Comparative Political Economy in East Asia
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| PHIR3030 | Politics and International Relations | 3 | 20 | Spring Malaysia |
- Code
- PHIR3030
- School
- Politics and International Relations
- Level
- 3
- Credits
- 20
- Semesters
- Spring Malaysia
Summary
This is a survey module that addresses the comparative political economy of the East Asian region. It offers broad theoretical content, while analysing the real-world trajectories of ten country cases, including China, Malaysia, and Singapore. It focuses on the historical and contemporary records of statist intervention in national economies, as well as business involvement in politics. One major aim is to account for the different patterns and rates of economic growth across the region. A second aim is to assess the implications for political regime types and change.
Target Students
Third-year students enrolled in the School of Politics and International Relations (PIR). This module is open to all students provided their home department approves. Available to JYA/Erasmus students.
Classes
- One 1-hour seminar each week for 11 weeks
- One 2-hour lecture each week for 11 weeks
Assessment
- 50% In Class Exam: 1 hour exam
- 10% Group Discussion Panel: Group-led presentation and discussion session
- 40% Coursework 1: 2,000 words
Assessed by end of spring semester
Educational Aims
In line with these general academic aims, the module seeks to help students achieve the following objectives:• Evaluate different strategies for economic growth and political change in the East Asian region.• Explain different patterns of statist intervention in the economies of Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia.• Elaborate the changing policy approaches taken by China toward rapid industrialization, technological advances, and political containment.• Specify important implications of rapid economic growth for political and social change.Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and understanding:
• The impact of historical legacies on economic development and socio-political change
• Different modes of state organization and power and their implications for industrial policy
• Impact on civil society and political development over time
Intellectual skills:
• Enhanced ability to assess theoretical debates over late-industrialization.
• Capacity to generalize about regional and sub-regional trends in comparative political economy.
• Deepened curiosity over unevenness across countries in industrializing performance and political development.
Professional and practical skills:
• Strengthen precision and conciseness in writing skills.
• Deepen capacity for collaborative work.
• Enhance presentation and discussion skills.
• Encourage preparation skills and time management necessary under examination conditions.
Conveners
- Dr Su-Wern Yeoh