Approaches to International Commerce and Policy
|
Fall Semester, 2003 ITRN 500.001 (Wallace) Tues. 7:20-10:00 pm,Rm 251 ITRN 500.002 (Dinan) Wed. 1:30-4:15 pm, Rm. 251 ITRN 500.003 (La Porte) Thurs. 7:20-10:00 pm. Rm. 269 |
Tony Wallace Adjunct Professor
Office hours: Tues. 6-7 pm and by appointment Room 209 (703) 993-8209 (703) 241-8686 (home) awallac1 *at* aol.com |
Desmond Dinan Jean Monnet Professor and Director, ICP Program Office hours: Wed. 12:00-1:00 pm and by appointment Room 207
(703) 993-4973 ddinan *at* gmu.edu |
Todd M. La Porte Associate Professor Office hours: Thurs. 6-7 pm and by appointment Room 248 (703) 993-3351 (202) 686-7115 (home) tlaporte *at* gmu.edu (preferred contact) |
Course Description
OVERVIEW: Welcome to the Fall 2003 session of ITRN 500. This course may be somewhat different from most courses you took at the undergraduate level. It is taught in part using the case method, which originated at the Harvard Business School, as modified to suit the needs of the ICP program.
This means that you will be expected to review carefully in advance the material assigned for each class and be prepared to discuss the important aspects of the case in class. Our role in this process will be to get the discussion started, assist the class in laying out the facts of the case, pose questions, and help the class to discover general principles running through the case that might be applicable in other situations.
Grades and Examinations
This is not a lecture course. You, the students, will be uncovering the key lessons from each case. One third of your grade will be derived from your oral participation in class.
The other two thirds of your grade will be from a mid-term and from a final exam. These will be in-class, open note exams that emphasize mastery of the materials in the cases, particularly your ability to synthesize and analyze. Active participation is a fundamental component of the course.
Texts
Class sessions are based on two course texts, and a set of cases contained in a course reader (all items can be purchased at the Arlington Campus Bookstore)
Required Books :
Robert Gilpin, The Challenge of Global Capitalism: The World Economy in the 21st Century (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2002). (Note: the 2002 version differs slightly from the 2000 edition).
Diana Hacker, A Pocket Manual of Style , latest edition (New York: Bedford/St. Martin's Press).
Recommended Book :
Daniel Yergin and Joseph Stanislaw, The Commanding Heights: The Battle Between Government and the Marketplace that is Remaking the World (New York: Touchstone, 2002).
Other readings will also be assigned, some of which are on the Web, and linked through this syllabus, and others that will be handed out in class. Students are expected to have access to all reading materials.
For those who have had little or no economics at the undergraduate level, we recommend that you purchase Understanding U.S. and Global Economic Trends by Daniel Gaske, also at the Arlington Campus Bookstore. The syllabus for this course contains recommended readings from this book to aid in comprehension of our cases. Another worthwhile book is The Economist's Guide to Economic Indicators, also available at the bookstore.
In addition, Yergin and Stanislaw's The Commanding Heights was adapted very successfully as a 6-hour PBS broadcast, rebroadcast locally from time to time, and available in video. It may also be viewed on the Web with a fast Internet connection. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/
After choosing your connection speed ("Got broadband?"), click on "Storyline"
to view the broadcast segment by segment.
The low speed version doesn't have the broadcast, but does
have transcripts, timelines, short histories, data and explanations, and
essays that explain key ideas.
Recommended, particularly for those students with little economics background.
Professors Dinan, Wallace and La Porte are teaching the same course in the same sequence--all students are assigned the same material at the same time, though each of us approach the material a little bit differently. Nevertheless, we encourage you to join with students either from either class in study groups to discuss the material. Student contact information will be distributed at the first or second session to facilitate this important activity.
Writing help
Writing can be difficult for some students, yet good writing is vital to a successful graduate program, and to career advancement. We strongly urge students to think hard about writing competently and formulating solid and well-supported arguments. Diana Hacker's A Pocket Manual of Style will be helpful, but will not on its own make you into a good writer. If you would like help with learning about how to compose your arguments or write more clearly, please contact the University Writing Center (http://writingcenter.gmu.edu ) or see the instructors.
Plagiarism
All work must be your own. Although the exams for this course are to be
taken in-class, care still must be taken not to misrepresent your efforts.
In general, where the work
of others is used, even in paraphrased form, it must appropriately referenced.
When in doubt, cite! Plagiarism
is an Honor Code violation:
http://www.gmu.edu/facstaff/handbook/aD.html
If you have any questions about proper referencing practice, read the information at: http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/wts/plagiarism.html Let us know if you have any additional questions or concerns about plagiarism.
Course Outline
This course deals with the nature of globalization, and its impact on various forms of capitalism. Our text and the other assigned readings introduce some important economic concepts, current global economic trends, and leading ideas about globalization. We will examine the tradeoffs between economic growth, employment, and income inequality.
We will devote considerable time to looking national economic strategies, often using Harvard University cases. We will examine the transformation of Russia and China the enlargement of the European Union, and Asian regionalism. You will be introduced to the approaches used in a variety of countries to promote economic growth and development, and overcome economic instability.
Class discussions will focus on explaining why states chose particular strategies and assessing the effectiveness of strategies in producing desired results and minimizing unintended negative consequences. You will also be encouraged to compare strategies with the objective of drawing generic conclusions about the effectiveness of strategies under certain conditions. You will take an at home mid-term essay examination after section 7.
The second half of the course will include sessions on Germany's current economic problems and the special situation of the Islamic world in the global system, including a look at the politics of energy, which in particular links the Arab states to the advanced industrial economies of the West and Asia.
We will evaluate concerns about global climate change and how environmental issues affect international trade and international institutions. We will then study the response of companies and states to increasing economic interdependence. We will read cases about the consequences for states and industries of the globalization of production.
We will also discuss how states incorporate economic values (e.g. efficiency, aggregate growth) and non-economic values (e.g., environmental quality, culture, security, autonomy, differentiated development) into arrangements designed to facilitate and regulate international transactions. One class discussion will be focused on biotechnology and its impacts on the international market and the prospects for economic development.
Our two final class meetings will examine criticisms of globalization and recommendations for minimizing its negative impacts. We will also conduct a review of all of the cases presented during the semester.
You will take an in-class exam at the end of the semester to assess your ability to integrate the insights from the course into a coherent analysis of international trade and economic issues.
COURSE SYLLABUS
Session 1 Introduction: The Challenge of Globalization
Robert Gilpin, Challenge of Global Capitalism , Preface, Introduction, Chapter 2.
On Writing Well:
A Guide to Writing Papers in the ICP Program
Diana Hacker, A Pocket Manual of Style
.
Assignment: write a short summary (1,000 words maximum) of the arguments made in the Fukuyama, Huntington, and Zakaria articles cited in Session 2 (below); hand in your assignment during Session 2.
Gilpin, Chapter 1.
Samuel Huntington, "The Clash of Civilizations?" Foreign Affairs, vol. 72, no. 3, 1993.
Francis Fukuyama, "The End of History?" The National Interest, Summer 1989.
Fareed Zakaria, "The Rise of Illiberal Democracy," Foreign Affairs, vol. 76, no. 6, 1997.
Fukuyama and Zakaria readings are available on Electronic Reserves at:
http://library.gmu.edu
.
Select "e-reserves" from right-hand column, select "Search electronic reserves,"
then select "Search system for Fall 2003 courses," if that link appears at
the bottom of the screen. Then select course or instructor in drop-down
box. The password is "lemon"
(no quotes).
National Approaches and Opportunities:
Small is Beautiful?
Case:
1-800 Buy Ireland
Session 3 National Approaches and Opportunities: Bounded by Bigness?
Case:
Brazil: Embracing Globalization
Case:
Enron Development Corporation:
Dabhol Project A and B
Gilpin, Chapters 3-5, 11.
Session 5
Transformation of Centrally-Planned Economies
Case:
Russia: End of a Time of Troubles?
Case:
China: The Great Awakening
Gilpin, Chapter 7 (Europe)
Case:
A Wider Europe: Challenge of
EU Enlargement
Gilpin, Chapter 9 (Asia)
Case:
China and its Neighbors
Review of material for the Mid-Term Exam (Take
Home)
Review of the Mid-Term Exam
David Landes, Wealth and Poverty of Nations, chapter 24, "History Gone Wrong?" pp. 392-417. Available on Electronic Reserves.
Carl Solberg, Oil Power, "To the Middle East and Back," chapter 7, pp. 173-196. Available on Electronic Reserves.
Paul Kennedy, "The Perils of Empire," Washington Post, April 20, 2003.
United Nations Development Programme, "Overview,"
Arab Human Development Report 2002:
Creating Opportunities for Future Generations
.
http://www.undp.org/rbas/ahdr/Overview.pdf
Available on Electronic
Reserves.
Case: Global Climate Change
Gilpin, Chapter 6.
Case:
Nike and International Labor Practices
Case: Life, Death and Property Rights: Pharmaceutical Industry Faces AIDS in Africa
See also:
Gary Trudeau, Doonesbury Nike Comic Strips, May-June, 1997,
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/5232/comicmay97.htm
David Hosansky, "Biotech Foods," CQ Researcher, March 30, 2001. Available on Electronic Reserves.
Volker Lehmann, "From Rio to Johannesburg and Beyond: Globalizing Precaution for Genetically Modified Organisms," report for the Heinrich Bšll Foundation, Washington Office, April 2002, http://www.boell.org/docs/PrecautioninWTOandRIO.pdf
Gilpin, Chapter 10.
Benjamin Friedman, "Globalization: Stiglitz's Case," The New York Review of Books, August 15, 2002.
Richard N. Haass and Robert E. Litan, "Globalization and its Discontents," Foreign Affairs, July/August, 2001.
Alan S. Blinder, "Eight Steps to a New Financial Order," Foreign Affairs, September/October 1999.
Gilpin, Chapter 8
Martin Wolf, "Will the Nation State Survive Globalization?" Foreign Affairs, January/February 2001.