Skip to main content

International Political Economy (341-0-20)

Instructors

Stephen Nelson
847 4912589
601 University Place # 238
Office Hours: http://www.polisci.northwestern.edu/people/core-faculty/stephen-nelson.html

Meeting Info

University Hall 122: Tues, Thurs 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

This course focuses on the forces shaping countries' foreign economic policies. Why do governments choose to protect some industries and products behind high tariffs and other barriers while leaving others exposed to the vagaries of international competition? Why do non-U.S. companies continue to invoice much of their international trade in U.S. dollars, and why do most countries hoard dollars as their primary reserve currency - and how long can the greenback continue to serve those functions? Why have many countries removed barriers to cross-border financial flows - and what are the political consequences of global financial market openness? Does international trade and investment make military conflict less or more likely? Why are economic sanctions frequently deployed as an instrument of statecraft, and do sanctions even work? Have the series of economic crises over the past two decades - the 2007-09 financial market meltdown in the U.S., the global credit crunch that followed, the sovereign debt crises (in the southern Eurozone countries and elsewhere) that erupted in 2009, the economic fallout from the global COVID-19 pandemic, and the trade barriers imposed after the April 2025 "liberation day" press conference at the White House - shifted the distribution of global economic and political power? In this course we will develop an analytical toolkit to provide some insight into these and other questions.

The course is organized thematically. We begin with an introduction to the study of International Political Economy (IPE) and explore why it is distinct from international economics. Following the introduction to the course, we will discuss factors affecting the supply of international cooperation when national economic policies have spillover effects. The next topics are devoted to three of the main issue areas that concern IPE specialists: the politics of the international trade, monetary, and financial orders. We then turn our attention to economic development strategies pursued by low- and middle-income countries and the role of foreign development aid in promoting economic growth. The last sections of the course are devoted to exploring the relationship between transnational economic linkages and political conflict and to the rise of new economic powerhouses (namely, China) and the possible consequences of the shift in American influence for the nature of global economic orders.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course students will:

  • Gain deeper knowledge of the historical and political foundations of international markets for trade in goods and services, foreign investment, money, and financial assets;

  • Understand and critically evaluate how power suffuses the international rules devised to govern global markets for trade, money, and financial assets;

  • Evaluate the ways in which international rules - and the institutions that enshrine those rules - facilitate and hamper the developmental objectives pursued by countries in the so-called Global South;

  • Work alongside colleagues to master the granular details and big-picture takeaways from a set of complex and challenging cases - each of which are connected to key themes in the course. In doing so, students will gain exposure to the case study method used by faculty and students at Harvard Business School;

  • Improve their abilities to use analytical frameworks and empirical evidence when talking and writing about important debates over international economic relations. Students will also sharpen their social scientific writing skills.

Teaching Method

Lectures, discussion sections, full-group case discussions

Evaluation Method

Discussion section participation: 15%
Case discussion participation (including brief post-case memo): 15%
Critical response paper on assigned (non-case) reading: 10%
In-person, blue-book midterm exam: 25%
In-person, blue-book final exam: 35%

Class Materials (Required)

Four case readings purchased from the Harvard Business School online store

Class Attributes

Social and Behavioral Science Foundational Discipl
Global Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Pre-registration -- Reserved for Political Science or International Studies students until the end of preregistration, after which time enrollment will be open to everyone who has taken the prerequisites.

Associated Classes

DIS - Lunt Hall 103: Thurs 4:00PM - 4:50PM

DIS - Parkes Hall 215: Thurs 5:00PM - 5:50PM

DIS - Frances Searle Building 3220: Fri 10:00AM - 10:50AM

DIS - Frances Searle Building 2107: Fri 11:00AM - 11:50AM