International Political Economy (IPE) studies how politics shape
the global economy and how the global economy impacts politics. As
such, its study centers on state-market relations and the key
actors that shape them, including international organizations,
government actors and multinational corporations. Levels of
analysis range from the national to the supranational, with a
constant awareness of the multiple interconnections between the
global and the local. This course introduces students to classical
debates within the subfield, including the international political
economy of trade, finance, development and production. It also
tackles more recent topics and grand challenges that are key to
contemporary debates about globalization from an IPE perspective,
including climate change, money and economic inequality. In
studying these topics the course brings to bear key theories of,
and approaches to IPE such as realism, liberal institutionalism,
critical studies, constructivism and historical institutionalism,
all of which are deployed to encourage critical but concrete
thinking about the myriad trade-offs that constitute the
international political economy, as well as the moral and ethical
implications thereof.
In relation to Nordic Nine
International Political Economy provides historical context for
the major socioeconomic shifts of the 20th and 21st century,
thereby placing business knowledge in a broad and concrete
historical backdrop and projecting it into the future (NN1;
NN7). It also tackles key socio-political challenges
facing political leadres today, including topics such as financial
stability, climate change, and the changing nature of labor and
production (NN3). In discussing and analyzing
these topics it takes a data driven approach, but also highlights
the ambiguity and complex trade-offs that characterize these grand
challenges (NN2; NN5). Pedagogically, the course
incorporates group work and hones critical analytical skills
(NN6).
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