AMES 23A10 - Governing better: a political economy of the State

This is a course about how to improve the functioning of government by understanding the interplay between politics, policy, and public administration. By combining political economy with the sociology of the state and organizations, it explores the deep organizational and institutional challenges that shape how democracies work — or fail to. From how we elect politicians to how we recruit bureaucrats, from the design of federal systems to the execution of public procurement, the course investigates why good policies so often fall short and what can be done about it.

Drawing on real-world examples, the course helps students develop a practical understanding of how states function — and malfunction — in the face of political constraints, bureaucratic complexity, and fiscal limits. We look at how rules, routines, professional identities, and power shape everyday public service delivery—from frontline interactions to high-level reform. Alongside models of incentives and elections, we analyze the policy ecosystem that surrounds agencies (courts, vendors, media, unions, civil society) and how agencies often converge on similar tools by mandate, imitation, or shared training. Students learn to read empirical papers, analyze and interpret evidence in context, and design reforms that are politically feasible and organizationally realistic.

The course is interactive and applied. Students engage with key academic concepts and test them against contemporary public sector problems. Through group presentations and a final project simulating stakeholder persuasion, students are encouraged to think like reformers — crafting policy proposals that are both politically feasible and administratively sound.

Your performance in this course will be evaluated through a combination of group and individual work, designed to assess both your ability to engage critically with the material and to apply concepts to real-world problems of governance and public policy. The breakdown is as follows:

Group Project (30% of final grade)

Midterm One-Pager (5%): Each student submits a short proposal outlining the group’s chosen problem, policy context, and initial ideas. This includes motivation for the issue, relevant background evidence and initial policy proposal. This should be uploaded on the moodle and sent via email to me by 8AM (date to be announced in the beginning of the semester).

Final Presentation + Report (25%): Each group presents its proposed policy intervention and evaluation design during the last session of the course for 15 minutes, followed by a group discussion of 10 minutes. Slides should be uploaded on the moodle and sent via email to me by 23.59PM the day before class. A 7–10 page written report presenting the proposed policy intervention, its theory of change, implementation plan, evaluation design, and discussion of potential challenges, costs, and sustainability. Clarity, structure, and use of evidence will be important grading criteria. Each group submits only one report. The report should include an assessment of the contribution of each group member’s to the work. The reports should be uploaded on the moodle and sent via email to me by 23.59PM (date to be announced in the beginning of the semester).

In-Class Presentations and Discussions 30%

Group Presentations (10%): Each group is assigned a research paper to present, covering the problem, research question, methodology, findings, and policy implications. Presentations last 15 minutes, followed by 5 minutes of policy discussion and 5 minutes of Q&A. Slides should be uploaded on the moodle and sent via email to me by 23.59PM the day before class.

Group Policy Discussions (20%): For every paper presentation, non-presenting groups prepare a 6-slide policy discussion applying the SPDI framework (Problem, Diagnosis, Design, Implementation, Testing, Refinement). In every class, one group will be randomly selected to present their slides in class. You will be assessed based on the quality of the slides, independently on whether or not you are drafted to present. Slides should be uploaded on the moodle and sent via email to me by 23.59PM the day before class.

Final Exam (30%): An individual, in-person exam will take place during exam week. It will feature a diversified portfolio of questions and topics designed to test your ability to grasp of the course’s core ideas, apply economic reasoning to address policy questions and analyze issues faced by governments and real public-sector problems. You should expect to find a combination of multiple-choice and True/False/Uncertain questions, some short-answer problems, and one or two longer essay-type questions (e.g. an applied mini-case where you map a problem with SPDI and propose a feasible policy test, a brief reading-based question on a required paper).

In-Class Participation and Comments 10%

Active engagement in discussions is essential. Students are expected to:

Attend every class in full.

Contribute thoughtful comments and questions on readings (including via Moodle).

Participate in class discussions, presentations, and peer feedback sessions.

Engage respectfully and constructively with peers’ ideas.