Political Science
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Political scientists explore the concerns and issues that animate public life. Using both humanistic and scientific approaches, we study how political communities attempt to reconcile the claims of justice, power, liberty, and authority.
Drawing on history, law, economics, psychology, sociology, and philosophy, political science is a broadly based social science that shares the traditional aims of liberal arts education while attempting to come to grips with the major public issues of our time.
Upon graduation, political science majors qualify for careers in both the public and private sectors, in local, state, and federal government, and in business, education, journalism, international organizations, and practical politics. They also pursue postgraduate study in law and public administration, as well as graduate study in political science, among other disciplines.
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Department chair: David Mayers
Campus address: 232 Bay State Road
Phone: 617-353-2540
Fax: 617-353-5508
Website: www.bu.edu/polisci
All materials in OpenBU are subject to Title 17 of the U.S. Code.
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CAS: Political Science: Undergraduate Honors Theses [30]
Political Science Honors Program
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Who participates in local government? Evidence from meeting minutes
(Cambridge University Press (CUP), 2018)Scholars and policymakers have highlighted institutions that enable community participation as a potential buffer against existing political inequalities. Yet these venues may bias policy discussions in favor of an ... -
Pride or prejudice? Racial prejudice, Southern heritage, and White support for the Confederate battle flag
(Cambridge University Press, 2017-06-17)Debates about the meaning of Southern symbols such as the Confederate battle emblem are sweeping the nation. These debates typically revolve around the question of whether such symbols represent “heritage or hatred:” ... -
Explaining public support for counterproductive homeless policy: the role of disgust
(Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, 2017)Federal, state, and city governments spend substantial funds on programs intended to aid homeless people, and such programs attract widespread public support. In recent years, however, state and local governments have ... -
Clear as black and white: the effects of ambiguous rhetoric depend on candidate race
(Blackwell Publishing Inc., 2018)Campaign advisors and political scientists have long acknowledged the benefits of ambiguous position taking. We argue, however, that these benefits do not extend to black candidates facing nonblack voters. When a white ... -
Public sex education and the state’s potential to cultivate sexually healthy adolescents through evaluation
The sex education infrastructure of today’s U.S. public schools was developed on themes and ideologies that are exclusive, filled with health and wellness inaccuracies, and reliant on discrete limited outcomes of pregnancy ... -
The constraining role of political culture in the deepening of new democracies: the case of Chile
(2018-04-26)This paper examines the role of political culture in the development of Chilean democracy as a case study for other third-wave democracies in the Latin American region. The prioritization of political stability during the ... -
Is staff quality the answer? Solving the problem of sexual assault at American colleges & universities
(2018)This paper examines the qualifications of 125 staff members who handle sexual assault at 9 American universities. 7 of the universities studied are highly ranked private universities, while 2 are lower ranked public ... -
Southern ground game: the Democratic model for voter outreach
(2018-05-11)The 2016 election saw a substantial field operation in the South for the Democratic campaign. To measure its effects, this paper looks at the impact of respondent proximity to field office and its impact on voter turnout, ... -
Divided government and significant legislation: A History of Congress from 1789 to 2010
(Cambridge University Press, 2018-03-01)This article presents and analyzes the most comprehensive database to date of significant acts of Congress—from 1789 to 2010—to test whether divided party control of government affects the number of important acts Congress ...
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