Module POL2052 for 2019/0
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
POL2052: Foreign Policy: Leadership, Power and Responsibility
This module descriptor refers to the 2019/0 academic year.
Module Aims
This module will introduce you to a broad range of scholarship that addresses the field of foreign policy. This area of study has traditionally been separate from other branches of international relations. This module will encourage you to consider the more theoretical texts in light of recent foreign policy crises
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. demonstrate substantive knowledge of the main theories of foreign policy and be able to adopt critical positions adopted towards them. 2. show an ability to identify and discuss the key concepts in relation to decision-making, 3. identify clearly the contention made by the different theories of leadership, power and responsibility and engage in reasoned criticism of such theories. |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 4. criticise and construct arguments with regard both to their logical rigour and political plausibility 5. exercise informed judgement concerning the policy implications of abstract political principles. |
| Personal and Key Skills | 6. present complex arguments with clarity and concision. 7. show an empathetic understanding of the role played by leaders under crisis conditions. |
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participation in discussion sections/ presentations of course readings | 15 minutes | 1-7 | Verbal |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Written assignment 1 | 40 | 1,500 words | 1-7 | Written |
| Written assignment 2 | 60 | 3,000 words | 1-7 | Written |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Written assignment 1 | Written assignment 1 (1,500 words) | 1-7 | 1st May deadline for submission |
| Written assignment 2 | Written assignment 2 (3,000 words) | 1-7 | 1st September deadline for submission |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Steve Smith, Amelia Hadfield, Tim Dunne eds., Foreign Policy: Theories, Actors, Cases Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.
Graham Allison and Philip Zelikow, Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis 2nd edn., New York: Longman, 1999.
Walter Carlsnaes, International Relations and Foreign Policy, London: Sage, 2008.
Christopher Hill, The Changing Context of Foreign Policy, London: Palgrave, 2003.
Valerie Hudson, Foreign Policy Analysis: Classic and Contemporary Theory, New York: Rowman & Littlefied, 2007.
Chris Alden and Amnon Aran, Foreign Policy Analysis: New Approaches, Routledge 2012.
Michael Cox and Doug Stokes eds., US Foreign Policy, Oxford University Press, 2012.
Amelia Hadfield, British Foreign Policy, National Identity, and Neoclasical Realism, Roman & Littlefield 2010.
Steven W. Hook and Christopher M. Jones, eds., Routledge Handbook of American Foreign Policy, Routledge, 2011.
Michael Mandelbaum, ‘Foreign Policy as Social Work’, Foreign Affairs January/February 1996.
Alex Mintz and Karl DeRouen Jr. Understanding Foreign Policy Decision Making, Cambridge University Press, 2010.
I. L. Janis, Groupthink, 2nd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1982.
P. Keal, Ethics and Foreign Policy, Allen & Unwin, 1992.
Richard C. Snyder, et al., Foreign Policy Decision-Making (Revisited), Palgrave Macmillan, 2002.
