COMPARATIVE POLITICS COMPREHENSIVE EXAMINATION
January 2004
Students
taking this exam as a major have six hours to answer one question from Part I,
one question from Part II, and two questions from Part III. Students taking the exam as a minor have
four and one-half hours to answer one question from Part I and either one
question from Part II and one question from Part III or two questions from Part
III.
All
students will be evaluated according to the following criteria: 1) the extent
to which they address the issues raised by the questions; 2) the breadth and
depth of their knowledge of the relevant literature; and 3)their ability for
critical analysis of this literature.
A.
In a recent article provocatively titled “Structures Do Not Come with an
Instruction Sheet,” Mark Blyth argues that the value of structural analysis is
greatly limited by its inability to explain change and assumption that
interests are objectively given rather than cognitively constituted by beliefs
and desires. Critically consider the
strengths and weaknesses of structural analysis in comparative politics. Make certain to use at least two important
structuralist works to illustrate your points.
B.
Can scholars in the 21st century learn anything from the “grand”
social theories of the 19th and early 20th
centuries? (e.g. Marx, Weber, Durkheim,
etc.) Discuss the strengths and
weaknesses of at least two classical social theorists in light of contemporary
approaches to comparative political analysis.
C. In their classic work, Shaping the
Political Arena, Ruth and David Collier assert that “critical junctures …
played a central role in shaping the national political arena in the following
decades.” (p. 29) The analysis of
critical junctures has been widely influential in the field of comparative
politics. Define what is generally
meant by a critical juncture and explain why it is important. Give examples of critical junctures in two
different analytical fields (e.g. democratization, economic policy, state formation,
party systems, social movements, etc.) and assess the strengths and
weaknesses of analyses based on critical junctures.
A.
Harry Eckstein contends that comparative politics can include “critical cases”
which can refute theories aspiring to universal applicability. In contrast, King Keohane and Verba assert
that single observations are not useful for texting hypotheses or theories
because most explanations rely on multiple causal factors, because errors in
measurement may cause mistakes in any given test, and because random events
interfere in what are anyway only probabilistic theories. Explain what types of tests can add or
subtract to the credibility of a hypothesis or theory and elaborate why.
B.
Process tracing is often presented as a methodological solution to the problem
of generating causal explanations with a small number of cases. Explain the process-tracing approach. Assess its strengths and weaknesses. Discuss whether process-tracing narratives
can provide compelling causal explanations.
C.
James Mahoney argues that macrocausal analysis employs at least three
techniques of causal inference: nominal, ordinal and narrative. Evaluate at least one work that utilizes
each approach and assess the strengths and limits of each technique. Consider the trade-offs in combining two or
more approaches.
A.
Many analysts contend that globalization – through international capital
mobility and the competitive pressures resulting from expanding international
trade – places limits on state intervention while imposing incentives for
neoliberal economic policies. Others,
as far back as Katzenstein 1985, have argued that increased exposure to the
international economy is associated with greater state economic
intervention. Discuss the impact of
globalization on economic policy giving examples from at least two countries to
support your points.
B.
Some analysts of democratization argue that democratic transitions can be
understood
largely as a process of elite bargaining.
Other analysts have emphasized the importance of the development of
particular class configurations in the rise of democracy. Assess the strengths and weaknesses of each
perspective. Assess whether attempts
to synthesize elements of these analytical traditions are likely to be
insightful.
C.
Ann Shola Orloff observes, “Culture as much as political economy is necessary
to understand welfare state programs….
Social policy has symbolic significance in upholding or undermining the
gender order.” (Steinmetz 1997 p. 323)
Consider the interaction between attitudes toward gender and the welfare
state. Discuss the extent to which the
different normative, gender, and occupational realities that exist today have
altered the institutions of the contemporary welfare state and the degree to
which the institutional legacies of the welfare state have resisted societal
gender change. Explain the causes of
the outcomes that you have observed.
D.
Some analysts of political party systems, following in the tradition
established by Duverger, argue that electoral rules fundamentally shape the
nature of a party system. Others,
following the analytical tradition of Rokkan emphasize the importance of social
cleavages. Provide a critical review of
the different factors that shape democratic party systems.
E.
In his classic work, Imagined Communities, Benedict Anderson offers a
constructivist perspective on how nations and nationalism come into being. Consider how constructivism might be applied
to ethnic groups and ethnic conflict.
Assess the strengths and weaknesses of constructivist approaches to
ethnic identity formation.
F. Charles Tilly observes that the “central paradox of European state formation” is “that the pursuit of are and military capacity, after having created national states as a sort of by-product, led to a civilianization of government and domestic politics.” (1992 p. 206) Using Tilly’s work as well as the general literature on state formation, explain how this paradox was resolved for the states of Western Europe. Then consider whether the process of state formation in countries outside of Western Europe has been characterized by similar dynamics. Provide reasons for the similarities and differences in the experience of Western and non-western states.