2012

Fall 2012

SOCIOLOGY

Professor Richard Alba, Soc. 84600 Quantitative reasoning in the study of immigration {19155}
Tuesdays, 2:00 – 4:00, Room TBA, 3 Credits

The goal of this course is a sophisticated understanding of the application of some of the
advanced techniques of multivariate analysis. We will not concern ourselves very much with the statistical theory behind the techniques; rather, our concern will be with their
implementation in real-world research—the situations where they are appropriate, the decisions that go into using them, pitfalls in their application, and the interpretation of the results they produce. The examples will be drawn throughout from contemporary research in the study of race, ethnicity, and immigration.

Professor Deborah Balk, 
Soc. 81900 – Spatial Demography (Special Topics in Demography {18870}
Thursdays 4:15 – 6:15.room TBA, 3 credits

This course provides an overview of spatial themes and techniques in demography. Examples will be drawn from many substantive areas (e.g., mortality, fertility, urbanization, migration, poverty). Students will learn about spatial construction of place, basic mapping skills and spatial data creation as well as statistical methods to explore and model spatially-referenced data to answer demographic questions. In the most advanced topics, students examine the special difficulties that spatial data may create for standard regression approaches, and learn models and approaches for undertaking multivariate regression analysis in the presence of spatial heterogeneity and/or spatial dependence. Emphasis in the course is evenly split between learning how to make maps and spatial analysis. Pre-requisite: DCP 701 and introductory statistics including multiple linear regression, or permission of instructor.

Professor Ana Ramos-Zayas, 
Soc. 82100 – Latinos in the United States {19246}
Thursdays 4:15 – 6:15.room TBA, 3 credits

Students will analyze the central themes and paradigms in the field of Latino/a Studies, while examining the diverse historical, social, and political experiences of Latino populations in the U.S. We will situate Latina/o Studies within a genealogy and intellectual tradition of critical race theory and comparative ethnic studies, while analyzing seminal scholarly works in the humanities and social sciences with a particular engagement with social theory in Sociology and Anthropology. Through a thematic focus, students will examine the broader theoretical frameworks that inform Latino Studies and Latino ethnography. The course may serve as an intellectual roadmap for students doing graduate work in various disciplines in the social sciences and humanities, and who are interested in pursuing research topics in Latina/o, Latin American, and Caribbean Studies.

Professor Bryan Turner, Soc. 84600 – Citizenship and Human Rights {18873}
Tuesdays, 11:45 – 1:45pm, Room TBA, 3 Credits

The course is divided in two sections, staring with citizenship and its recent critics, and then moving on to human rights and its critics. We finish with some consideration as to whether these two different forms of rights could be combined. Citizenship as a principle of inclusion is criticised because it cannot cope adequately with globalization (including migration, refugees, asylum seekers and so forth). Some sociologists believe we can modify citizenship to develop flexible citizenship or semi-citizenship or post-national citizenship. Human rights are seen to be more relevant to a global world but critics note that they are enforced by states, and require the resources made available by states. The course looks at the apparent decline of welfare states and citizenship with neo-liberal economics and neo-conservative politics. We also examine differences between the American tradition of civil liberties and European welfare states. Other topics include aboriginal or first nation rights, migration and citizenship, ageing and health rights. We look at different forms of citizenship in Latin America, Asia and the Middle East. The course concludes by considering the contemporary limitations of both citizenship and human rights traditions with respect to authoritarianism, genocide, and new wars.

ANTHROPOLOGY

ANTH 82100 – Latinos in the US
GC: R, 4:15 – 6:15 p.m., Rm. 6493, 3 credits, Professor Ramos-Zayas, [19765]
Cross listed with SOC 82100.

ANTH. 72100 – Being & Becoming in Latin America, GC: T, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Rm. 6421, 3 credits, Professor Collins, [19018]

DEMOGRAPHY

Introduction to Demography – 19008 – DCP 70100 – GC
GC: R, 11:45 a.m.-1:45 p.m., 3 credits, Professor Jenn Dowd

This course will review the demographic, social, and economic determinants of fertility, health, mortality and related demographic aspects, and the effects of population size, composition, and structure on social and economic conditions. Each week will focus on the predominant themes in these subareas of demography. Topics will include, among others: demographic transition; aging and mortality; fertility, family planning, and reproductive health; urbanization; migration; family demography to include marriage, living arrangements, and family structure; population and environment; consequences of population growth for economic development; and the demographic future.

Selected Topics in Demography: Spatial Demography – 19009 – DCP 80300 – GC: R, 4:15 p.m.-6:15 p.m., 3 credits, Professor Deborah Balk

This course provides an overview of spatial themes and techniques in demography. Examples will be drawn from many substantive areas (e.g., mortality, fertility, urbanization, migration, poverty). Students will learn about spatial construction of place, basic mapping skills and spatial data creation as well as statistical methods to explore and model spatially-referenced data to answer demographic questions. In the most advanced topics, students examine the special difficulties that spatial data may create for standard regression approaches, and learn models and approaches for undertaking multivariate regression analysis in the presence of spatial heterogeneity and/or spatial dependence. Emphasis in the course is evenly split between learning how to make maps and spatial analysis.

ECONOMICS

ECON86100 – International Trade Theory and Policy, GC: T: 9:30 – 11:30 AM, 3 credits, Professor Ortega

ECON 87200 – Labor Economics II, GC: R: 11:45 AM – 1:45 PM, 3 credits, Professor Jaeger

This course focuses on the working of labor markets and their interaction with various institutions. As much of the analysis in labor economics relies on an understanding of supply and demand of labor, we will first lay a foundation of these concepts. During and following this discussion, we will address various topics, such as the impact of the welfare system; labor as a “fixed” input; market equilibrium and job search; occupational safety and health; compensating wage differentials; and earnings risk.

HISTORY

Hist. 80000-Literature of Latin American History l:
The Latin American City
GC: T, 4:15-6:15 p.m., 5 credits, Professor Amy Chazkel, Room 5212

Hist. 77300-Rural History of Latin America and the Caribbean
GC: Th, 6:30-8:30 p.m., 3 credits, Professor Laird Bergad, Room 5212

POLITICAL SCIENCE

Comparative Politics of Asia, Professor Sun, PSC 87630 [19098], 4 credits, Wednesdays 6:30 – 8:30pm

This seminar will look at the major research questions, theories and approaches of comparative politics as applied in the Asian context, as well as those developed out of it. Broad issue areas include the interactions between historical experiences and contemporary trajectories, economic and political modernization, domestic development and the global economy, state and society, political regimes and political institutions, mass participation and contentious politics, cultural values and political change, as well as ethnic and identity politics. Our geographical range will mainly be East Asia, especially China. Assignments include approximately one book per week, and a research paper or analytical book reviews.

International Human Rights & Humanitarian Affairs, Professor Andreopoulos, PSC 86403 [19095], 4 credits, Wednesdays 6:30 – 8:30pm

This course will focus on key concepts in human rights and humanitarianism, and examine their analytical value in the context of varying approaches towards the promotion and protection of internationally recognized human rights and humanitarian norms. In particular, the course will examine these concepts in light of (a) the recent debates in international relations theory on the role of ideas and norms, and the intersections between international relations and international law research agendas; and (b) the growing convergence between international human rights law and international humanitarian law. It will assess the impact of normative considerations, as well as the role of the relevant state and non-state actors on a whole set of critical issue areas including discrimination, accountability, human protection, political membership, human development, and legal empowerment.  The course will conclude with a critical discussion of recent initiatives in UN-led human rights reform.

Comparative Foreign Policy, Professor Braveboy-Wagner, PSC 86105 [19085], 4 credits, Mondays 4:15 – 6:15pm

Foreign Policy Analysis is one of the most popular subfields of international relations. Even though you can rational and positivist approaches have predominated in the field in the US, elsewhere a generous dose of comparative “area studies” ethnography as well as increasingly popular constructivist and critical thinking have invigorated the field. In this course we first ask how is the study of foreign policy different from international relations as a whole (some constructivists think it should not be)? We then walk through the movement from Comparative Foreign Policy to FPA. From there we move into substantive areas: what are the influences on foreign policy at the individual, state and system levels? What goes on in that “black box” of decision making? What happens before and after a decision is made? What is the role of the bureaucracy? What is the role of non-state actors? What is the relationship between “diplomacy” and foreign policy? Finally, let’s compare U.S. foreign policy with that of other selected countries and regions? What differences are there in both substance and influences? Why? These are some of the questions discussed in this course.

Spring 2012

SOCIOLOGY

Professors Richard Alba and Nancy Foner Soc. 85800, Issues in Contemporary Immigration {18113} Tuesdays, 4:15 – 6:15 p.m.

The recent – and massive – immigration in the past few decades is transforming the wealthy societies of the West. It is also transforming the study of immigration. By now, there is a substantial, and growing, scholarly literature on immigration as sociologists, along with social scientists in allied disciplines, grapple with the complexity of the subject. This course will examine some of the key issues in the study of contemporary immigration, primarily focusing on the United States but also looking at Western Europe. Among the questions we will explore: What are the new conceptualizations of assimilation that have been put forward and how do they advance the field? Can the study of immigration in the past illuminate the present? What are the consequences of transnational ties and do they persist among the second generation? How is immigration changing the social construction of race and ethno-racial relations in the United States? What difference does gender make? How different are new destinations in the United States from old immigrant gateways? What can we gain by comparing U.S. immigration to the recent influx in western Europe? Students will critically discuss and prepare comments on relevant works in the immigration field and write a final research paper.

Professor Donald J. Hernandez Soc. 83105 – Diverse Children & Current National Policy Debates {17549} Mondays, 2:00pm-4:00pm

Children depend almost completely on their families and governments for resources essential to their immediate survival, and to their successful development and well-being. The fundamental rights set forth in the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) include the rights to an adequate standard of living, to an education directed toward the development of the child’s fullest potential, to the highest attainable standard of health, and to his or her own cultural identify and the use of his or her own language. The CRC also asserts that these rights shall be ensured by governments irrespective of the child’s race, ethnicity, national origin, or language. Children in the United States are particularly diverse with regard to these statuses, yet the United States is only one of two nations (the other is Somalia) that has not ratified the CRC. Moreover, children in the United States experience the highest poverty rates among affluent nations, they experience great inequalities in access to quality education and health insurance, and nearly one-in-four have
immigrant parents, often from Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia, or Africa. These facts provide the impetus for this course, which focuses on historical revolutions in family composition, work, and poverty, on the consequences of these transformations for children’s development and well-being, and on historical and contemporary change in public welfare, education, health, and immigrant integration polices. The course looks at these in the context of the role of the social sciences, and through the lens of international comparisons. Finally, the course focuses on the foundations of conservative and liberal ideologies and provides the occasion to debate current approaches to national policy from both perspectives.

Professor Pyong Gap Min Soc. 82800 – Asian Americans {17541} Wednesdays, 6:30 -8:30 p.m. 
1.

The main objective of this course is to provide an overview of Asian American experiences by covering Asian Americans both as a whole and major Asian ethnic groups separately. 1. Major Asian American groups to be covered separately are Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, South Asian, Korean, and Southeast Asian (Indo-Chinese).
2. General topics to be covered are immigration (history and contemporary trends), settlement patterns, socio-economic adjustment, prejudice and discrimination, family and gender issues, community organization, ethnicity (ethnic attachment, ethnic identity, and ethnic solidarity), and intergenerational transition.
3. Specific topics and theories to be covered include the following: the model minority thesis, pan-Asian ethnicity, multiracial Asian Americans, Asian Americans’ positioning in U.S. race relations, the effects of globalization on Asian immigration patterns, Asian Americans’ transnational ties, Asian Americans’ political development, Korean-Black conflicts, the effects of gender role changes on Asian immigrants’ marital conflicts, second-generation Asian Americans’ ethnic identity and socioeconomic attainment, and the effects of 9/11 on South Asian Americans.
4. Students will look at fresh data on Asian American experiences derived from the 2000 and 2010 Censuses and recent American Community Surveys and recent research findings.
5. Students will discuss major issues related to Asian American experiences and review a comprehensive literature on Asian American experiences. These components of the course will help doctoral students to decide dissertation topics related to Asian American experiences.