EUP423 Human Evolution and International Politics

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2010
Extent and Intensity
1/1. 8 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Bradley Thayer, Ph.D. (lecturer), PhDr. Petr Suchý, Ph.D. (deputy)
Guaranteed by
PhDr. Petr Suchý, Ph.D.
Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Olga Cídlová, DiS.
Timetable
Mon 8. 3. 10:00–11:30 U42, Tue 9. 3. 14:00–15:30 U35, Wed 10. 3. 14:00–15:30 U32, Thu 11. 3. 14:00–15:30 U42, Fri 12. 3. 10:00–11:30 U42, Mon 15. 3. 10:00–11:30 U42, Tue 16. 3. 14:00–15:30 U35, Wed 17. 3. 14:00–15:30 U32, Thu 18. 3. 14:00–15:30 U42, Fri 19. 3. 10:00–11:30 U42
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 6 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/6, only registered: 0/6
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
Course Description: This seminar introduces social science students to evolutionary theory and its application to major theories and topics in international politics. We discuss how evolutionary theory assists international relations theory, permits understanding of the origins of warfare and ethnic conflict, and yields key insights for nuclear deterrence theory and understanding of suicide terrorism in the Islamic fundamentalist context.
Syllabus
  • Required Books: Bobbi S. Low, Why Sex Matters: A Darwinian Look at Human Behavior (princeton, N.j.: Princeton University Press, 2000). Bradley A. Thayer, Darwin and International Poljtics: On the Evolutionary Origins of War and Ethnic Conflict (Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2004). Course Outline: Part One: Introduction to the Evolutionary Approach Session One March 8: Introduction and Seminar Objectives Session Two March 9: What Is Evolution and How May It Be Applied to Social Science? Low, Why Sex Matters, pp. 3-56. Alan Miller and Satoshi Kanazawa, "10 Political Incorrect Truths about Human Nature," Psychology Today, Ouly/August 2007), pp. 89-95. Thayer, Darwin and International Politics, pp. 22-59. Part Two: Evolution and Theory Session Three March 10: The Application of Evolutionary Theory to International Relations Theories Thayer, Darwin and International Politics, pp. 60-95. Part Three: Evolution and International Politics Session Four March 11: Evolution and the Origins of War-l Low, Why Sex Matters, pp. 57-91, 181-244 Thayer, Darwin and International Politics, pp. 96-152. Session Five March 12: Evolution and the Origins ofWar-2 Thayer, Darwin and International Politjcs, pp. 153-218. Session Six March 15: Evolution and the Origins of Ethnic Conflict Thayer, Darwin and International Politics, pp. 219-265. Session Seven March 16: Evolution and Nuclear Deterrence Simon Baron-Cohen, The Essential Difference: The Truth about the Male and Female Brain (New York: Basic Books, 2003), pp. 1-20, 29-60, 69-84, 117-154. Bradley A. Thayer "Thinking about Nuclear Deterrence," Comparative Strategy, Vol. 26, No.4 Ouly-September 2007), pp. 311-323. Session Eight March 17: Evolution and Islamic Fundamentalist Terrorism Bradley A. Thayer and Valerie Hudson, ""Suicide Terrorism in the Islamic Context: Insights from the Life Sciences on the Importance of Sex and Marriage Markets," International Security, Vol. 34, No.4 (Spring 2010, forthcoming). Session Nine March 18: Conclusions No assigned reading. Session Ten March 19: Papers Due and Final Examination
Assessment methods
Course Requirements: The course language is English. An examination will be given in class on Friday, March 19. This will count for 50% of the student's grade. In addition, a 2- page paper is due on Friday, March 19. The topic of the paper will be provided in class on March 8th . The paper will also count for 50% of the student's grade.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught only once.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2012.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2010, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2010/EUP423