European Union in Global Political Economy

Study Course Description

Course Description Statuss:Approved

Course Description Version:2.00

Study Course Accepted:05.03.2024 17:05:17

Study Course Information
Course Code:		SZF_039		LQF level:		Level 7
Credit Points:		4.67		ECTS:		7.00
Branch of Science:		Politics		Target Audience:		Political Science
Study Course Supervisor
Course Supervisor:		Kārlis Bukovskis
Study Course Implementer
Structural Unit:		Faculty of Social Sciences
The Head of Structural Unit:
Contacts:		Dzirciema street 16, Rīga, szfrsu[pnkts]lv
Study Course Planning
Full-Time - Semester No.1
Lectures (count)		12	Lecture Length (academic hours)		2	Total Contact Hours of Lectures		24
Classes (count)		14	Class Length (academic hours)		2	Total Contact Hours of Classes		28
Total Contact Hours								52
Study course description
Preliminary Knowledge:
Basic knowledge of economic processes and concepts. Knowledge of international political relations.
Objective:
The course focuses on conceptual and practical learning and discussion on challenges for EU and Member States, especially small ones, in today’s global political economy. It views EU both as a player in the international economy and as an implementing body for national economic and political interests. Students are expected to develop understanding and knowledge during the course and to be able to trace the origins of various international (global and regional) economic integration processes; will be able to discuss the basic signs of international financial and monetary systems, as well as their impact on the national economic policy and the national economic development; and it will be possible to discuss the influence of EU and its Member States in the global economic system.
Topic Layout (Full-Time)
No.	Topic			Type of Implementation		Number	Venue
1	Introduction. Latvian economy in the 21st century: rises and falls.			Classes		2.00	auditorium
2	Taking national and global economic decisions. Global of regulation of production and capital.			Lectures		2.00	auditorium
3	Monetary policy and fiscal policy.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
4	National interests in global economy. Meaning of ideologies.			Classes		2.00	auditorium
5	Theoretical approaches to the International Political Economy. Postcolonialism. Marxist approaches to international relations, Globalisation.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
6	Conventional and non-conventional development theories.			Lectures		2.00	auditorium
7	Latvia in EU decision-making about global economy.			Classes		2.00	auditorium
8	Modern financial structure and its origins. Impact of global financial markets and players.			Lectures		2.00	auditorium
9	Economic and Monetary Union. Optimum currency area. Euro area and Eurosystem.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
10	Uncovering myths and stereotypes. Presentations of reports and discussion.			Classes		2.00	auditorium
11	Many edges of the European Single Market. Multiannual financial framework of the European Union.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
12	European Union and its domestic economic problems: Competitiveness and productivity.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
13	European Union and its global economic rivals.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
14	Consultations			Classes		3.00	auditorium
15	Exam			Classes		3.00	E-Studies platform
Assessment
Unaided Work:
The objective of the report (individual research paper) is to develop analytical skills, so it cannot be descriptive. It should be written on the given topic, not a general topic. It is not an essay and the student cannot simply express his/her opinion. The student should provide justified data and evidence confirming arguments. The report should include three aspects: - clearly specify the problem of the topic; - study the problem by evaluating at least three arguments and statistical data; - the report should end with own arguments, research results, and recommendations. The report should be 5 pages long. It may be in Latvian or English. Each case of PLAGIARISM will be examined by the faculty commission considering possible expulsion of the student. All opinions and data other than those produced by the student must have references in accordance with scientific requirements and formatting. To assess the overall quality of the study course, the student must complete the course evaluation questionnaire on the Student Portal.
Assessment Criteria:
1) Active participation during the seminars and lectures, report presentation – 50%; 2) Essays – 15%; 3) Report – 20%; 4) Exam – 15%.
Final Examination (Full-Time):		Exam (Written)
Final Examination (Part-Time):
Learning Outcomes
Knowledge:		• Students will build an understanding of modern financial structures and their origins. • Students will be able to identify key economic characteristics of the EU. • Students will understand how a small country gets involved in the global economic system. • Students will be able to assess Latvia’s monetary and fiscal policy.
Skills:		• Students will be able to trace the origins of various international (global and regional) economic integration processes. • Students will be able to discuss the fundamentals of international financial and monetary systems and their impact on national economic policies and the development of the country’s economy. • Students will be able to discuss institutions of the European Union, their activities and the impact they have on countries in the global economic system.
Competencies:		• Students will have a general understanding of the impact of the European Union, global financial markets and business players. • Students will have an understanding of institutions of the European Union and decision-making in the EU. • Students will be able to analyse market phenomena in international politics and present their findings. • Students will be able to express a harmonised and well-reasoned position about global economic issues and defend their views in the debate.
Bibliography
No.	Reference
Required Reading
1	Gilpin, R. 1987. The Political Economy of International Relations. Princeton: Princeton University Press. (fundamentāls mācību materiāls)
2	Braithwaite, J., Drahos, P. 2000. Global Business Regulation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (unikāls mācību materiāls)
3	Cini, M., Pérez-Solórzano Borragán N. 2022. European Union Politics. 7th ed. Oxford University Press.
4	Hamilton, D. S., Quinlan, J. P. 2022. The Transatlantic Economy 2022: Annual Survey of Jobs, Trade and Investment between the United States and Europe, Washington, DC: Foreign Policy Institute, Johns Hopkins University SAIS.
5	European Commission. 2023. European Economic Forecast. Summer 2023, Brussels: European Commission DG for Economic and Financial Affairs.
6	Gatis Krūmiņš (red.). 2017. Latvijas Tautsaimniecības vēsture. Rīga: Jumava. (latviešu plūsmai)
7	Crisis, Karlis Bukovskis (ed.). 2014. The Politics of Economic Sustainability. Baltic and Visegrad Responses to the European Economic. Riga: Latvian Institute of International Affairs, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.
8	Oatley, T. 2019. International Political Economy. 6th ed. New York: Routledge.
9	Bénassy- Quéré, A., Cœuré, B, Jacquet, P., Pisani- Ferry, J. 2019. Economic Policy. Theory and Practice. 2nd ed. Oxford: oxford University Press.
10	O'Brien, R., Williams, M. 2020. Global Political Economy: Evolution and Dynamics. 6th ed.
11	Cohn, T. 2020. Global Political Economy: Theory and Practice. 8th ed. New York: Routledge.
12	Peet, R., Hartwick E. 2015. Theories of Development. Contentions, Arguments, Alternatives. 3rd ed. New York, London: The Guilford Press.
13	Eichengreen, B., Sussman, N. 2000. The International Monetary System in the (Very) Long Run, Washington DC: International Monetary Fund. (fundamentāls mācību materiāls)
14	Mundell, R. 1961. “A Theory of Optimum Currency Areas”. The American Economic Review, 51, 4, 657-665. (unikāls mācību materiāls)