In POL 101, students will understand:

- "Collective action problems" in politics. What are they? How is the pursuit of a "collective" outcome different from a "private" outcome?

Students will be able to:

- Offer strategic advice for interest group leaders and political parties.
- Appreciate the challenge of "collective action problems" to the "normative" underpinnings of traditional liberal theories of representation.

Version 2, based on dicussions:

In POL 101, students will understand:

- "Collective action problems" in politics. What are they? How is the pursuit of a "collective" outcome different from a "private" outcome?

Students will be able to:

- Offer strategic advice to interest group leaders and political parties to overcome collective action problems.
- Critique the "normative" underpinnings of traditional liberal theories of representation in light of our discussion of "collective action problems"

Best evidence for measuring outcomes:

- For gauging level of understanding of "collective action problem":
a. verbal or written statement of the problem
b. naming of examples of "private" outcomes (e.g., the lunch you eat, the car you drive) versus "collective" outcomes (e.g., NPR, clean environment, election outcome)

- For gauging level of ability:

a. Brief hypothetical memo to political leader explaining why some Americans who are sympathetic to the cause may not participate due to the "collective action problem," and mention at least one way that the leader can at least partially counteract this problem.

b. Brief response to James Madison's Fed 51.

1. Session 2