Have you been tempted to teach your intro course thematically, but are afraid that your students will be unable to see how concepts relate to actual countries? Yet sticking with a country by-country approach means never being able to fully address the questions that really engage comparativists. But that has its drawbacks as well. Is there an ideal middle ground between the current text approaches to the field? 
Carol Ann Drogus and Stephen Orvis, a Latin Americanist and an Africanist by training, offer an innovative hybrid approach to the field. The book is organized thematically around important concepts in comparative politics; in turn, each chapter is framed by the questions of who rules?, what motivates political behavior?, and where and why? Then, within each chapter, the authors have integrated a set of extended case studies based on a selection of ten "core" countries. Serving as consistent geographic touchstones, students get to know these countries as they accumulate conceptual knowledge. The cases are placed in chapters where they make the most sense substantively―not separated from theory or in a separate volume―and vividly illustrate issues in cross-national context. 
An array of thematic features extends the book’s analysis and effectively integrates case material: 
-Case Studies Forming the backbone of country coverage, these "baseline" cases are substantial enough for students to build foundational knowledge about the ten core countries of Brazil, China, Germany, India, Iran, Japan, Nigeria, Russia, the UK, and the U.S. Because each case is tied to an analytic question or idea, students aren’t lost in a sea of detail, but rather see country coverage in real thematic context. 
-Mini-cases Because no group of core countries can illustrate the full scope of issues in comparative politics, the authors include "mini-cases" throughout the book. These briefer cases focus on topics such as state failure, ethnic violence, and economic differences and feature countries about which most other texts say very little: Afghanistan, Chile, Cuba, Guatemala, Kenya, the Philippines, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, and others. 
-In Context These short fact lists―like those students might find in an opinion-leader periodical such as Harper’s―take simple data and put them into interesting, often provocative context. The number of military coups in Africa versus Latin America or the change over time in the number of one-party states might surprise students and offer enlightening perspective for thinking through an issue. 
-Where and Why? In these boxes, students explore why certain events and developments happen in some countries and not in others. Why have some countries been able to develop enduring democratic governments, while others remain or become authoritarian? Or, why do some states have women in powerful political positions while others do not? 
-Country and Concept The majority of chapters include a table that shows key indicators for the core countries. For instance, in the chapter on the modern state, the authors include such data as each state’s year of establishment, its failed state ranking, its government revenue as percentage of GDP, and its rating on the corruption perception index―all important measures of each state’s size and nature.Helping students critically read as well as review and study: • Chapter-opener questions • Bolded key terms and glossary • Data-rich tables and figures • Substantive maps • Compelling and instructive photos • End-of-chapter lists that include key concepts, work cited, seminal books and articles, and important online databases

Introducing Comparative Politics: Concepts and Cases in Context

Orvis, Stephen Walter

Drogus, Carol Ann

Legal Theory & Systems

CQ Press

Introducing Comparative Politics - International Student Edition: Concepts and Cases in Context

This bundle includes Stephen&nbsp;Orvis&#8242; Introducing Comparative Politics 5e and The CQ Researcher&#8242;s Global Issues 2020 Edition

BUNDLE: Orvis: Introducing Comparative Politics 5e + The CQ Researcher: Global Issues 2020 Edition

CQ Researcher

Organized thematically around important questions in comparative politics--who rules? what explains political behavior? where and why?--Introducing Comparative Politics&nbsp;integrates a set of extended case studies of 11 countries&nbsp;that vividly illustrate issues in cross-national context. The cases are placed within the chapters where they make the most sense --not separated from the theory or in a separate volume--helping students make connections between theory and practice earlier in the semester and giving them a more holistic view of comparative politics.

Organized thematically around important questions in comparative politics―Who rules? What explains political behavior? Where and why?―Introducing Comparative Politics integrates a set of extended case studies of 11 core countries into the narrative. Serving as touchstones, the cases are set in chapters where they make the most sense topically―not separated from theory or in a separate volume―and vividly illustrate issues in cross-national context. The book’s hybrid organization allows you to teach the way you want to teach and gives students a more accurate sense of comparative study.

Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: The Modern State Chapter 3: States, Citizens and Regimes Chapter 4: States and Identity Chapter 5: States and MarketsChapter 6: Governing Institutions in Democarcies Chapter 7: Institutions of Participation and Representation in DemocraciesChapter 8: Authoritarian InstitutionsChapter 9: Regime ChangeChapter 10: Globalization, Economic Sovereignty, and Development Chapter 11: Public Policies When Markets Fail: Welfare, Health, and the EnvironmentChapter 12: Policies and Politics of Inclusion and Clashing Values

Introducing Comparative Politics Interactive eBook Instructor Version: Concepts and Cases in Context

Organized thematically around important questions in comparative politics―Who rules? What explains political behavior? Where and why?―Introducing Comparative Politics integrates a set of extended case studies of 11 core countries into the narrative. Serving as touchstones, the cases are set in chapters where they make the most sense topically―not separated from theory or in a separate volume―and vividly illustrate issues in cross-national context. The book’s hybrid organization allows you to teach the way you want to teach and gives students a more accurate sense of comparative study.

Introducing Comparative Politics Interactive eBook: Concepts and Cases in Context

This bundle includes Orvis: Introducing Comparative Politics, 3e and National Geographic Atlas of the World

BUNDLE: Orvis: Introducing Comparative Politics, 3e + National Geographic Atlas of the World

Organized thematically around important questions in comparative politics, Introducing Comparative Politics, Fourth Edition by Stephen Orvis and Carol Ann Drogus integrates a set of extended case studies of 11 core countries into the narrative. Serving as touchstones, the cases are set in chapters where they make the most sense topically―not separated from theory or in a separate volume―and vividly illustrate issues in cross-national context. The book’s organization allows instructors flexibility and gives students a more accurate sense of comparative study. In this edition, a brand new chapter on Contentious Politics covers ethnic fragmentation, social movements, civil war, revolutions, and political violence. New case studies on this topic include the Occupy and Tea Party movements in the US; Zapatista rebellion in Mexico; Boko Haram in Nigeria; and; and revolutions in China and Iran. The chapter on States and Identity has been substantially revised to better introduce students to the concept of identity and how countries handle identity-based demands. Case studies include nationalism in Germany; ethnicity in Nigeria; religion in India; race in the US; gender in Iran; and sexual orientation in Brazil. Content on states and markets, political economy, globalization, and development has all been consolidated into a new Part III of the book, focusing in a sustained way on economic issues.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Orvis, Stephen Walter. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Orvis, Stephen Walter

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Orvis, Stephen Walter. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Introducing Comparative Politics: Concepts and Cases in Context

Introducing Comparative Politics - International Student Edition: Concepts and Cases in Context

BUNDLE: Orvis: Introducing Comparative Politics 5e + The CQ Researcher: Global Issues 2020 Edition

Introducing Comparative Politics: Concepts and Cases in Context

Introducing Comparative Politics: Concepts and Cases in Context

Introducing Comparative Politics: Concepts and Cases in Context

Introducing Comparative Politics Interactive eBook Instructor Version: Concepts and Cases in Context

Introducing Comparative Politics Interactive eBook: Concepts and Cases in Context

BUNDLE: Orvis: Introducing Comparative Politics, 3e + National Geographic Atlas of the World

Introducing Comparative Politics: Concepts and Cases in Context