Postgraduate Course: International Security (PGSP11162)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Credits | 20 |
| Home subject area | Postgrad (School of Social and Political Studies) |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | This course provides a broad conceptual framework for understanding and analyzing the main challenges to international security, and for assessing the appropriate policy responses. This includes an assessment of how the main theories of International Relations provide insights into international security and the conditions for war and peace. We will examine the role and future of international and regional security institutions along with the policies of key states. The course will address the implications of 9/11 and the emergence of the so-called "new" security agenda, including religion, energy, and environmental change, as well as more traditional aspects of security studies, such as weapons of mass destruction , ethnic violence and intervention. |
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
| Additional Costs | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course you should have:
1. An critical understanding of some of the major debates in security studies
2. A good intellectual grasp of many of the most critical challenges to international security
3. The ability to apply International Relations theories to specific empirical issues in the field of security studies
4. Transferable skills such as analytical thinking and communication skills |
Assessment Information
1,500 word Policy Brief, 40%
2,500 word Essay, 60% |
Special Arrangements
| None |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
Introduction
Nuclear Strategy, Arms Control and WMD Proliferation: Realism, Liberalism and Social Constructivism
Understanding the Nature of Modern War: Old Wars or New Wars?
The Environment: Securitization and the New Security Agenda
Terrorism and Irregular war
Intelligence, Misperceptions and Security
International Interventions: Critical Security Studies
Counterinsurgency in Iraq and Afghanistan
The Arab-Israeli Conflict: Conflict Resolution
A Framework for Thinking About International Security |
| Transferable skills |
Not entered |
| Reading list |
Roland Dannreuther (2007) International Security: The Contemporary Agenda (Polity).
John Baylis et al. (2010) Strategy in the Contemporary World: An Introduction to Strategic Studies 3rd Edition (Oxford University Press).
Collins, A. (ed.) (2010) Contemporary Security Studies, 2nd edition,. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Williams, Paul (ed) (2008) Security Studies: An Introduction, Routledge
Michael E. Brown et al (2005), New Global Dangers: Changing Dimensions of International Security
Barry Buzan, People, States and Fear: An Agenda for Security Studies (1991)
B. Buzan, O. Waever and J de Wilde, Security: A New Framework for Analysis (1998)
Keith Krause and M. Williams (eds), Critical Security Studies 1996
Bill McSweeney, Security, Identity and Interests: A Sociology of International Relations (Cambridge Studies in International Relations), CUP 1999
Michael Sheehan, International Security: An Analytical Survey
Michael E Smith, International Security: Politics, Policy, Prospects, Palgrave 2010
R Wyn-Jones, Security, Strategy and Critical Theory,1999
Joseph Nye, Understanding International Conflicts (2000) |
| Study Abroad |
Not entered |
| Study Pattern |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Dominic Johnson
Tel: (0131 6)50 3937
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Gillian Macdonald
Tel: (0131 6)51 3244
Email: |
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