Aims and Fit of Module

This is a module in advanced International and Comparative Political Economy. The Global Financial Crisis 2008 and the Great Recession that followed it have spurred new directions of research in political economy to investigate and explain dynamic processes of global transformation in the fields of trade, production and finance, and their relationship to domestic growth models, economic imbalances and crises. In this module, students will critically engage with these debates with two aims. On the one hand, to understand the processes in trade, production and finance that transform today’s global economy and critically evaluate their relationship with and effects on politics and society. Here, China’s evolving position in the international political economy is explored throughout the module. On the other hand, students will engage with current transformations in the fields themselves of international and comparative political economy, and how they shift our understanding of the relationship of the political and the economic.

Learning outcomes

A. Critically engage with and appraise current theoretical debates in Comparative and International Political Economy.
B. Analyse and critically evaluate transformations in global trade, production, and finance.
C. Analyse and critically evaluate the political economy of global economic imbalances.
D. Analyse and critically evaluate the political economy of global economic crises
E. Collect, organise and evaluate pertinent data and information from a variety of primary and secondary sources.
F. Formulate research questions based on a critical review of the literature.

Method of teaching and learning

The module is composed of lectures and seminars organised around structured reading group activities to facilitate deep reading and discussion. Additionally, the module relies on independent study and research.