Programme

PGPX

Term

V

Academic Year

2021-22

Course title

Power and Politics and Public Policy

Area

Public Systems Group

Credits

0.50

Instructor(s)

Prof. Navdeep Mathur

Course Description & Objectives

Description: This course explores different conceptions of power that underlie the worlds of organisational design and policymaking. It seeks to journey into the depths of the relationship between power and knowledge and how that nexus shapes the very lenses through which we traverse institutions of all sorts - familial, educational, professional and political. The methods employed here allow an exposure to the power that others exercise to shape our interests for their own advantage, and how we ourselves practice such power to meet our ambitions. We focus on diagnostic abilities of the participants in evaluating the distribution of power in the process of designing organisations, as well as enhancing your effectiveness in exercising power in organizational settings towards better outcomes for those involved. Objectives: Given that power is held in less than visible ways by networks of corporations, The State, and supranational institutions it is not sufficient to understand power as a dynamic interaction between two entities. Therefore, a key aim is to generate a grasp of the complex relationships between power, knowledge and policy in organizational settings. This is achieved through classroom discussions and simulations that allow a deep examination of taken for granted processes and settings to demystify and challenge common perceptions about the operations of power.