TRIPOS EXAMINATIONS

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL SCIENCES TRIPOS159

Amended by Notices (Reporter, 2007–08, pp. 402, 648, and 649) and retitled by Grace 1 of 21 May 2008

General

Three Parts.

1. The Social and Political Sciences Tripos shall consist of three Parts: Part I, Part IIa, and Part IIb. A separate class-list shall be published for each Part.

Standing of candidates.

2. A student may be a candidate for honours in Part I if at the time of the examination he or she has kept one term, provided that three complete terms have not passed after the student's first term of residence.

3. The following may present themselves as candidates for honours in Part IIa;

(a)a student who has obtained honours in Part I of the Social and Political Sciences Tripos and has not subsequently obtained honours in any other Honours Examination, provided that six complete terms have not passed after his or her first term of residence;158
(b)a student who has obtained honours in another Honours Examination, in the year after so obtaining honours, provided that nine complete terms have not passed after his or her first term of residence.

4. A student who has obtained honours in any other Honours Examination other than Part I of the Social and Political Sciences Tripos may be a candidate for honours in Part IIb in the year after so obtaining honours, provided that the student has kept seven terms and that twelve complete terms have not passed after his or her first term of residence.158

5. No student shall be a candidate for any Part and also for another Honours Examination in the same term.

6. No student shall be a candidate for any Part on more than one occasion.

Supplementary regulations.

7. The Faculty Board of Social and Political Sciences shall have power to issue from time to time supplementary regulations defining or limiting all or any of the subjects of examination. Due care shall be taken that sufficient notice is given of any alteration of such supplementary regulations. The Faculty Board shall also have power to publish from time to time lists of books recommended to the candidates.

Notice of variable subjects.

8. The Faculty Board shall give notice of any variable subjects for Parts IIa and IIb of the Tripos, before the division of the Easter Term of the year next but one preceding the examination concerned, provided that the Faculty Board shall have the power of subsequently issuing amendments if they have due reason for so doing and if they are satisfied that no student's preparation for the examination is adversely affected.

Examiners and Assessors.

9. The Faculty Board shall nominate such number of Examiners as they deem sufficient for each Part of the Tripos. The Faculty Board shall also have power to nominate one or more Assessors to assist the Examiners in any Part of the Tripos. The Assessors shall propose questions in the parts of the examination assigned to them by the Examiners, shall look over the answers of the candidates to these questions, and shall report thereon to the Examiners. The Assessors may be summoned to meetings of the Examiners for the purposes of consultation and advice, but shall not be entitled to vote.

10. In each Part of the Tripos, the questions proposed by each Examiner and Assessor shall be submitted for approval to the whole body of Examiners.

11. A candidate shall not offer in any Part of the Tripos a paper that he or she has previously offered in another University examination.

Part I

Scheme of examination for Part I.

12. The scheme of examination for Part I shall be as follows:

Section A

Paper 1.	Introduction to politics: the analysis of modern politics I (also serves as Paper 4C of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos).
Paper 2.	Introduction to sociology: modern societies (also serves as Paper 4B of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos and as Paper 5 of Part IIa of the Economics Tripos).
Paper 3.	Introduction to psychology: society, interaction, and the individual (also serves as Paper 4D of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos).

Section B

Paper 4.	The development of human society (Paper 1 of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos).
Paper 5.	Humans in biological perspective (Paper 2 of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos).
Paper 6.	Human societies: the comparative perspective (Paper 3 of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos).
Paper 7.	Introduction to computer science (Paper 1 of Part Ia of the Computer Science Tripos).
Paper 8.	British economic history (Paper 5 of Part I of the Economics Tripos).
Paper 9.	Language, communication, and literacy (Paper 2 of the Preliminary Examination for Part I of the Education Tripos).

A candidate for Part I shall be required to offer four papers as follows:

(a)all three papers in Section A
(b)one further paper chosen from Section B.

13. The names of the candidates who obtain honours in Part I shall be placed by the Examiners in three classes, of which the second shall be divided into two divisions. The names in the first and third classes and in each division of the second class shall be arranged in alphabetical order.

Parts IIa and IIb

Scheme of examination for Parts IIa and IIb.

14. The scheme of examination for Parts IIa and IIb shall be as follows:

Politics

Pol. 1.	The history of political thought to c. 1700 (Paper 19 of Part I of the Historical Tripos).
Pol. 2.	The history of political thought from c. 1700 to c. 1890 (Paper 20 of Part I of the Historical Tripos).
Pol. 3.	The analysis of modern politics II.160
Pol. 4.	The analysis of modern politics III.161
Pol. 5.	Conceptual issues in modern politics.
Pol. 6.	Political philosophy and the history of political thought since c. 1890 (Paper 5 of Part II of the Historical Tripos).
Pol. 7.	A subject in modern politics II.
Pol. 8.	A subject in modern politics III.
Pol. 9.	A subject in modern politics IV.
Pol. 10.	Modern Japan, 2 (Paper J. 8 of the Oriental Studies Tripos).162
Pol. 11.	A subject in modern politics V.163
Pol. 12.	A subject in modern politics VI.
Pol. 13.	Conceptual issues and texts in politics.
Pol. 14	The history of political thought to c. 1700 (Paper 3 of Part II of the Historical Tripos).
Pol. 15.	The history of political thought from c. 1700 to c. 1890 (Paper 4 of Part II of the Historical Tripos).

Psychology within the Social Sciences

Psy. 1.	Social psychology.160
Psy. 2.	Experimental psychology (the subject Experimental Psychology in Part Ib of the Natural Sciences Tripos).
Psy. 3.	Development and psychopathology.
Psy. 4.	A subject in psychology I.
Psy. 5.	A subject in psychology II.
Psy. 6.	A subject in psychology III.

Sociology

Soc. 1.	Social theory.160
Soc. 2.	Contemporary societies and global transformations.160
Soc. 3.	Concepts and arguments in sociology.
Soc. 4.	A subject in sociology I.
Soc. 5.	A subject in sociology II.164
Soc. 6.	A subject in sociology III.162
Soc. 7.	A subject in sociology IV.164
Soc. 8.	A subject in the sociology of education (Paper 3 of Part II of the Education Studies Tripos).
Soc. 9.	A subject in sociology V.162
Soc. 10.	A subject in sociology VI.

Interdisciplinary papers

Int. 1A.	Inquiry and analysis I.
Int. 1B.	Inquiry and analysis I.
Int. 2.	Inquiry and analysis II.
Int. 3.	An interdisciplinary subject I.161
Int. 4.	An interdisciplinary subject II.161
Int. 5.	An interdisciplinary subject III.164
Int. 6.	Crime and deviance.
Int. 7.	Society, politics, and culture in Latin America.162,165
Int. 8.	A specified subject in South Asian Studies (Paper Sa. 27 of the Oriental Studies Tripos).
Int. 9.	An interdisciplinary subject IV.161
Int. 10.	An interdisciplinary subject V.

Not more than one subject shall be specified for each of Pol. 4, 7–9, 11, 12, Psy. 4–6, Soc. 4–7, 9, 10, and Int. 3–5, 9, 10.

15. (a) Each paper shall be of three hours’ duration, except Pol. 5, Psy. 2, Soc. 3, and Int. 1A and Int. 1B, provided that Pol. 7–9, 11, Soc. 4–7, 9, 10, and Int. 3–9 may be examined by an alternative mode of assessment, which shall consist of the submission of two essays, each of not more than 5,000 words. The examination for Pol. 5 and Soc. 3 shall each consist of the submission of two essays, each of not more than 5,000 words. The examination for Int. 1A shall consist of the submission of a research project, a statistical assignment, and one essay, and the examination for Int. 1B shall consist of the submission of a research project and either a statistical assignment and one essay or two essays; candidates who offer a statistical assignment and one essay may offer either a methodological essay or a philosophical essay and a candidate who offers two essays shall offer both a methodological essay and a philosophical essay.

(b) The Faculty Board shall publish by notice in each Department of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences prescribed titles or subjects for essays by the division of the Michaelmas Term next preceding the examination concerned. The work to be undertaken for the research project shall be prescribed from time to time by the Faculty Board.

(c) The essays, the statistical assignment, and the report of the research project, shall be submitted in printed or typewritten form to the Secretary of the Faculty Board as follows: essays for all papers except Int. 1A and Int. 1B (that is, Pol. 5, Pol. 7–9, Pol. 11, Soc. 3–7, Soc. 9–10, Int. 3–9), one essay no later than the end of the first week of Full Lent Term, and one essay no later than the end of the first week of Full Easter Term; for Int. 1A and Int. 1B the philosophical essay shall be submitted by the end of Full Michaelmas Term, the statistical assignment shall be submitted before the division of the Lent Term, the methodological essay before the end of the Lent Term, and the report before the division of the Easter Term. Each essay, the assignment, and the report shall bear the candidate's examination number but not the candidate's name. Candidates may be called for viva voce examination in connection with their essays, statistical assignment, or research project.

16. Subject to the provisions of Regulation 11 a candidate for Part IIa shall offer one of the following options:

(a)either Pol. 1 or Pol. 2, either Pol. 3 or Pol. 4, and Pol. 5.
(b)Psy. 1, Psy. 2, and Int. 1A;
(c)Soc. 1, either Soc. 2 or Pol. 3 or Pol. 4, and either Soc. 3 or Int. 1B;
(d)Psy. 1, either Soc. 1 or Soc. 2, and Int. 1A;

17. Subject to the provision of Regulation 11, a candidate for Part IIb who has taken option (a) in Part IIa shall offer:

(a)one paper chosen from Pol. 6–12, 14, 15;
(b)Pol. 13;
(c)either(i)two further papers chosen from Pol. 6–12, Int. 1B, Int. 3–10, Psy. 1, Soc. 1, 4, 5, 7, or 9;
or(ii)one further paper chosen from Pol. 6–12, Int. 3–10, Psy. 1, Soc. 1, 4, 5, 7, 9, and a dissertation.

A candidate who chooses any of Papers Pol. 7–9, 11, Soc. 4, 5, 7, 9, Int. 3–9 under (a) or (c) option (i), and who does not include Int. 1B among the papers offered, may offer two essays in place of one of those papers, in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 15.

18. Subject to the provisions of Regulation 11 a candidate for Part IIb who has taken option (b) in Part IIa shall offer:

(a)Psy. 3;
(b)one paper chosen from Psy. 4–6;
(c)one further paper chosen from Psy. 4–6, Pol. 1–4, Soc. 1, Soc. 2, Soc. 4, Soc. 8, Soc. 10, Int. 2–10, and a dissertation, as prescribed in Regulation 22.

Candidates may not offer extended essays in place of any of these papers.

19. Subject to the provisions of Regulation 11 a candidate for Part IIb who has taken option (c) in Part IIa shall offer:

(a)one paper chosen from Soc. 4–10;
(b)either(i)three further papers chosen from Soc. 4–10, Pol. 1–2, Psy. 1, Int. 2–10, two of which may also be chosen from Pol. 7–8, Pol. 10–11;
or(ii)two further papers chosen from Soc. 4–10, Pol. 1–2, Pol. 7–8, Pol. 10–11, Psy 1, Int. 2–10, and a dissertation as prescribed in Regulation 22.

A candidate who chooses any of Papers Soc. 4–7, 9, 10, Pol. 7, 8, 11, Int. 3–9 under (a) or (b) option (i) may offer two essays in place of one of those papers, in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 15.

20. Subject to the provisions of Regulation 11 a candidate for Part IIb who has taken option (d) in Part IIa shall offer:

(a)two papers chosen from Psy. 2–6, Soc. 4–10;
(b)either(i)two further papers chosen from Psy. 2–6, Soc. 1, 2, 4–10, Pol. 1–4, Int. 2–10;
or(ii)one further paper chosen from Psy. 2–6, Soc. 1, 2, 4–10, Pol. 1–4, Int. 2–10, and a dissertation as prescribed in Regulation 22.

A candidate who chooses any of Papers Soc. 4–7, 9, 10, Int. 3–9 under (a) or (b) option (i) may offer two essays in place of one of those papers, in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 15.

21. Subject to the provisions of Regulation 11 a candidate for Part IIb who has not previously obtained honours in Part IIa shall offer, with the approval of the Faculty Board, on application by the candidate's Tutor not later than the division of the Michaelmas Term next preceding the examination, four papers chosen from the papers available in Part IIa and Part IIb; provided that a candidate who does not include Int. 1 among the papers chosen may offer two essays of not more than 5,000 words in place of one of Pol. 7–9, 11, Soc. 4–7, 9–10, Int. 3–9 in accordance with the provisions of Regulation 15.

Dissertation.

22. (a) A candidate who wishes to offer a dissertation under Regulations 17–20 shall submit an application, including the topic of the proposed dissertation, a brief account of its scope, and a statement of the scheme of papers to be offered in the examination. A candidate may not choose for the dissertation a topic in the same field as that of Pol. 1 or Pol. 2, or Pol. 14 or Pol. 15. Applications shall be submitted to the Secretary of the Faculty Board, in accordance with any instructions issued by the Faculty Board, so as to arrive not later than the second Friday of Full Michaelmas Term next preceding the examination.

(b) Each candidate must obtain the approval of the Faculty Board for the proposed topic not later than the last day of the Michaelmas Term. After the Faculty Board have approved a topic no substantial change may be made in it without the further approval of the Faculty Board.

(c) A dissertation shall contain full references to any sources used in its composition, and shall be of not less than 6,000 words and not more than 10,000 words in length, including footnotes and appendices but excluding any bibliography.

(d) A dissertation shall be submitted in printed or typewritten form to the Secretary of the Faculty Board not later than the end of the second week of the Full Easter Term in which the examination is to be held. Each dissertation shall bear the candidate's examination number but not the candidate's name and shall be accompanied by (i) a brief synopsis on a separate sheet of paper of the contents of the dissertation, and (ii) a certificate signed by the candidate that it is his or her own original work, and that it does not contain material that has already been used to any substantial extent for a comparable purpose .

(e) The Examiners shall have power to examine a candidate viva voce on the subject of the dissertation and in the general field of knowledge within which it falls.

Class-lists.

23. There shall be separate class-lists for Parts IIa and IIb of the Tripos. The names of the candidates in each class-list shall be arranged in three classes, of which the second shall be divided into two divisions. The names in the first and third classes, and in each division of the second class, shall be arranged in alphabetical order. In each class-list a mark of distinction may be attached to the name of any candidate whose work in the examination shows special merit.

SUPPLEMENTARY REGULATIONS

Part I

Paper 1. Analysis of modern politics

The course for this paper provides an introduction to some central questions about the nature of modern politics through an examination of a set of political thinkers and some consideration of their work in relation to a range of examples from practical politics.

Paper 2. Modern societies (also serves as Paper 4b of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos and Paper 5 of Part IIa of the Economics Tripos).

An introduction, through the work of Marx, Weber, and Durkheim, to key concepts and theories in sociology. An examination of core institutions and characteristics of modern societies including power and the modern state; the rise of nationalism; citizenship and social welfare; culture and the media; class and inequality; gender and the family; globalization and social change.

Paper 4. Society, interaction, and the individual

The scope of social psychology. Methods and levels of analysis. Selected topics from the following:

The self in social context. Personality and personality traits. Nature-nurture issues in socialization. Cognitive and affective bases of social behaviour. Parent–child relationships. The family, marriage, and divorce. Gender and gender roles. Social interaction processes. Small group processes. Attitudes and ideologies. Learning about society. The social psychology of work. Social aspects of mental illness. Cross-cultural variations in perception, thinking, and social behaviour.

Parts IIa and IIb

Paper Pol. 1. The history of political thought to c. 1700 (Paper 19 of Part I of the Historical Tripos)

Paper Pol. 2. The history of political thought from c. 1700 to c. 1890 (Paper 20 of Part I of the Historical Tripos)

Paper Pol. 3. The analysis of modern politics II166

The paper examines a range of issues in understanding empirical politics.

Paper Pol. 4. The analysis of modern politics III

The paper examines a range of issues, substantive, and methodological, in comparative politics, with particular reference to the United Kingdom and Western Europe.

Paper Pol. 5. Conceptual issues in modern politics

Conceptual questions that arise in the study of modern politics. This paper is examined by two 5,000-word essays.

Paper Pol. 6. Political philosophy and the history of political thought since c. 1890 (Paper 5 of Part II of the Historical Tripos)

The course for this paper explores the central texts and key ideas of twentieth-century political thought, looking at both analytical concepts and historical context. It is divided into two parts, Section A covering authors and their texts, and Section B which covers a variety of themes in contemporary political philosophy.

Paper Pol. 7. A subject in modern politics II

A subject in modern politics specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Pol. 8. A subject in modern politics III

A subject in modern politics specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Pol. 9. A subject in modern politics IV

A subject in modern politics specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Pol. 10. Modern Japan, 2 (Paper J. 8 of the Oriental Studies Tripos)

Paper Pol. 11 A subject in modern politics V167

A subject in international affairs specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Pol. 12. A subject in modern politics VI

A subject in modern politics specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Pol. 13. Conceptual issues and texts in politics

General issues, theoretical, conceptual and practical, in modern politics.

Paper Pol. 14. The history of political thought to c. 1700 (Paper 3 of Part II of the Historical Tripos).

Paper Pol. 15. The history of political thought from c. 1700 to c. 1890 (Paper 4 of Part II of the Historical Tripos).

Paper Psy. 1. Social psychology166

The scope of this paper will include all those aspects of psychology which are relevant to an understanding of human social behaviour and its development. In any single year the paper will offer students the opportunity to study a number of individual and interpersonal processes from within this range (e.g. aggression, altruism, applied social psychology, attitudes, attribution theory, communication, conflict, conformity, co-operation, emotion, group processes, identity, impression formation, inter-group relations, interpersonal attraction, personality, prejudice, pro-social behaviour, relationships, social cognition, social influence, social psychiatry, stereotyping, trust), and alternative frameworks within which the study of human social behaviour has been conceptualized (e.g. discursive psychology, experimental social psychology, psychoanalysis, social representations theory). The relationship between social psychology and other parts of psychology will also be addressed.

Paper Psy. 2. Experimental psychology (the subject Experimental Psychology in Part Ib of the Natural Sciences Tripos)

The paper is assessed by two three-hour papers, a written practical of an hour-and-a-half, and practical reports.

Paper Psy. 3. Developmental psychology

The course for this paper considers the development of human beings from conception to old age, with reference to the historical roots and major theories of, and contemporary issues in, developmental science. Topics considered include the nature/nurture debate and contemporary behavioural genetics; psychoanalytic theory and the study of children's relations with their parents; the cognitive-developmental theories of Piaget and Vygotsky and contemporary research on children's theories of mind; and interpersonal relationships throughout the life span.

Paper Psy. 4. A subject in psychology I

A subject in psychology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Psy. 5. A subject in psychology II

A subject in psychology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Psy. 6. A subject in psychology III

A subject in psychology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.

Paper Soc. 1. Social theory166

This paper provides an account of the main intellectual traditions and key contributions of contemporary social theory. The time period extends from c. 1920 to the present day, but the paper concentrates on recent (post-1960) literature and developments. A limited number of traditions and orientations are selected for detailed discussion; these traditions and orientations are situated in their social and intellectual contexts, and the writings of key thinkers are examined in some depth.

Paper Soc. 2. Contemporary societies and global transformation166

Theories of global scale, political and economic transformation: Marxist theories of capitalism and imperialism; world systems theory; development theory; modernity; globalization. The evolution of a global economy: Fordism and post-Fordism; multi- and trans-national corporations: the information and knowledge economy; convergence and diversity in capitalism; global finance. The development of the modern state: the interstate system and new forms of ‘geo-governance’; economic globalization and state power. Post-communist societies and the problem of ‘transition’. Global communication and information networks: communication and development; cultural identity and the information age. Globalization and social change: health, the family.

Paper Soc. 3. Concepts and arguments in sociology

Conceptual and explanatory issues that arise in the study of modern societies. The paper is examined by two 5,000-word essays.