Faculty Profile
Neil Diamant
Professor of Asian Law and Society; Walter E. Beach '56 Chair in Political Science (2002)
Contact Information
Stern Center for Global Education
717-245-1540
Bio
Professor Diamant's research focuses on law and society in Asia (with particular reference to China, Japan, and India), civil-military relations in China, patriotism in comparative perspective, and Chinese constitutionalism. He also teaches courses on Israeli politics and Zionism. Publications: Professor Diamant is the author or co-author of four books: Useful Bullshit: Constitutions in Chinese Politics and Society (Cornell University Press, 2021); (with Martin Crotty and Mark Edele) The Politics of Veteran Benefits in the Twentieth Century: A Comparative History (Cornell University Press, 2020); Embattled Glory: Veterans, Military Families and the Politics of Patriotism in China, 1949-2007 (Rowman & Littlefield, 2009), and Revolutionizing the Family: Politics, Love, and Divorce in Urban and Rural China, 1949-1968 (University of California Press, 2000). He also co-edited Engaging the Law in China: State, Society and Possibilities for Justice (Stanford University Press, 2005). Recent articles include "Conspicuous Silence: Veterans and the Depoliticization of War Memory in China" (Modern Asian Studies, 2011), "Veterans, Organization, and the Politics of Martial Citizenship in China" (Journal of East Asian Studies, 2007), and, with Kevin J. O’Brien, "Veterans' Political Activism in China" (Modern China, 2014) and "Contentious Veterans: China's Ex-Officers Speak Out" (Armed Forces and Society, 2014). His articles on China's 1954 Constitution were published in The China Journal (2015) and Cold War Studies (2018). He has also contributed chapters to a number of edited volumes, including "The Limitations of Martial Citizenship in the People's Republic of China," in Peled, Lewin-Epstein, Mundlak and Cohen's Democratic Citizenship and War (2010); "Why Archives?" in Carlson, Gallagher, Lieberthal, and Manion's Chinese Politics: New Sources, Methods, and Field Strategies (2010); and "Legal Syncretism and Family Change in Urban and Rural China" in Galvan and Sil's, Reconfiguring Institutions across Time and Space: Syncretic Responses to Challenges of Political and Economic Transformation (2007).
Education
- B.A., Hebrew University of Jerusalem 1988
- M.A., University of Washington, 1991
- Ph.D., University of California at Berkeley, 1996
2026-2027 Academic Year
Spring 2027
EASN 259 Law, Pol, & Society in Asia
Cross-listed with POSC 259-01 and LWJS 259-01.
LWJS 259 Law, Pol, & Society in Asia
Cross-listed with POSC 259-01 and EASN 259-01.
POSC 259 Law, Pol, & Society in Asia
Cross-listed with LWJS 259-01 AND EASN 259-01.
LWJS 390 Compar Political Corruption
Cross-listed with POSC 390-01.
Around the world political corruption has been implicated as a cause of widespread anger at governments, dramatic increases in social inequality, riots, and revolution. After a general introduction focusing on issues of definition and measurement, we will examine the major explanations of political corruption in the social science literature (Is it embedded in culture, a product of distorted markets, "underdevelopment," or certain regime types?). The heart of the course is an examination of corruption in China, Brazil, Russia, Argentina, Angola, Nigeria, Japan, India, and the United States. Finally, we will turn to several countries in which governments have limited the extent of corruption as well as those where such efforts have largely failed. Students will write their seminar paper on a concrete case of corruption in a country of their choosing, with instructor approval.
POSC 390 Compar Political Corruption
Cross-listed with LWJS 390-01.
Around the world political corruption has been implicated as a cause of widespread anger at governments, dramatic increases in social inequality, riots, and revolution. After a general introduction focusing on issues of definition and measurement, we will examine the major explanations of political corruption in the social science literature (Is it embedded in culture, a product of distorted markets, "underdevelopment," or certain regime types?). The heart of the course is an examination of corruption in China, Brazil, Russia, Argentina, Angola, Nigeria, Japan, India, and the United States. Finally, we will turn to several countries in which governments have limited the extent of corruption as well as those where such efforts have largely failed. Students will write their seminar paper on a concrete case of corruption in a country of their choosing, with instructor approval.
EASN 490 Senior Research
Leading to a senior thesis and jointly supervised by at least two faculty in the program. Prerequisite: 480.