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PS 30: POLITICAL INQUIRY

PS 30: POLITICAL INQUIRY Spring 2008 Peter H. Smith Social Science 364 Office hours: M 2-4 E-mail: phsmith@dss.ucsd.edu WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE? Purpose of Course Organization of Course Everyday Relevance BASIC GOALS (I) Introduction to logic of empirical research in

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PS 30: POLITICAL INQUIRY

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  1. PS 30: POLITICAL INQUIRY Spring 2008 Peter H. Smith Social Science 364 Office hours: M 2-4 E-mail: phsmith@dss.ucsd.edu

  2. WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE? • Purpose of Course • Organization of Course • Everyday Relevance

  3. BASIC GOALS (I) • Introduction to logic of empirical research in • political science • As revealed through quantitative methods • With emphasis on practical applications • And research projects by students.

  4. READING ASSIGNMENTS • Philip H. Pollock III, The Essentials of Political Analysis, 2nd edition • Philip H. Pollock III, An SPSS Companion to Political Analysis, 2nd edition • A Course Reader.

  5. RESEARCH PROJECT • Principal focus of discussion sections • Use of data in SPSS Companion • Practical illustration of statistical methods • Due at last section meeting (4-6 pages + tables and/or graphs).

  6. SPSS: Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (Student Version) • Available for purchase in UCSD Bookstore (~ $200!) • Available for use in UCSD student computer lab • (Solis 105) and elsewhere on campus

  7. GRADING • 10% for participation in discussion sections, • 30% for homework assignments, • 25% for research project, and • 35% for final exam

  8. COURSE WEB PAGE • Address: • http://weber.ucsd.edu/~phsmith/teaching.htm • Contents: • Course Syllabus • Lecture Outlines (all 19 available now!) • Study Guides • Information and Announcements

  9. DISCUSSION SECTIONS • Total of six sections • W-Th-F • Openings: Th 1:00-1:50, F 11:00-11:50 • Third and fourth meetings: Solis 105

  10. TAs/POLI 30 • Sarah Knoesen sknoesen@gmail.com • Paula Jacobson pjacobson@ucsd.edu • Brad LeVeck bleveck@ucsd.edu

  11. COURSE READER • Political Cycles in Latin America • Settlements of Civil Wars • Ideology and Voting on U.S. Supreme Court • Economic Development and Political Democracy • Mass Support for Democracy • Governmental Performance and Political Regimes

  12. BASIC GOALS OF COURSE (II) • Intellectual sadism • Literacy in the field of political science • Exposure to original research • View of statistics as a way to summarize vast amounts • of information • And again, the logic of research: • How do we know what we know? • How can we measure political phenomena? • How can we ascertain patterns of political behavior?

  13. ON THE UBIQUITY OF MEASUREMENT: EVERYDAY PROPOSITIONS • Al Qaeda presented a bigger threat to the United States than did Iraq under Saddam Hussein. • Arnold Schwarzenegger has been a better governor than Gray Davis. • Vicente Fox raised the hopes of the Mexican people. • John McCain has more experience in the national security area than either of his Democratic opponents.

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