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Program of Political Science and International Relations (English)

POLI490

INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY

Course Code
POLI490
Semester
-
Theory+Practice
3 + 0
ECTS
5
Course TypeElective Course
Course LevelBachelor's Degree
Year of Study-
Semester-
ECTS5
Name of Lecturer(s)
Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, the students;

  1. Gain the ability to define and discuss major approaches (realist, liberal, structuralist and feminist approaches) to international political economy.
  2. Develop an understanding of the concepts of capitalism, neoliberalism, globalization and imperialism and their inter-relations.
  3. Analyze different approaches to development and underdevelopment.
  4. Get informed about the historical stages of the formation and transformation of the world economy.
  5. Explain the major characteristics of global production, trade and financial system.
  6. Discuss the emergence, basic features and collapse of the Bretton Woods financial system.
  7. Grasp the dynamics of the emergence of economic crises.
  8. Explain the reasons and effects of 2008 global financial crisis.
Mode of DeliveryFace to face
PrerequisitesNo
Recommended Optional Programme ComponentsNo recommended optional programme components.
Course DescriptionThis course offers a critical, historically informed introduction to International Political Economy (IPE), tracing the development of capitalism from mercantilism to neoliberalism. It emphasizes the interrelationship between politics and economics, highlighting the distinction between the fundamental logic of the capitalist mode of production and the historical periodization commonly employed in IPE. Through weekly analyses of key historical periods, students will investigate the shifting roles of hegemonic states, the organization of production, trade regimes, and the development of financial and monetary systems. By engaging with major IPE theories and historical transformations, students will cultivate critical thinking skills and achieve a nuanced understanding of the historical and structural dynamics of global capitalism.
Course Contents
WEEK TOPICS
1st Week Introduction
2nd Week Transition to Capitalism (Classical/liberal (natural evolution), Braudel and world system analysis (mercantile), The Brenner debate (production))
3rd Week The Mercantile Roots of Capital: Guns, Gold, and Colonies (Making of national markets and states (16th and 17th centuries), Iberian mercantilism, Mercantilist approaches to IPE (I))
4th Week The Agrarian Roots of Capital: Land, Labor, and Market (From the Dutch golden age to English hegemony (17th and 18th centuries), Classical political economy, Liberal approaches to IPE (II))
5th Week When the Machine Met the Worker (Industrial revolution (early 19th century), Karl Marx and the critique of capital, Marxist approaches to IPE (III))
6th Week Imperialism and the Expansion of Capital (Imperial systems (late 19th and early 20th centuries), Long Depression (1873-1896), Classical theories of imperialism)
7th Week Mid-Term
8th Week Crisis and Keynesian Turn (Taylor and Ford, The Great Depression (1929), The birth of macro-governance)
9th Week Building the Post-War Order (Bretton Woods system (World Bank and IMF), Fordism, Developmentalism and dependency)
10th Week Breaking the Golden Age: The 1970s (Crisis of consent, crisis of accumulation (1968-1982), Neo-Gramscian Approaches to IPE (IV))
11th Week Capital Strikes Back: Neoliberal Re-Structuring (Post-Fordism: Flexible labor, rigid finance, Transformation of the state, Financialization)
12th Week Crisis Without End (Financial crises in the 1980s and 1990s, 2008 Global Financial Crisis and the Eurozone Crisis)
13th Week After American Empire: Who Rules Global Capitalism? (The rise of China, Multipolar capitalism?)
14th Week General Review
Recommended or Required ReadingBalaam, David N. & Bradford Dillman (2019). Introduction to International Political Economy. New York: Routledge.
Beaud, Michel (2001). A History of Capitalism, 1500-2000. London: Monthly Review Press.
Bieler, Andreas & Adam David Morton (2004). A Critical Theory Route to Hegemony, World Order and Historical Change: Neo-Gramscian Perspectives in International Relations. Capital & Class, 85-106.
Dunn, Bill (2009). Global Political Economy: A Marxist Critique. London: Pluto Press.
Evans, Trevor (2011). Five Explanations for the International Financial Crisis. The Perspective of the World Review, 3(1), 9-28.
Fine, Ben & Alfredo Saad-Filho (2016). Marx?s Capital. London: Pluto Press.
Harvey, David (2007). A Brief History of Neoliberalism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Sune, Engin (2022). Imperialism as a Critical Theory of IR. In M. K. Özekin & E. Sune (Eds.). Critical Approaches to International Relations (pp. 48-56). Leiden: Brill.
Wood, Ellen Meiksins (1999). The Origin of Capitalism. London: Monthly Review Press.
Planned Learning Activities and Teaching Methods
  • Lecture
Assessment Methods and Criteria
Quantity Percentage (%)
Mid-term 1 40
Other 1 15
Total(%) 55
Contribution of In-term Studies to Overall Grade(%) 55
Contribution of Final Examination to Overall Grade(%) 45
Total(%) 100
ECTS Allocated Based on Student Workload
Activities Quantity Duration (Hour) Total Workload (Hour)
Midterm exam 1 1 1
Preparation for Quiz
Individual or group work 14 2 28
Preparation for Final exam 1 50 50
Course hours 14 3 42
Preparation for Midterm exam 1 30 30
Laboratory (including preparation)
Final exam 1 1 1
Homework
Total Work Load152
Total Work Load / 30 (h)5.06
ECTS Credit of the Course5
Language of InstructionEnglish
Work Placement(s)No

Programme Qualifications / Learning Outcomes

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K2 X X X X X
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K5
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K7 X
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