Business, Government, and Society
The faculty has approval to offer the following courses in the academic years 2013–2014 and 2014–2015; however, not all courses are taught each semester or summer session. Students should consult the Course Schedule to determine which courses and topics will be offered during a particular semester or summer session. The Course Schedule may also reflect changes made to the course inventory after the publication of this catalog.
Business, Government, and Society: BGS
BGS 180, 380. Topics in Business, Government, and Society.
For each semester hour of credit earned, one lecture hour a week for one semester. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing; additional prerequisites vary with the topic.
BGS 380C. Strategic Corporate Communication.
Studies corporate efforts to inform, motivate, and persuade various constituencies, including investors, employees, communities, and regulators. Includes public relations, investor relations, and government relations. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 380D. Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility.
A study of how corporations can engage in corporate social responsibility and sustainable activities to improve the world with strategic considerations kept in mind. Offered on the letter-grade basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.
BGS 281, 381. Law, Ethics, and Corporate Social Responsibility.
Examines corporate responsibility issues and the tools necessary to manage relationships with external stakeholders such as governments, nongovernmental organizations, and communities in legal, political, and cultural contexts. Two or three lecture hours a week for one semester. Business, Government, and Society 381 and Legal Environment of Business 380 (Topic 36: Law, Ethics, and Corporate Social Responsibility) may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 381L. Social and Ethical Responsibility of Business.
Restricted to students admitted to the Master in Professional Accounting program. Examines ethical aspects of the managerial decision-making process and the application of fundamental ethical principles to business, legal, and social problems. Includes ethical implications of financial markets, race and gender discrimination, employee privacy, multinational business, and health, safety, environmental, and consumer issues. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Business, Government, and Society 381L and Legal Environment of Business 380 (Topic 1: Social and Ethical Responsibility of Business) may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 281M, 381M. Social and Ethical Responsibility of Business.
Restricted to students in the Master of Business Administration program. Examines ethical aspects of the managerial decision-making process and the application of fundamental ethical principles to business, legal, and social problems. Includes ethical implications of financial markets, race and gender discrimination, employee privacy, multinational business, and health, safety, environmental, and consumer issues. Two or three lecture hours a week for one semester. Business, Government, and Society 381M and Legal Environment of Business 380 (Topic 1) may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 382. Corporate Political Strategy.
A study of how the political and regulatory environment enables and constrains business activity and how individual firms and groups of firms can ethically, yet effectively, lobby legislatures, negotiate with regulators, create industry associations, make campaign contributions, and engage in other political activity to gain competitive advantage. Offered on the letter-grade basis only. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.
BGS 382D. Economics of Health Care.
Explores the production and provision of health care in the United States. Includes the study of basic economic concepts, differences between health care and other goods, impact of regulatory policies, and the importance of health for economic development. May include international and ethical aspects of health care. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 382E. Energy Economics.
Studies domestic and international policy issues of energy and the environment, with a focus on market solutions to various problems and market limitations in the allocation of environmental resources. Also examines the economics of fossil fuel alternatives. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 382L. Labor Economics.
Studies the functioning of the labor market and examines determinants of wage and employment levels in perfect and imperfect labor markets. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 382R. Economic Analysis of Law.
Uses economic analysis to study law and its impact on business activity. Includes the economics of contract law, tort law, property law, securities regulation, antitrust law, intellectual property, and environmental law. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 382S. Economics of Sustainable Business.
Examines the policy and practical implications of sustainability. Topics covered may include property rights, air and water pollution, solid-waste disposal, hazardous substances, and wilderness preservation and the protection of endangered species. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 383. Business Ethics in the Global Market.
Moral theory and its application to business issues in diverse cultures. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Business, Government, and Society 383 and Legal Environment of Business 380 (Topic 28: Business Ethics in the Global Market) may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 384. Global Macroeconomic Policy.
Practical study of global macroeconomic policy, including monetary policy, financial market regulation, and economic growth and development policies. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 385. Business, Government, and Public Policy.
Studies the relationship between business and government throughout the policy process and examines the constitutional constraints that affect businesses across different political and legal systems. Explores ethical issues of the role of business in the policy process. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Business, Government, and Society 385 and Legal Environment of Business 380 (Topic 34: Business, Government, and Public Policy) may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and admission to the Master of Business Administration program.
BGS 385W. Business, Government, and Public Policy: Washington Campus.
Restricted to students in the executive Master of Business Administration program. Studies the relationship between business and government throughout the formation and implementation of public policy; includes examination from economic, political, legal, and behavioral perspectives. Focuses primarily on the political, regulatory, and legal system of the United States and addresses issues covered further in the Washington Campus event, a week-long seminar with policy makers in Washington DC that precedes the course. The equivalent of three lecture hours a week for one semester. Business, Government, and Society 385W and Legal Environment of Business 380 (Topic 35: Business, Government, and Public Policy: Washington Campus) may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 386. Market Structure and Performance.
Studies industrial organization economics using game-theory to model strategic market behavior. Examines econometric methods used to test hypotheses regarding firm conduct and market performance. Explores profit-maximizing business strategies of firms with market power and strategic interactions among firms in imperfectly competitive markets. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 389. Environmental Regulation of Business.
Examines federal and state regulation of business activities that affect the environment and the potential liability of business for environmental damage. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Business, Government, and Society 389 and Legal Environment of Business 380 (Topic 15: Environmental Regulation of Business) may not both be counted. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 390. Behavioral and Institutional Economics.
Uses aspects of the social sciences, including economics, psychology, and sociology to explore the evolution of economic organizations, the need for business regulation, bubbles and speculation, and economic herd behavior. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 390E. Business in the Global Political Environment.
Examines global business from a political science perspective. Includes the politics of international trade and investment and the regulatory expectations of national regulators and of international organizations such as the World Trade Organization and the World Bank. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 390F. Federal Regulatory Policy.
Studies the federal regulatory framework in the United States, including the processes through which regulations are promulgated and the stakeholders involved. Particular emphasis on cost-benefit analysis. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 390J. Modern Political Economy.
Studies economic theory from Adam Smith to the modern day, with a focus on the interrelationship between economic models and political behavior. Explores the development of American capitalism; includes works from Marx, Hayek, Polanyi, and Williamson. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
BGS 191, 291, 391, 691. Conference Course in Business, Government, and Society.
Individual instruction. May be repeated for credit when the topics vary. Prerequisite: Graduate standing and consent of instructor.