IR 226 Foreign Policy Analysis MEF UniversityDegree Programs Electrical and Electronics EngineeringGeneral Information For StudentsDiploma SupplementErasmus Policy Statement
Electrical and Electronics Engineering
Bachelor Length of the Programme: 4 Number of Credits: 240 TR-NQF-HE: Level 6 QF-EHEA: First Cycle EQF: Level 6

ECTS Course Information Package

School/Faculty/Institute Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences
Course Code IR 226
Course Title in English Foreign Policy Analysis
Course Title in Turkish Dış Politika Analizi
Language of Instruction EN
Type of Course Flipped Classroom
Level of Course Intermediate
Semester Spring
Contact Hours per Week
Lecture: 3 Recitation: 0 Lab: 0 Other: 2
Estimated Student Workload 135 hours per semester
Number of Credits 5 ECTS
Grading Mode Standard Letter Grade
Pre-requisites None
Co-requisites None
Expected Prior Knowledge None
Registration Restrictions Only Undergraduate Students
Overall Educational Objective • To understand the central concepts in foreign policy analysis; • To apply students’ skills of analysis on differing foreign policies in practice; • To create critical engagement with the foreign policy analysis literature with different levels; • To learn the skills to synthesize theory and practice to present and conduct their analysis.
Course Description This course concentrates particularly on the process of decision making, the internal and external factors which influence foreign policy decisions, the instruments available to foreign policy decision makers and the effect of changes in the international system on foreign policy. Every week is dedicated to a different framework of foreign policy analysis. Thus, it will guide the students through the conventional level of analysis structure, by introducing systemic, state and individual level of analysis that shape foreign policy of a state. The course combines a discussion of this theoretical framework with their application to appropriate case studies. In doing this, it examines the primary sources of constraints and preferences on foreign policy decision-making process with respect to specific examples.

Course Learning Outcomes and Competences

Upon successful completion of the course, the learner is expected to be able to:
1) Identify and assess the processes involved in foreign policy decision making
2) Analyze the contexts, pressures and constraints with which foreign policy makers have to deal
3) Understand the strength of different approaches used in foreign policy analysis
4) Evaluate the theoretical literature on foreign policy and to conduct their own research.
Program Learning Outcomes/Course Learning Outcomes 1 2 3 4
1) An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
2) An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
3) An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
4) An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
5) An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
6) An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
7) An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies

Relation to Program Outcomes and Competences

N None S Supportive H Highly Related
     
Program Outcomes and Competences Level Assessed by
1) An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics N
2) An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors N
3) An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences S Participation
4) An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts N
5) An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives S Participation,Presentation
6) An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions S Participation,Presentation
7) An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies H Exam,Presentation
Prepared by and Date CANSU GÜLEÇ , December 2023
Course Coordinator CANSU GÜLEÇ
Semester Spring
Name of Instructor

Course Contents

Week Subject
1) Introduction-Foreign Policy Analysis
2) Analyzing Foreign Policy
3) The History and Evolution of Foreign Policy Analysis
4) Levels of Analysis in Foreign Policy Analysis
5) Individual Level of Analysis
6) State Level of Analysis
7) State Level of Analysis
8) MIDTERM EXAM
9) International System Level of Analysis
10) Propaganda and Public Diplomacy
11) Media and Public Opinion
12) Security Policies
13) Case Study
14) Case Study
15) Final Exam Period
16) Final Exam Period
Required/Recommended ReadingsThere is no textbook for this course. Instead, students will be assigned chapters from academic books and articles. Additional short readings may be assigned throughout the course. These assignments will be announced through Blackboard. The students are responsible for checking Blackboard regularly. Readings are as follows: Subject: Introduction- Foreign Policy Analysis Reading: This syllabus. Carefully. Subject: Analyzing Foreign Policy Reading: • “The Nature of Foreign policy” in Abdul Aziz Said and Charles O. Lerche eds., Concepts of International Politics in Global Perspective, (Prentice Hall, 1995): 21-36. • Keith R. Legg and James F. Morrison, “The Formulation of foreign policy objectives”, in Richard Little and Michael Smith eds., Perspectives on World Politics, (Routledge, 1991): 59-68. Subject: The History and Evolution of Foreign Policy Analysis Reading: • Deborah J. Gerner, “The Evolution of Study of Foreign Policy”, in Laura Neack, Jeanne A. K. Hey and Patrick J. Haney eds., Foreign Policy Analysis: Continuity and Change in Its Second Generation (New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1995): 17-32. • Valerie M. Hudson, “Chapter 1: Introduction: The Situation and Evolution of Foreign Policy Analysis: A Road Map” in Foreign Policy Analysis: Classic and Contemporary Theory Second Ed., (Rowman& Littlefield Publishers, 2014): 3-35. Subject: Levels of Analysis in Foreign Policy Analysis Reading: • Marijke Breuning, Foreign Policy Analysis: A Comparative Introduction, (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007): 1-25.
 • J. David Singer, “The Level-of-Analysis Problem in International Relations”, World Politics, Vol. 14, No. 1, The International System: Theoretical Essays. (Oct., 1961): 77-92. Subject: Individual Level of Analysis Reading: • Janice Gross Stein, “Chapter 6: Foreign Policy Decision Making: Rational, Psychological and Neurological Models”, in Steve Smith, Amelia Hadfield and Tim Dunne eds., Foreign Policy Theories, Actors, Cases, (Oxford University Press, 2008): 101-116. • Derek Beach, “Understanding the Choice Situation”, in Analyzing Foreign Policy, (Palgrave Macmillan, 2012): 97-116. Subject: State Level of Analysis Reading: • Valerie M. Hudson, “Chapter 3: Group Decision Making: Small Group Dynamics, Organizational Process and Bureaucratic Models” in Foreign Policy Analysis: Classic and Contemporary Theory Second Edition, (Rowman& Littlefield Publishers, 2014): 73-116. Subject: State Level of Analysis Reading: • Valerie M. Hudson, “Chapter 5: Domestic Politics and Opposition” in Foreign Policy Analysis: Classic and Contemporary Theory Second Edition, (Rowman& Littlefield Publishers, 2014): 141-160. Subject: International System Level of Analysis Reading: • Valerie M. Hudson, “Chapter 6: The Levels of National Attributes and International System”, in Foreign Policy Analysis: Classic and Contemporary Theory Second Edition, (Rowman& Littlefield Publishers, 2014): 161-182. • Laura Neck, “The International System Level of Analysis” in Studying Foreign Policy Comparatively Cases and Analysis Fourth edition, (Rowmann & Littlefield, 2018): 140-160. Subject: Propaganda and Public Diplomacy Reading: • Alan Chong, “Soft Power”, in Foreign Policy in Global Information Space Actualizing Soft Power, (Pelgrave Macmillan, 2007): 58-81 • Philip M. Taylor, “Propaganda, Cold War and the Advent of the Television Age” in Munitions of the Mind: A history of propaganda from the ancient world to the present era Third Edition, (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2003): 249-282. Subject: Media and Public Opinion Reading: • Laura Neck, “Public Opinion and Media” in Studying Foreign Policy Comparatively Cases and Analysis Fourth edition, (Rowmann & Littlefield, 2018): 117-135. Subject: Security Policies Reading: • Derek Beach, “Chapter 6: Security Policies”, in Analyzing Foreign Policy, (Palgrave Macmillan, 2012): 151-171. Case Study: Cuban Missile Crisis Reading: • Graham T. Allison, The Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis, (Little Brown Company, 1971). Case Study Reading: • Melvyn P. Leffler, “9/11 and the Past and Future of American Foreign Policy”, International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-), Vol. 79, No. 5 (Oct., 2003): 1045-1063 • David Mitchell and Tansa George Massoud, “Anatomy of Failure: Bush's Decision-Making Process and the Iraq War”, Foreign Policy Analysis, Volume 5, Issue 3, 1 (July 2009): 265–286 • Barış Kesgin and Juliet Karboo, “When and How Parliaments Influence Foreign Policy: The Case of Turkey’s Iraq Decision”, International Studies Perspectives 11 (2010):19-36
Teaching MethodsLectures as well as the reading material to be assigned by Instructor will constitute the main source of information for the students. As a part of flipped learning model, students have to use blackboard actively, complete pre-class exercises and participate in class discussion.
Homework and ProjectsHomework assignments will be submitted by Blackboard.
Laboratory WorkNone
Computer UseNone
Other ActivitiesNone
Assessment Methods
Assessment Tools Count Weight
Attendance 1 % 20
Presentation 1 % 20
Midterm(s) 1 % 20
Final Examination 1 % 40
TOTAL % 100
Course Administration gulecc@mef.edu.tr
: (212) 395 3610
MEF University values academic integrity. Therefore, all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences under the code of student conduct and disciplinary procedures. Any improper behavior, academic dishonesty or plagiarism is subject to the YÖK Disciplinary Regulation. Within the framework of MEF University's Artificial Intelligence Policy, it is aimed to integrate artificial intelligence into educational processes and promote its ethical use. The full text of the policy document can be accessed here: https://www.mef.edu.tr/tr/duyurular/mef-universitesi-yapay-zeka-politikasi-v2-yayimlandi

ECTS Student Workload Estimation

Activity No/Weeks Hours Calculation
No/Weeks per Semester Preparing for the Activity Spent in the Activity Itself Completing the Activity Requirements
Course Hours 14 2 3 2 98
Presentations / Seminar 1 8 1 9
Midterm(s) 1 8 2 10
Final Examination 1 16 2 18
Total Workload 135
Total Workload/25 5.4
ECTS 5