Formation/Cours

By the end of the course students should be able to:

– Conceptualize and analyze the workings of the global economy in a holistic manner, by focusing on the various issue areas of the global economy

– Introduce the global economy as a political competition that produces winners and losers

– Emphasize fundamental (economic) concepts as well as the interplay between material interests, institutions, and ideas to explain how the global economy works

– Outline and explain the evolution of international trade and monetary cooperation over the past two centuries

– Critically assess how economic policy is made in the context of globalization

– Review and evaluate studies in various areas of research in IPE

With the expansion of globalization during the last decades, economic conflict and cooperation among states play an increasingly important role for international political affairs in the modern state system. This course examines the political origins and political consequences of the intense economic ties that characterize contemporary interstate relations. The course integrates insights from previous courses by showing how explanations from international economics are insufficient to understand the major developments in the history of the international economic system. The course also builds on international relations theory to identify the central political factors that influence foreign economic policy. In particular, we examine how the distribution of power in the international system, the presence of international institutions, and the political interests of governments, political parties and interest groups influence interstate economic relations.

The course has four parts. The first part reviews the major developments in the international economic system, discusses historical approaches to International Political Economy (IPE) and outlines the major theoretical building blocks of modern IPE. The rest of the course then applies this analytical framework to a variety of issue areas. The second part analyzes the politics of trade, including international trade cooperation, domestic trade politics, and trade and development. The third part studies the political roots of international monetary relations, including international monetary cooperation, exchange rate politics, and financial crises. The final part examines the effects of (hyper-)globalization and the economic rise of China for democratic politics in advanced economies, labor standards in developing countries, and the Liberal International Order.