1. The Politics, Psychology, and Sociology Tripos (Social and Political Sciences Tripos)151 shall consist of three Parts: Part I, Part IIa, and Part IIb. A separate class-list shall be published for each Part.
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;
4. A student who has obtained honours in any other Honours Examination other than Part I of the Politics, Psychology, and Sociology (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.150
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.
7. The Faculty Board of Human, Social, and Political Science 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.
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.
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.
12. The scheme of examination for Part I shall be as follows:
Section A
Paper 1. |
Analysis of politics I (also serves as Paper 4C of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos and as Paper 5(a) of Part IIa of the Economics Tripos) |
Paper 2. |
Introduction to sociology: modern societies I (also serves as Paper 4B of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos and as Paper 5(b) of Part IIa of the Economics Tripos) |
Paper 3. |
Introduction to psychology (also serves as Paper 4D of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos and as a paper in Part Ia of the Computer Science Tripos) |
Section B
Paper 4. |
Introduction to research methods and statistics for social scientists152 |
Paper 5. |
International relations I (also serves as Paper 5(c) of Part IIa of the Economics Tripos) |
Paper 6. |
The development of human society (Paper 1 of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos) |
Paper 7. |
Humans in biological perspective (Paper 2 of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos) |
Paper 8. |
Human societies: the comparative perspective (Paper 3 of Part I of the Archaeological and Anthropological Tripos) |
Paper 9. |
Computer Science 1: Introduction to computer science (Paper 1 of Part Ia of the Computer Science Tripos) |
Paper 10. |
British economic history (Paper 5 of Part I of the Economics Tripos) |
Paper 11. |
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:
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.
14. The scheme of examination for Parts IIa and IIb shall be as follows:
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 II153 |
Pol. 4. |
The analysis of modern politics III |
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 politics and international studies II |
Pol. 8. |
A subject in politics and international studies III |
Pol. 9. |
A subject in politics and international studies IV |
Pol. 10. |
A subject in politics and international studies VII |
Pol. 11. |
A subject in politics and international studies V154 |
Pol. 12. |
A subject in politics and international studies VI |
Pol. 13. |
Conceptual issues and texts in politics and international studies |
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) |
Psy. 1. |
Social psychology153 |
Psy. 2. |
Experimental psychology (the subject Experimental Psychology in Part Ib of the Natural Sciences Tripos) |
Psy. 3. |
Biological and cognitive psychology |
Psy. 4. |
Development and psychopathology |
Psy. 5. |
A subject in psychology I155 |
Psy. 6. |
A subject in psychology II |
Psy. 7. |
A subject in psychology III |
Soc. 1. |
Social theory153 |
Soc. 2. |
Contemporary societies and global transformations153 |
Soc. 3. |
Concepts and arguments in sociology |
Soc. 4. |
A subject in sociology I |
Soc. 5. |
A subject in sociology II156 |
Soc. 6. |
A subject in sociology III |
Soc. 7. |
A subject in sociology IV156 |
Soc. 8. |
The sociology of education (Paper 3 of Part II of the Education Tripos) |
Soc. 9. |
A subject in sociology V |
Soc. 10. |
A subject in sociology VI |
Int. 1A. |
Inquiry and analysis I |
Int. 1B. |
Inquiry and analysis I |
Int. 2. |
Inquiry and analysis II |
Int. 3. |
An interdisciplinary subject I155 |
Int. 4. |
An interdisciplinary subject II155 |
Int. 5. |
An interdisciplinary subject III155 |
Int. 6. |
Criminology, sentencing, and the penal system (Paper 23 of the Law Tripos) |
Int. 7. |
|
Int. 8. |
A specified subject in South Asian Studies156 |
Int. 9. |
An interdisciplinary subject IV156 |
Int. 10. |
An interdisciplinary subject V |
Not more than one subject shall be specified for each of Pol. 4, 7–9, 11, 12, Psy. 5–7, Soc. 4–7, 9, 10, and Int. 3–5, 9, 10.
15. (a) Each paper shall be of three hours’ duration, except Psy. 2, Soc. 3, and Int. 1A and Int. 1B, provided that Pol. 4, 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. 4 shall consist of the submission of one essay of not more than 5,000 words and an examination of two hours' duration. The examination for Soc. 3 shall consist of the submission of two essays, each of not more than 5,000 words. The examination for Int. 1A and Int. 1B shall consist of the submission of a research project, a statistical assignment, and one methodological essay.
(b) The Faculty Board shall publish by notice in each Department of the Faculty of Human, Social, and Political Science 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 Pol. 4 and Int. 1A and Int. 1B (that is, 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 Pol. 4, one essay no later than the end of the first week of Full Lent Term; for Int. 1A and Int. 1B 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:
17. Subject to the provision of Regulation 11, a candidate for Part IIb who has taken option (a) in Part IIa shall offer:
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:
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 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 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.
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 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
The course for this paper provides an introduction to the subject of International Relations, whose main focus is the nature of politics at the international level. It does so by focusing on the concept of the ‘international society’ of states, which refers to the set of institutions and common procedures generated over the last three and a half centuries in various attempts to manage co-existence, but which now includes many non-state actors and a number of different levels of interaction. The four principal themes of the course are: the historical evolution of the international system; the causes and consequences of war; the sources of such order as exists in international life; and the ethical dilemmas arising from the interaction of competing political systems.
This paper examines questions about ethics and world politics normatively and in a variety of concrete political contexts. The examination will be divided into two sections. Candidates will be required to answer two questions from the first section of the examination and one from the second.
The paper examines a range of issues, substantive and methodological, in comparative politics. A candidate will be required to take a two-hour written examination and to submit an essay of not more than 5,000 words. The examination will require the candidate to answer two questions, taking each question on a different region or case study. For the essay, a candidate will be required to select an option from a list of questions announced by the Faculty Board. The essay and the examination will each carry 50% of the mark for the paper.
Conceptual questions that arise in the study of modern politics. This paper is examined by two 5,000-word essays.
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 covers historical topics organized around authors and their texts, and Section B which covers a variety of themes in contemporary political philosophy.
A subject in modern politics and international studies specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in modern politics and international studies specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in modern politics and international studies specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in modern politics and international studies specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in modern politics and international studies specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
General issues, theoretical, conceptual and practical, in modern politics.
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.
The paper is assessed by two three-hour papers, a written practical of an hour-and-a-half, and practical reports.
This paper covers biological and cognitive topics involving the connection of brain, body, and behaviour, and will do so from a social sciences perspective. Specific content includes neuroanatomy, neuroendocrinology, and neurophysiology, as well as learning, memory, judgement, decision making, intelligence, and cognition and emotion. Topics are presented in the context of the complete individual, and in interaction with the social environment. Lectures include relevant methodologies and methodological issues, and integrative examples will be provided on topics such as executive function, sex differences in the brain, social neuroscience, and autism. Practicals will serve to further illustrate the links between theoretical foundations and experimental methods. Students are expected to read in depth, as well as broadly, and to bring their independent perspective and insight to the material at hand.
The course for this paper considers children’s development from infancy to adolescence, with a focus on the interface between typical and atypical development. Topics considered include infancy, prematurity, early theory of mind and autism, early executive function and conduct disorder, the transition to school, adolescence and associated problems (e.g. self-harming), parenthood, and abuse.
A subject in psychology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in psychology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in psychology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
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.
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.
Conceptual and explanatory issues that arise in the study of modern societies. The paper is examined by two 5,000-word essays.
A subject in sociology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in sociology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in sociology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in sociology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in sociology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A subject in sociology specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
This paper introduces candidates to the concepts and methods of social research. It will give candidates the conceptual and methodological knowledge to evaluate different styles of social inquiry and provide the necessary skills to design and implement an empirical inquiry. Candidates will be introduced to the basic philosophical ideas that underpin social research and will be instructed in the appropriate use of basic descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. The paper will be examined by one 2,500-word methodological essay, one 2,500 statistical assignment, and a project report of 5,000 words.
This course extends students’ understanding of the theory and practice of social inquiry and analysis. Students will be encouraged to tackle the challenges posed by combining quantitative and qualitative approaches. Students will also be introduced to the various approaches used in studies of social and individual change, including advanced multivariate techniques and longitudinal design and analysis.
An interdisciplinary subject specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
An interdisciplinary subject specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
An interdisciplinary subject specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
A key aim of this paper is to allow students to gain a critical and informed understanding of patterns of crime, pathways into and out of crime, and critical issues regarding law, policy and practice in relation to criminal justice and sentencing. The first section will look at the social construction of criminal statistics and the influence of the media in shaping popular understandings of crime, individual, family and situational factors in relation to pathways into crime as well as resilience and desistance and offender rehabilitation in regard to pathways out of crime. The second section involves a focus on theories of punishment and the part that different forms of punishment can play in reducing crime. The third part turns to sentencing issues, the legal framework, and dilemmas in theory and practice, whilst the fourth part concentrates on specific groups of offenders: young offenders, sex offenders, dangerous offenders, and women, for example, and the particular challenges in dealing with those groups of offenders. The final element turns to community penalties, prisons, parole, and to the broad issues of fairness, discretion, gender, and race in late modern criminal justice. The paper will be examined by either (a) a three-hour paper consisting of 4 questions, or (b) two long essays of 5,000 words each.
Using a range of approaches drawn from sociology, political science, political economy, social anthropology, and cultural studies, the course for this paper covers the history of Latin America in the period since the Second World War. Particular attention is paid to structural change in the region's economy and its relationship with the international economy, to the resulting transition from a state-led inward-looking model of development to the more outward-looking neo-liberal model adopted at the end of the century, and to variations in the concomitant process of democratization. The consequences and corollaries of these changes are traced in the fields of culture and religion, in the changing patterns of popular mobilization, and in the proliferation of ‘informal’ economic activities.
An interdisciplinary subject specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.
An interdisciplinary subject specified by the Faculty Board from time to time.