DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

Interests

Research Interest(s): The quality of democracy, representation, elections, political institutions, biography & politics

Program Area(s): Comparative Politics

Regional Specialization(s): Europe

Subfield Specialties: Political Parties; Public Opinion, Political Communication, and Political Participation

Biography

Andrew Roberts studies the quality of democracy, political institutions, and political behavior. Most of his research focuses on postcommunist Europe where he once taught English. His main research program has been understanding how democratic politics works in the region, particularly issues of representation and accountability. He is currently working on projects related to the influence of biography on politics, the effect of nationalism on citizenship, and the role of billionaires in politics. Outside of political science, he writes about popular culture in postcommunist Europe and how to get a better college education. He blogs at: https://andrewroberts.substack.com/

Select Publications

• The Thinking Student’s Guide to College: 75 Tips for Getting a Better Education (University of Chicago Press)
• The Quality of Democracy in Eastern Europe: Public Preferences and Policy Reforms (Cambridge University Press)
• From Good King Wenceslas to the Good Soldier Svejk: A Dictionary of Czech Popular Culture (Central European University Press)
• Studying Leaders and Elites: The Personal Biography Approach (with Daniel Krcmaric and Stephen Nelson). Annual Review of Political Science.
• Consensus and Dissensus in Comparative Politics. International Political Science Review.

Courses taught

• 250 – Introduction to Comparative Politics
• 361 – Democratic Transitions
• 374 – Politics and Markets
• 395 – Fixing the US Constitution
• 458 – Political Institutions