Course Syllabus

Geoeconomics: The economics and politics of the emerging global disorder

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Semester & Location:

Spring 2022 - DIS Copenhagen

Type & Credits:

Elective Course - 3 credits

Major Disciplines:

Economics

Prerequisite(s):

Students must have taken at least one course in economics

Faculty Members:

David M. Rowe (current students please use the Canvas Inbox)

Time & Place:

Tuesday and Fridays at 10:05-11:25  Classroom: F24-303


Course Description

Globalization and an open liberal world economy are giving way to a world where political competition between the United States, the EU, China, and others increasingly direct the flow of economic goods and resources around the globe.  This course is designed to help students understand both the sources of this transformation and its likely implications.  The first third of the course provides students with the analytical tools necessary to understand the deep structure of markets and why they must be nested within supportive political institutions; the second third of the course explores the postwar emergence and operations of the present open liberal world economy; the final section of the course explores the political and economic forces that now threaten its fragmentation, as well as their implications for the future.

 

Learning Objectives

The learning objectives for the course are to help students understand how markets and economic activity are nested within political structures that determine property rights and define the rules of economic exchange; the economic, political, and social implications of different ways of organizing the political economy; the fundamental institutions of the liberal world economy that emerged after World War II; and recent how changes in the structure of the international political system pose a fundamental challenge to its continued existence. 

Course Requirements

This course presupposes at least one introductory economics course, preferably microeconomics. Students are expected to be comfortable handling basic supply and demand analysis. If you are unsure you can fulfill this expectation, please contact the instructor as soon as possible.

 

Required reading assignments will be made available online, along with (optional) supplementary articles. The course outline will be posted on DIS Forum, listing the required readings for each lecture. Students should check the course outline frequently for updates.

 

Students must come to class having read and being prepared to discuss that session’s assigned readings.  I recommend that students prepare for class by writing down 2 or 3 things that strike them about the day’s reading, such as key findings or interesting arguments. This helps students be prepared to answer questions and participate productively in discussion.  I expect students to participate actively in class by asking questions, making comments, or sharing ideas and will also “cold-call” on students to answer questions or participate in discussions.  The reading load may vary from session to session.  Students should plan ahead.  

Faculty

David M. Rowe

PhD (Political Science, Duke University, 1993). His research focuses on three major themes in international relations: economic sanctions, the political consequences of globalization, and the causes of World War I. He is the former Director of the International Studies Program at Kenyon College (2007-2012) and recipient of several prestigious grants and awards.  He was most recently the NATO Security Studies Fulbright Scholar in Brussels in 2022-23. Currently, he is Professor of Political Science at Kenyon College, where he teaches international relations, comparative politics, and political economy.

 

Readings

Section 1:  Essential Concepts

 

Date

Topic / Learning Goals

Reading

 

1

 

 

Introduction:  What is Geoeconomics?

 

Robert Gilpin, The Political Economy of International Relations, chapter 1. 

 

 2

 

 

Basic Concepts: The Market

 

 

Charles Lindblom, The Market System, pp. 1-43.

 

3

 

 

Basic Concepts:  Scarcity and Property

Harold Demsetz, "Toward a Theory of Property Rights," American Economic Review 57, 1967, 347-359.

 

 

4

 

 

 

Coase and the Importance of Property Rights Regimes

 

Robert Bates, Beyond the Miracle of the Market, chapter 1.

 

 5

 

 

 

Transaction Costs and the Necessity of Institutions

Douglass North, "Institutions."

 

 6

 

 

Basic Concepts:  The State

Charles Lindblom, “Authority and the State,” excerpt from Politics and Markets, 17-32

Charles Tilly, “States and Nationalism in Europe,” Theory and Society, 1994, pp. 131-46.

 

 7

 

 

Basic Concepts:  Power 

David Baldwin, “Power and International Relations,” Handbook of International Relations, pp. 273-97

 

 8

 

 

Basic Concepts:  Authority

Ian Hurd, “Legitimacy and Authority in International Politics,” esp. pp. 379-381 and 401-403.

 

 

9

 

 

Basic Concepts:  Anarchy

 

Hedley Bull, "Hobbes and International Anarchy."

 

Organizing the Global Political Economy

 

 10

 

 

The Default Strategy of Economic Nationalism or Mercantilism

Douglas Irwin, “Strategic Trade Policy and Mercantilist Trade Rivalries,” American Economic Review, 1992, pp. 134-139 and “Mercantilism as Strategic Trade Policy: The Anglo-Dutch Rivalry for the East India Trade,” Journal of Political Economy, 1991, pp. 1296 – 1314.

 

 

11

 

 

The Rise and Spread of Economic Liberalism

Christine Harlan, “A Reappraisal of Classical Economic Nationalism and Economic Liberalism,” International Studies Quarterly, 1999, pp. 733-744.

 

 

 12

 

 

The Emergence and Operation of the Post World War II Bretton Woods System

 

John Gerard Ruggie, “International Regimes, Transactions, and Change: Embedded Liberalism in the Postwar Economic Order,” International Organization, 1982, pp. 379 – 415.

 

13

 

 

The WTO

Richard Baldwin, “The World Trade Organization and the Future of Multilateralism,” Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2016, 95 – 115.

 

14

 

 

The IMF

 

Carmen M. Reinhart and Christoph Trebesch, “The International Monetary Fund: 70 Years of Reinvention,” Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2016, 3 – 27.

 

15

 

Finance

 

Maurice Obstfeld and Alan M. Taylor,

“International Monetary Relations: Taking Finance Seriously,” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2017, pp. 3 – 28.

 

16

 

The EU

 

Enrico Spolaore, “What Is European Integration Really About? A Political Guide for Economists,” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2013, pp. 125 – 144

 

17

 

The Washington Consensus

Michael Spence, “Some Thoughts on the Washington Consensus and Subsequent Global Development Experience,” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2021, Summer 2021, pp. 67 – 82.

The Global Political Economy in Transition

18

April 11

The EU

 

Enrico Spolaore, “What Is European Integration Really About? A Political Guide for Economists,” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 2013, pp. 125 – 144

19

April 12

The Breakdown of the Liberal Economic Order

Gyula Csurgai, “The Increasing Importance of GeoEconomics in Power Rivalries in the Twenty-First Century,” Geopolitics, 2018, pp. 38 – 46.

20

April 14

China’s Counter-system

Kevin G. Cai, “The One Belt One Road and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank: Beijing’s New Strategy of Geoeconomics and Geopolitics,” Journal of Contemporary China, 2018, pp. 831-847. 

21

April 25

BRICS

 Mark Beeson and Jinghan Zeeng, “The BRICS and Global Governance, China’s Contradictory Role,” Third World Quarterly, March 2018, pp. 1-17.

22

April 28

The Arctic I

Scott Borgerson, “Arctic Meltdown,” Foreign Affairs, Mar/Apr 2018, pp. 63-77.

23

May 2

The Arctic II

Christer Pursiainen, Chris Alden, Rasmus Bertelsen, “The Arctic and Africa in China’s Foreign Policy: How Different Are They and What Does This Tell Us?” Arctic Review on Law and Politics, Vol. 12, 2021, pp. 31–55

24

May 9

Team Reports

 

 

Field Studies

Explain the purpose of the field study sessions and indicate what form they will take for this class. Please do not add the practical details including date and time for your field studies here – they should go in the calendar event instead.

 

Course Requirements

This course presupposes at least one introductory economics course, preferably microeconomics. Students are expected to be comfortable handling basic supply and demand analysis. If you are unsure you can fulfill this expectation, please contact the instructor as soon as possible.

 

Required reading assignments will be made available online, along with (optional) supplementary articles. The course outline will be posted on DIS Forum, listing the required readings for each lecture. Students should check the course outline frequently for updates.

 

Students must come to class having read and being prepared to discuss that session’s assigned readings.  I recommend that students prepare for class by writing down 2 or 3 things that strike them about the day’s reading, such as key findings or interesting arguments. This helps students be prepared to answer questions and participate productively in discussion.  I expect students to participate actively in class by asking questions, making comments, or sharing ideas and will also “cold-call” on students to answer questions or participate in discussions.  The reading load may vary from session to session.  Students should plan ahead.  

 

Grading

A student’s grade will be determined by four graded components. 

 

  1. Mid-Term Exam (30 percent)

 

  1. Policy Memo (25 percent) 

 

  1. Course Engagement (15 percent)

 

  1. Team Briefing Project (30 percent)

 

Any and all work for written assignments that is not your own – such as ideas, data, information, quotations, and paraphrasing  –  must be properly cited using the Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) form.  If you are not familiar with the CMS, you can access a style sheet at:  http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html.    Please note that all references to on-line materials must include an access date and URL.  Papers that do not follow the CMS will receive a grade deduction of at least ½ grade.  I deduct points for improper citation and for typographical, spelling or grammatical errors.  I do not grant extensions or make-ups except in cases of serious illness or family emergency. 

 

Computer policy

I do not allow the use of laptop computers, cell-phones, tablets, or other electronic devices during class or the recording of class lectures.  It has been my experience that students participate better and retain more information from class sessions when electronic devices are not in use.   Exceptions will be made only to accommodate learning disabilities.

 

Academic Honesty:

Plagiarism and Violating the Rules of an Assignment - DIS expects that students abide by the highest standards of intellectual honesty in all academic work. DIS assumes that all students do their own work and credit all work or thought taken from others. Academic dishonesty will result in a final course grade of “F” and can result in dismissal. The students’ home universities will be notified. DIS reserves the right to request that written student assignments be turned in electronic form for submission to plagiarism detection software. See the Academic Handbook for more information, or ask your instructor if you have questions.

 

Attendance

You are expected to attend all DIS classes when scheduled. If you miss multiple classes, the Director of Teaching and Learning and Director of Student Affairs will be notified and they will follow up with you to make sure that all is well. Absences will jeopardize your grade and your standing at DIS. Allowances will be made in cases of illness, but in the case of multiple absences you will need to provide a doctor’s note.

 

Academic Regulations 

Please make sure to read the Academic Regulations on the DIS website. There you will find regulations on:

 
DIS - Study Abroad in Scandinavia - www.DISabroad.org

 

 

Course Summary:

Date Details Due