NSF Award
1143601
Project Summary<br/><br/>In an increasingly interconnected world, study of the forces that shape state behavior and<br/>interactions is increasingly essential. Building on previous success of this program since 2004,<br/>the Democracy, Interdependence and World Politics Summer Research Program at Texas<br/>Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas will be held in the summers of 2012 and 2013. Within<br/>the overall project theme students devise and complete independent, mentored research<br/>projects on issues with significant academic and popular value. Each year, 7 students will work<br/>with faculty mentors to develop research projects, gather and analyze data and produce<br/>scholarly papers reporting their findings. Activities include research methods seminars, intensive<br/>project development workshops, presentations by guest scholars, community events, and<br/>research under the guidance of project mentors with established records of research and<br/>publication. Unlike most REU programs, the focus on international relations and independent,<br/>faculty-mentored student projects, and extensive research training.<br/><br/>Intellectual Merit<br/><br/>Recent geo-political events and the global spread of democracy make studying democracy?s<br/>consequences for world politics compelling. Key concerns include the ability of democracies to<br/>formulate and sustain successful foreign policies, the prospects and implications of<br/>democratization and democracy promotion, and the effect of democracy on violent conflict.<br/>Because this project promotes undergraduate research into these timely areas of study, it builds<br/>on growing areas of inquiry in world politics. High quality student research projects examine<br/>critical factors impacting state behavior and interactions, and are disseminated publicly through<br/>presentation at the annual International Studies Association meetings, with whom the program<br/>will partner to ensure dissemination and impact for the projects. Moreover, student participants<br/>are highly likely to go on to graduate study, for which they are substantially better prepared<br/>because of the intensive training of the summer program.<br/><br/>Broader Impacts<br/><br/>This unique program expands national understanding of undergraduate education in Political<br/>Science, which has limited examples of undergraduate student-faculty collaborative research.<br/>Second, the program provides meaningful opportunities to students to engage in international<br/>studies research and contribute research projects to the discipline?s discourse. Third, consistent<br/>with NSF principles emphasizing the positive impact of mentored research on undergraduate<br/>education, the program develops and enhances research skills and prepares students for<br/>graduate study and other applications. Fourth, the program enables diverse students from<br/>different regions and institutions of the country to challenge and support each other in a cohort.<br/>Finally, by offering a competitive stipend, this project is accessible to students from middle and<br/>lower economic strata as a summer employment opportunity that enriches their education.
