In this course students will learn to appreciate the value of qualitative research as it offers contextual meaning of social phenomena. Students will become familiar with the nature, assumptions and logic of qualitative research. They will understand the available techniques for designing a qualitative research study while identifying and constructing theory.
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This course covers the concepts, principles, objectives and practical applications of sustainability and sustainable development from an environmental, social, economic, corporate and political perspective. There is a natural environmental orientation to an overarching course of this nature, however, it seeks throughout to identify and analyse relationships between environmental sustainability and socio-economic factors, most centrally, the relationship between resource consumption (individual and collective) and sustainable livelihoods. The course examines, inter alia, the origins of sustainability, sustainability concepts, terms, standards and indicators, economic activity/output and sustainability, the role of industry and issue of waste, the issues of energy, water and clean air; environmental issues, political implications and decision-making and discourse/policy trends in energy, resource use, pollution, climate change and water; the three ‘E’s’ – environment, economics and equity; the environmental-social nexus – current and future resource availability and constraints, livelihoods and policy-making; sustainability in the business world – resource allocation, investment, stakeholders, shareholders, public and/v private-sector actors, the role of NGOs, multilaterals, bilaterals. The course also examines the global political economy of sustainability: individual versus collective state action, the tragedy of the commons, sustainable development, rights, obligations, sacrifices, opportunity costs as viewed by the developed and developing world.
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This course aims to give students an introduction, to contemporary trends in sociological theory. At its core, the course examines a range of theoretical debates that have acquired international prominence in recent years.
Sociological theory unavoidably has to be approached from an international perspective. This is due to, on the one hand, the universalising claims inherent in many contemporary theoretical approaches and, on the other hand, the proliferation of sociology, sociologists, and sociology departments throughout the world. At the same time, however, questions remain as to the scope of relevance of internationally dominant theories that emanate from leading sociology departments and publishing houses in Western Europe and North America. The present course addresses this tension by introducing students to a broad range of contemporary theories and interrogating their importance to social research in the Caribbean.
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This course is designed to trace the development of European political thought from the ancient Greek philosophical schools to the origins of modern political thought in the 19th century. Issues concerning the origins of political thought will be investigated with particular emphasis on the contribution of Ancient Egypt to Greek philosophy. The precursors to modern political thought and the evolution of political values and ideologies will be identified. Theories of the state and their socio historical milieu will be examined and the contribution of political philosophy to the development of political institutions will be addressed. The historical sources of contemporary civil arrangements and their philosophical assumptions will be reviewed and assessed. Emphasis and focus on particular philosophers and thinkers will vary from time to time. It is a course designed to provide tools of philosophical analysis for the political scientist.
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This course aims to give students an introduction, to contemporary trends in sociological theory. At its core, the course examines a range of theoretical debates that have acquired international prominence in recent years.
Sociological theory unavoidably has to be approached from an international perspective. This is due to, on the one hand, the universalising claims inherent in many contemporary theoretical approaches and, on the other hand, the proliferation of sociology, sociologists, and sociology departments throughout the world. At the same time, however, questions remain as to the scope of relevance of internationally dominant theories that emanate from leading sociology departments and publishing houses in Western Europe and North America. The present course addresses this tension by introducing students to a broad range of contemporary theories and interrogating their importance to social research in the Caribbean.
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What is theory? Why is it useful? What are the obstacles to developing theories of international relations? Why do states act the way they do? How do we identify change in the international system and how do we explain and account for these changes? Theory is an essential element to the discipline of international relations. It provides different lenses to and assess world events and phenomenon. The course is designed to introduce students to the prevailing theories of international relations and how they are used and misused in the analysis of contemporary policy issues. This class will cover the major theories of international relations. We will examine a variety of theoretical approaches that offer diverse perspectives on the major questions of international relations.
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An overview of the nature of crime in the Caribbean and the different approaches used to understand criminal behaviour. The course seeks to ground students with an understanding of the causes of crime, the major methods for measuring crime, as well as the dominant theoretical perspectives in the field of Criminology. ‘The purpose of this course is to provide the students with an in-depth understanding of the nature, causes and consequences of crime and its relation to security and justice. In addition, this course also brings into question, the effectiveness of the criminal justice system in dealing with the nature of criminality.
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This course explores the distinct foundations upon which modern Caribbean politics rests. It attempts to identify the unique characteristics and experiences of Caribbean states to enrich the field of comparisons with other political systems. The special characteristics of small states, the varied impact of colonialism in the region, the nature of the political culture, along with class and ethnic influences, the founding roles of Caribbean leaders, the main state formations that have emerged, as well as the emergence of civil societies in the Caribbean are the main areas covered. The main purpose is to be able to understand the nature of contemporary Caribbean politics from the continuing impact of these foundations.
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Among the biggest challenges facing the global community today is to reconcile the difference between economic advancement and social development. This course introduces students to the history of the concept of poverty, the culture of poverty, the causes of poverty and its effects. Intersections between poverty, education, health, and welfare will be explored in a variety of international contexts. Policies designed to reduce poverty will be analysed at both the international and community levels. This course presents students with the opportunity to comprehensively understand the nature, scope and dynamics of social development and its interplay on the lives of individuals, families, communities and groups. It interrogates the contributions of education, income, health, and technology and welfare system in contributing to an egalitarian society with opportunity and mobility for all.
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This course will therefore be devoted to provoking critical thinking about the political, economic and social challenges and opportunities in the implementation of ICTs for e-Government and in the wider context of e-Governance. It will introduce the student to a variety of theoretical ways of thinking about technology within the broader framework of political science. This is important because convergence of ICTs is reshaping traditional methods of social discourse and the way we interact; exacerbating traditional methods of how knowledge and information are created, managed and utilized as a competitive asset for development; redefining core concepts in contemporary political life such as power, sovereignty, privacy, security, representation, accountability, transparency, individual rights, liberty, democracy, moral agency and ethics. Moreover, the assertion those developing countries will be able to leapfrog traditional technologies and engage newer ones to realise their development goals, have also not been realised. By studying e-governance, students will not only be investigating technical issues, but also the less overt political machinations that go into how these technologies are being used in making decisions about how to engineer information infrastructure for political agendas and the significant implications for political life.
