Course List

This course introduces undergraduate students to the core concepts and methods of causal inference used in political science and the social sciences more broadly. The central goal of the course is to help students distinguish causal relationships from mere correlations and to critically evaluate empirical claims about cause and effect. Throughout the course, students will learn how causal questions are formulated, what assumptions are required for different research designs, and how those assumptions can be assessed in practice. The course emphasizes applied reasoning and interpretation rather than advanced mathematics. Students will work with real examples from political science and public policy and will learn how to read, assess, and produce empirical research that makes credible causal claims.