalbehavior (voting, group activism, andother modes of political participation),and political ideas (political culture,socialization, status of women, andpolitical economy).GenEd: DPOLS 103 INTRODUCTION TOINTERNATIONAL POLITICS (3)Three hours lecture/discussion per weekThis course offers an overview of currenttheory, topics, and research in the PoliticalScience subfield of International Relations.Emphasis will be placed on the role ofpower in international affairs, the structureof the international system, the meaning ofsecurity, and the importance of economicrelations between nations and regions.GenEd: DPOLS 140 CALIFORNIA GOVERNMENTAND POLITICS (1)One hour of lecture per weekIntroduction to the structure and functionof California state government. SatisfiesCalifornia state and local governmentrequirement for students who havetaken American Government without aCalifornia component or who receiveAdvanced Placement credit for AmericanGovernmentPOLS 150 AMERICAN POLITICALINSTITUTIONS (3)Three hours lecture per weekExamines the major American nationaland state political institutions andprocesses, including the presidency,congress, the federal court system,political parties, the electoral system, andmajor institutions of state government. Thiscourse emphasizes how these institutionsand processes function within changingAmerican Constitutional principles of therole of law, federalism, shared power,and individual and civil rights. Meets Title5 US Constitution and State and LocalGovernment requirement.POLS 300 POLITICAL SCIENCERESEARCH METHODS (3)Three hours lecture per weekIntroduction to research methodscommonly used in political science.Topics include: research design, literaturereviews, measurement and observation.Covers quantitative as well as qualitativemethods of inquiry.POLS 301 POLITICAL THEORY (3)Three hours lecture/discussion per weekPolitical Theory is devoted to assessingthe authority, legitimacy, and justificationof various kinds of political arrangements.How should people live together insociety? Is democracy really the bestform of government? Can a societylegislate morality? What do individualsowe their government? What does theirgovernment owe them? This course willconsider these and related questionsthrough an introductory survey of worksby major political philosophers such asPlato, Hobbes, Locke, Mill, and Marx.Ramifications for issues such as freedomof speech, religious liberty, affirmativeaction, women’s rights, economicinequality, criminal punishment, civildisobedience, and revolution will also beexplored.POLS 303 STATISTICAL APPLICATIONSIN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES (4)Four hours lecture per weekPrerequisites: A passing score on the EntryLevel Mathematics Exam (ELM) or MATH105 or EquivalentIntroduces quantitative methods as used insocial & behavioral science research withthe goal of statistical literacy. Statisticaltechniques and data analysis uniqueto the behavioral and social sciences.Descriptive and inferential statistics totest hypotheses. Principles of samplingdesign, hypothesis testing for behavioraland social science research, datacollection techniques, statistical analysisand interpretation of data, as well aswritten reporting of results. SPSS Statisticssoftware.Same as SOC 303, PSY 303GenEd: B3POLS 304 AGING POLICY AND POLITICS (3)Three hours lecture per weekExamines the role of political institutions inpolicy making related to issues of aging,the political factors that shape policyformulation and implementation, thevalues and assumptions of different typesof policies, and the links between policyand implementation. Analyzes current andpending policies’ effects on older adultsas well as businesses and institutions thatserve them to illustrate how aging policyreflects American politics.Same as HLTH 304POLS 305 GENDER AND POLITICS (3)Three hours lecture per weekExamines the role of women as politicalactors in the United States. Also exploresthe impact of public policies on womenin America.POLS 306 THE POLITICS OF RACEAND ETHNICITY (3)Three hours lecture per weekExamines the politics and policyconsequences of racial and ethnic identityin the United States. Special attention willbe paid to issues of race and politics incontemporary southern California.GenEd: C3BPOLS 312 INTEREST GROUPS ANDCOLLECTIVE ACTION (3)Three hours lecture per weekPrerequisite: POLS 150The course surveys political interestgroups by examining the contrastbetween political parties and electionsversus interest groups and lobbying,the logic behind collective action; theinstitutional arrangements governmentsuse to channel group demands, andinterest group resources, strategies andtactics in asserting influence. The coursewill examine groups in different issuedomains, and make distinctions betweeninterest groups and social movements.POLS 313 THE UNITED STATESCONGRESS (3)Three hours lecture per weekPrerequisite: POLS 150This course addresses the historicaldevelopment of the Congress, thedynamics of congressional elections,analytical perspectives on the studyof Congress, and the major internalmechanisms of the institution includingparties, leaders, committees, rules, etc.POLS 314 THE AMERICAN PRESIDENCY (3)Three hours lecture per weekPrerequisite: POLS 150An introduction to major approaches tothe study of the presidency, presidentialselection, presidential power, interbranchrelations, the role of the public, interestgroups, and the media, and presidentialbehavior in the policy-making process.The course also focuses on the historicaldevelopment of the office.Course Descriptions2011 – 2012www.csuci.edu • California State University Channel Islands • 2011 - 2012 Catalog285