Module Identifier IPM5030  
Module Title THEORIES AND THEORISTS OF INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ECONOMY  
Academic Year 2002/2003  
Co-ordinator Dr Liliana Pop  
Semester Semester 1  
Course delivery Seminars / Tutorials   22 Hours 1 x 2 hour seminar per week  
Assessment Semester Assessment   Essay: 1 x 2,000 word critical review essay   30%  
  Semester Assessment   Essay: 1 x 6,000 word research essay   70%  
  Supplementary Exam   Students may, subject to Faculty approval, have the opportunity to resit this module, normally during the supplementary examination period. For further clarification please contact the Teaching Programme Administrator in the Department of International Politics.    

Learning outcomes

Upon completion of this module, students should be able to:

- account for way in which theoretical discourse within IPE has emerged
- demonstrate their knowledge of different approaches to IPE
- assess the relative strengths and weaknesses of different approaches
- evaluate the different contributions to the development of IPE as a discipline made by different approaches

Brief description

This module explores different theoretical approaches to the discipline of International Political Economy (IPE). It will be of interest to those students who wish to know more about the way in which theorising about IPE has arisen, and the different ways in which IPE has drawn on other disciplines for theoretical inspiration. By taking this module students will equip themselves intellectually for advanced research in IPE.

Aims

This module aims to identify and explore the way in which the global political economy is theorised by different approaches within IPE.

Content

The module begins by examining mainstream traditions of thought, principally realist and liberal variants of International Relations theory, and then moves on to consider alternative approaches grounded in Marxism, sociology and history. It ends by considering the newly-developed Gramsican approach to IPE.

Transferable skills

By taking this module students have an opportunity to strengthen two sets of skills. As a result of preparing for and participating in seminar discussions, they will have an opportunity to extend - at a postgraduate level - their comprehension and analytical skills, improve upon their time management practices, and practise oral debating and presentation skills. As a result of writing and researching their essays, they will be expected to employ recognised social science methods of inquiry, develop their library and IT skills, practise good writing techniques, demonstrate solid time management capabilities (to meet deadlines), and display sound analytical capacity. Developing these skills throughout the module will assist students in achieving the module's principal aim of exploring how theorising about IPE has evolved.

Reading Lists

Books
Robert Gilpin. (2001) Global Political Economy. Princeton
Diane Coyle. (2000) Governing the World Economy. Polity
Ronen Palan, ed. Global Political Economy. (ISBN: 0415204895)