An increase in nationalism and the birth of far-right movements have swept across continental Europe over the last decade, with scholars highlighting parallels between many of the platforms of these far-right parties. Many of which are built upon anti-immigration, anti-LGBTQ, and anti-abortion stances. Interestingly, the birth of the far-right in Catalonia is in the context of a unique political situation, the Catalan Independence Referendum of 2017. This leads to the possibility of a new factor that could have shaped far-right party support and preferences on Catalan independence. Using graphical analysis and linear regressions to examine Catalan opinion polls from 2014 through 2024, this work investigates what factors led to the rise of the far-right, whether Catalan independence stances or more widespread far-right ideologies. This work concludes that even though there are far-right links to Spanish identity and institutional discontent, reactions against the independence movement and a consistent belief in the regional integration of Catalonia drove this growth. These conclusions illustrate the difficulty the independence movement in Catalonia will face in the future, given a decrease in Catalan identity and support for independence in the context of Vox’s emergence.

 

Thesis advisor: Ana Arjona

This thesis investigates how various asymmetric information structures impact cooperation and strategy in communal resource-sharing situations. 176 participants played a resource distribution game, with varying amounts of information. Findings suggest that total visibility or complete lack thereof fosters optimal cooperation, while partial information leads to suboptimal, unsustainable outcomes. Specifically, free-rider behavior is observed in scenarios where participants believe other players are colluding without them, leading to increased token extraction. These findings suggest that half-hearted coordination efforts may be less effective than no coordination at all, highlighting the importance of comprehensive and committed collective action. By understanding these underlying mechanisms, researchers can gain valuable insights into how to design more effective conservation initiatives.

Thesis advisor: Jason Seawright 

Russia’s liberal opposition, especially in recent years, has consistently struggled with the issue of unification despite the wide variety of leaders and movements that oppose President Putin. This problem remains important to investigate given that prior research on other nations has suggested that opposition unity is a necessary factor in the replacement/overthrowing of authoritarian regimes. With this in mind, I have posed the following question for my research: What factors prevent Russia's liberal opposition from successfully unifying and mounting successful action against President Putin, especially following the events of 2022? To answer this question, I have looked into the positions of four opposition leaders and their respective movements – Alexei Navalny, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Garry Kasparov, and Maxim Katz – to determine whether contentions preventing unification arise from ideological policy, tactical, or personality differences. My research has shown that out of these three categories, personality differences have been shown to cause the most issues between the leaders, and even their supporters, with ideological policy being the least contentious factor. Such a conclusion poses multiple questions, specifically surrounding the viability of the liberal opposition’s continued operation given that its leadership repeatedly makes an effort to consolidate power around themselves, and does not shy away from public accusations and insults. Following the death of Alexei Navalny, a moment some thought could lead to some mending of relations, the personal attacks have only increased, with leaders and supporters alike being arguably in a more divided state than before. Just two months later, the opposition has seemed to largely have moved on from him despite efforts of the Anti-Corruption Foundation to establish his name as a symbol of anti-government resistance – an effort largely considered a failure by other leaders. Navalny’s passing combined with the sheer amount of ongoing personal attacks and contentions amongst liberal leadership ultimately suggest an uncertain future for Russia’s liberal opposition, at least, in the form it exists today.

 

Thesis advisor: Andrew Roberts

In today’s hyper-partisan political environment, it is a common complaint that Congress is broken. This is especially true for the Senate, where the filibuster and cloture rule have created a de facto requirement for a 60-vote supermajority to pass almost any legislation, sparking widespread calls from activists and senators alike to reform or even abolish the filibuster. In this paper, I predict the effects of different proposals for the filibuster and cloture rule on a set of “legislative goods,” including productivity, bipartisanship, and policy stability. I test the effects of three different filibuster rule proposals on these legislative goods. To predict the effects of these rule changes, I extend Wawro and Schickler’s expected-utility model of legislative entrepreneurship under cloture by considering the costs faced by bill proponents and obstructionists alike. Using this model, which excels at explaining the evolution of past filibuster fights, I predict the outcomes of legislative battles under different filibuster rules. The results will inform activists and senators in future debates over filibuster reform — which will inevitably return the next time a popular bill is stymied by the Senate’s supermajoritarian rules.

 

Thesis advisor: Daniel J. Galvin

As the salience of populist political movements grows across the Western world, so has the body of research and discourse that considers what threat, if any, populism could pose to the stability of democratic institutions. This is in part due to the anti-establishment rhetoric that characterizes populism, as it rejects the capabilities of representative institutions to represent and respond to the people, functions which are fundamental to American democracy. The objective of this study is to provide insights into whether exposure to the rhetoric that populists employ has the ability to weaken the American peoples’ confidence in representative institutions, both in their effectiveness in representing and serving the interests of the public they are elected to represent, and in their stability. This relationship is investigated using a survey experiment, in which participants are randomly exposed to either neutral or populist messaging from a candidate running to be the president of the United States. Findings suggest that exposure to populist rhetoric did in fact reduce confidence in the efficacy of institutions.

Thesis advisor: Larry Stuelpnagel

Few issues in modern political discourse are more controversial than abortion. As such, abortion policies vary greatly from country to country, with some countries prohibiting the procedure altogether while others permit abortion “on demand.” Given that the safety of abortion procedures diverges widely between countries with liberal abortion policies and those with more restrictive ones, cross-national variation in abortion policies has important implications for international public health and gender equality. To shed light on the reasons for cross-country differences in abortion policies, this study uses bivariate and multivariate analyses to determine how ten independent variables correlate with abortion policy outcomes in 187 countries. The results suggest that Human Development Index, Gender Development Index, women’s representation in parliament, earlier allowance of women’s suffrage, women’s representation in the labor force, women’s educational attainment, gross domestic product per capita, and gross national income per capita are all positively correlated with liberal national abortion policies, while Gender Inequality Index and religiosity are negatively correlated with liberal abortion policies.

Thesis Advisors: Joanna Grisinger

There are countless examples, both past and present, of U.S. politicians harshly criticizing corporations and using the powers of their office to, at times, inhibit a business’s ability to generate revenue and profit. Moments of tension between government and businesses should be expected given the government’s mostly regulatory and oversight role with respect to private markets. However, recently, there appears to be a new highly adversarial relationship forming between select businesses and politicians. A growing number of corporations across the U.S. have begun openly and intentionally delving into the political arena exercising their right to free speech to criticize policies and politicians. In response to corporations becoming perhaps more open in their opposition, or support of political policies, especially highly contentious ones, certain politicians have begun implementing an incipient political tactic: vindictively, loudly, and harshly attacking businesses to hurt their profit-making ability and push them into silence. This thesis uses an experiment to answer whether voters support this emerging political tactic, and under what circumstances their support might increase or wane. Results from my experiment reveal that partisanship, specifically whether the voter shares the party of the “attacker politician,” is the biggest predictor determining whether a voter will even consider supporting these types of attacks. Further, even when these attacks are initiated by an in-party politician (same party affiliation as the respondent), there is no evidence to suggest that the politician benefits electorally from engaging in the attack. Harsh attacks against a business, however, including those initiated by an in-party politician, were emphatically rejected by voters. Overall, politicians stand to gain very little from their own party by engaging in these types of attacks, and risk losing even greater support from voters of the opposite party.

Thesis advisor: Mary C. McGrath

The 2023 elections in Turkey brought negative national sentiment towards Syrian refugees to the fore in both campaign messaging and public opinion polls. This thesis explores how the presence of refugees affected the 2023 presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey and the mechanisms and theories that shape this relationship. The following research assesses the impact of the presence of Syrian refugees on voting for the 2023 presidential and parliamentary elections through a mixed methods approach consisting of regional voting, survey data and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analyses. In the presidential elections, the results indicated that the presence of refugees did not have a statistically significant effect on voting for the anti-refugee candidate, Kemal Kilicdaroglu. Conversely, in the parliamentary elections, the results suggest that a higher concentration of refugees in a province, particularly in major metropolitan centers, correlates with increased support for extreme single-issue antirefugee parties, exemplified by the findings for the Zafer Party. The research also considers how the mechanisms of intergroup contact between Syrian refugees and Turks impacts voting for anti-refugee parties and finds that contact may lead to a slight increase in support for anti-refugee candidates. These findings underscore the importance of single-issue anti-refugee parties in the nexus between the presence of refugees and electoral outcomes in host countries.

Thesis advisor: Wendy Pearlman

Out of all of the Asian ethnic groups in the United States, Vietnamese Americans tend to hold conservative political preferences, including on the issue of immigration. This paper aimed to understand how the Vietnam War and the experiences and historical memories of this era translate into political preferences on immigration, and what variables might cause any differences in political preferences among Vietnamese Americans. Primarily through qualitative interviews, this paper sought to confirm whether there was a relationship between the Vietnam War and political preferences on immigration at all, and if immigrant generation might be a variable in discerning any differences within the community. What was eventually discovered was that there is a direct relationship between the Vietnam War and the years that followed (immigration and the process of resettlement) and political preferences on immigration. With this relationship supported by the interviews, it was also concluded that political preferences on immigration were varied by immigrant generation, age, and nativity, based on the different experiences faced by these different demographics. It was the personal experiences of each ,individual that seemed to determine political preferences on immigration rather than any other variables. This research helps better understand political preferences within the Vietnamese American community, and perhaps the understanding of political preferences overall.

Thesis advisor: Julie Lee Merseth

Prior research has established that part of the anti-democratic sentiment seen from American partisans stems from perceptions that rival partisans are more anti-democratic than they truly are. A common way to combat this is to correct partisans with real data from out-partisans and measure the resulting change in anti-democratic sentiment. This study examines whether American Republicans’ view of socialism as anti-democratic and popular among Democrats may exacerbate their anti-democratic sentiments. To explore such perceptions, an initial survey with 720 partisans (split evenly between parties) was conducted followed by a preregistered survey experiment with 1,396 Republicans who were corrected with true Democratic support for socialism. This research finds that although Republicans view socialism through an anti-democratic lens, a correction with real-world data is an ineffective strategy in decreasing anti-democratic sentiment. Furthermore, I uncover evidence that Republicans are strikingly accurate when assessing Democratic support of socialism and that greater estimates of Democratic support are associated with increases in their own anti-democratic sentiment.

Thesis advisor: Jordan Gans-Morse

The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated immediate and strategic interventions from global governments to minimize its adverse effects on public health, economic stability, and societal norms. This paper assesses the key challenges faced by researchers and addresses factor selection problems. It critically assesses traditional correlational studies and parametric analyses. The paper advances current methodologies in handling extensive, cross-sectional datasets with machine learning approaches - using LASSO regression and the Random Forest algorithm combined with various imputation methods to analyze 1,685 potential factors in 172 countries. The paper offers a roadmap for conducting inductive machine learning. This is particularly useful for empirical studies where primary subjects are abstract across different fields. By evaluating over a thousand potential variables, the study identifies critical predictors of pandemic severity and effective governmental responses. The paper discusses long-term strategies for enhancing societal resilience against global health crises, expanding the research frontier by introducing novel hypotheses about governance and institutional structures. 

Thesis advisor: James Mahoney

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: J Seawright

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: Galya Ben-Arieh

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: Traci Burch

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: Mary McGrath

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: Matthew Kugler

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: Chloe Thurston

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: Michael Loriaux

[Update coming soon]

Thesis Advisor: Andrew Roberts

Abstract:  Between December 2020 and March 2021, PKN Orlen, the Polish national oil refinery,
completed a takeover of Polska Press, the owner of twenty regional daily newspapers with over
fifteen million online readers. To date, this has been the Law and Justice Party’s most significant
achievement within its campaign to “repolonize,” or ensure greater domestic ownership, of its
media. Allegations of media capture and democratic backsliding, as well as changes in article
content regarding coverage of controversial political stories, have proliferated throughout the
Polish news media ecosystem. They compel a longitudinal content analysis of pre-repolonization
and post-repolonization newspaper content to evaluate if and to what extent these highly political
consequences have been borne out. This study used content and discourse analysis to examine
changes in word count (as a proxy for article quality), frequency of name citation of politicians
and PiS affiliates, and the level of nativism across Polska Press newspapers and Gazeta Wyborcza,
a national-level control. Results indicated that article quality, as expressed through word count,
did not appear to fall at Polska Press newspapers, relative to Gazeta Wyborcza. Politicians at
Polska Press newspapers were named less frequently than before the intervention, and the rate of
mention of PiS figures fell dramatically as well – this outcome variable was somewhat muddied
by steep increases in politician and PiS figure name citation in Gazeta Wyborcza, which was meant
to serve as the control. The level of nativism in Polska Press articles, and especially in syndicated
articles across multiple newspapers, did not increase. Many of these findings are counterintuitive,
and invite more research into the nature of the Polish case of government media capture. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Andrew Roberts

Abstract: Existing literature on migration has largely failed to consider short-term, low-skill labor
migrants within the larger framework of integration and belonging processes, as policymakers and
political institutions assume that these processes only apply exclusively to migrants with long-term
settlement patterns (i.e., refugees). Consequently, policies and laws both in the US as well as abroad
have often excluded short-term, low-skill labor migrants from their integration/belonging policies
and resources. This research seeks to provide an exploratory study of the lived experience of short-term, low-skill labor migrants to evaluate if they do indeed undergo integration/belonging processes,
and if so, how short-term, low-skill labor migrants’ processes differ from long-term immigrants that
might be vital in guiding policy decisions and programs in the future. Through a qualitative, case
study analysis of Chinese short-term, low-skill labor migrants in the Chicago Metropolitan Area, this
study finds that short-term, low-skill labor migrants do indeed experience processes of integration
and belonging, with some overlapping similarities with long-term immigrants. However, despite some
initial similarities, their processes also widely differ from long-term immigrants and challenge
traditional models of integration posited by scholars like Ager and Strang. Despite its exploratory
nature, this study provides the groundwork for future research to build off of any initial patterns that
were identified and further provide the necessary visibility to the lived experiences of all short-term,
low-skill labor migrants. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Galya Ben-Ariech

 

Abstract: The advancement of the platform economy is arguably one of the most prominent features of the current day job market. Its emergence reflects the combined effect of the internet boom, the
decades-long effort of commercial liberalization, and the acceptance of the just-in-time
workforce as a social norm. While the platform economy is highly preferred by businesses and
customers, work and social benefits associated with work are becoming increasingly precarious
and insecure. This research uses case studies to understand the connection between sector market
performance, platform economy-specific legislation, and welfare regimes in Spain, France,
Denmark, and Sweden. Results show that although the welfare regimes are good predictors of
platform-related legislation, it takes time for policymakers to pass laws to protect workers.
Furthermore, even when two countries share similar welfare regimes and platform
economy-specific collective agreements, market performance—especially the nascent online
food delivery sector—can vary due to factors such as sector historical presence and Covid-19.
Last but not least, sector differences manifest in the way.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Jean Clipperton

Abstract: Over the past fifty years, U.S. tax policies have facilitated, rather than mitigated,
surging economic inequality, shifting massive amounts of wealth and income to those at the top
of the scale. The “median voter theorem,” first posited by economist Anthony Downs, suggests
that in an ideal democratic two-party system, moderate candidates from both parties tend to win
general elections by appealing to the center of the public opinion in their constituencies.
However, recent U.S. congressional elections seem to contradict this model. This thesis employs
a case study analysis of key 2020 Senate races in which six historically conservative
states—Kansas, North Carolina, Alabama, Texas, Georgia, and Tennessee—became noteworthy
battlegrounds. In all cases except Georgia and Texas, the candidates who won supported
economic policies, particularly on taxation and redistribution, that were becoming increasingly
unpopular among the public in their states but were aligned with the policy preferences of
ultra-wealthy conservatives. In order to offer a potential explanation for this outcome, I evaluate
the internal dynamics of the primary elections, such as low turnout, low visibility, and the
activity of ideologically-driven party activists and elites, which may have impacted the
nomination process. I also compare the policy preferences of major candidates and public
opinion on tax reform and redistribution in each state to the political contributions from 66 of the
top conservative billionaire donors during the 2019-2020 election cycle. Together, these elements
reveal that the candidates funded by these billionaires are the ones who are, more often than not,
elected and in many cases, more ideologically extreme than other primary and general election
candidates.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Benjamin Page

Abstract: The Covid-19 pandemic introduced much of the United States to Zoom, a relatively
unused web-conferencing platform pre-COVID-19 pandemic, and forced millions of Americans
to rely on it for schooling, work, and daily communication between friends and loved ones. The
2020 presidential cycle was not immune to this phenomenon as all 2020 political campaigns
across the country shifted their get out the vote and fundraising efforts to Zoom and other web-conferencing platforms. The ongoing use of virtual platforms by political campaigns (and other
industries in the U.S.) even as the Covid-19 pandemic subsides, raises the question: how
effective are virtual political campaign events at turning out voters and fundraising when
compared to in-person events? I attempt to answer the question by running an experiment where
participants are randomly assigned to attend a simulated campaign event in-person or over
Zoom. I find that differences between in-person and virtual mediums have no effect on voter
turnout and fundraising. However, voter turnout and fundraising are indirectly affected by
participants’ engagement with the event, their perceptions of the candidate, and their event
experience, all of which are in turn affected by the differences between in-person and virtual
campaigns. The study results showed that in-person campaign events performed better than
virtual ones in terms of both participant engagement and perceptions of the candidate. But given
the relatively small differences between the two, the clear benefits of virtual events, and both the
staying power and growth of virtual products, campaigns should remain open to the idea of using
virtual campaign events—when appropriate—in the foreseeable future.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Jamie Druckman

Abstract: The 2018 Election recorded the highest number of votes by Americans in any midterm election, with particularly high rates for Black Americans.  How much of this had to do with church?  I investigate the relationship between religiosity and turnout in the 2018 using the 2018 Cooperative Congressional Election Study.  I find a lack of a significant relationship between religiosity and turnout for Black Americans on the individual- or district-level.  I conduct interviews with seven Chicagoland residents on the motivators behind their turnout understand how church may motivate turnout.   I determine that religion serves to shape the sociopolitical beliefs and resources to vote that respondents access, but other communities can play a similar role.  Using a combination of the 2018 CCES and roll call votes, I determine whether districts with higher Black turnout have better representation for issues that Black voters care about.  I find that, ultimately, alignment with the party of the Representative is what matters. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Harbridge-Yong and Professor Chen

Abstract: The responsibility to protect came out of a desire to formalize international responses to mass atrocities, especially in the wake of various genocides and crimes against humanity in the 1990’s.
In 2011, Col. Muammar Qaddafi’s brutality against democracy protests — and later civilians
during the initial uprisings — caused a stir among the international community. Roughly a month
after protests started, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution authorizing the use
of military force to protect civilians. It would be the first implementation of the new R2P policy.
Fast-forward a decade, and Libya’s situation is precarious. Many analysts blame the intervention
as the impetus for the decline of the state of Libya. The chief aim of this paper is to use the
Libyan intervention as a case study in ethical humanitarian intervention within the framework of
compassionate pragmatism (to be defined in the study). By doing that, this paper seeks to offer
insight into the ethics of the intervention — and what that tells of the R2P doctrine’s viability in
the future.

Thesis Advisor: Dr. Karen Alter

Abstract: This research focuses on the rural residents of Pennsylvania and distinctions that manifest between this group and non-rural Pennsylvania residents. The specific differences explored are within the areas of political knowledge, policy opinion, and participation. Other data analyzed includes information about levels of racial resentment and also reported levels of religiosity. The survey data utilized is from the Cooperative Congressional Election Survey (CCES). Analysis has shown that rural respondents have lower levels of political knowledge. Very few shifts are recorded over time in terms of the policy preferences of rural Americans, and rural residents differ from their peers on social policies more frequently than economic policies. No differences are found when respondents self-report religious importance. Finally, there are no real distinctions in the reported consumption of news media, nor the rates of self-reported political participation. However, rural respondents recorded higher levels of racial resentment than their non-rural counterparts.    

Thesis Advisor: Dr. Traci Burch

Abstract: While the concepts of pivotality and self-interest have both received significant attention in
political science, literature which connects the two is scarce. This study uses a novel two-part
experiment consisting of an economic game and a policy survey to answer the question of
whether increasing pivotality influences peoples’ propensity to vote in their self-interest. It finds
that pivotality does affect self-interest in voting, but the direction of this effect can vary; in some
contexts, increasing pivotality results in more selfish voting while in others, increasing pivotality
results in less selfish voting. The findings have important ramifications because of the increase in
voting rights restrictions seen across the country, the increased attention given to the study of
local politics, and the implications it may have for the viability of epistocracy

Thesis Advisor: Professor John Bullock

Abstract: When it comes to helping immigrants to the U.S. adjust economically, socially, and civically, the work typically falls on local government and nonprofit organizations. And in most major cities, nonprofits take the lead in administering crucial services in specific communities, with cities playing a supporting role. However, the immigrant community is not a monolith, and a nonprofit-led social safety net risks letting disadvantaged portions of the immigrant community fall through the cracks. This thesis aims to answer the question of how the city-nonprofit relationship ignores or even contributes to inequality between segments of the immigrant community, as well as providing recommendations for cities and nonprofits to ensure an equitable approach. Drawing on survey data and interviews with individuals at Chicago nonprofits, this project attempts to understand the immigrant services landscape from the nonprofit perspective to offer perspectives for an equitable path forward.  

Thesis Advisor: Professor Jaime Dominguez

Abstract: Why do some imprisoned opposition leaders launch campaigns to mobilize society while others do not? This thesis seeks to answer this question by comparing the cases of Irish Republican prisoner Bobby Sands, Palestinian prisoner Marwan Barghouti, and South African prisoner Nelson Mandela. While incarcerated, both Sands and Barghouti struggled to draw attention to the condition of political prisoners and rally support for them outside prison walls. Mandela, by contrast, spent decades in jail without engaging in such activism. Explanations that emphasize despair over living conditions and extreme isolation fail to make sense of this variation. I propose that perceived loss of social status causes prisoners to launch campaigns to mobilize society. Imprisoned leaders may tie their social status to the legitimacy of the political movement they represent. When their status comes under threat, they can interpret this not only as a personal issue, but as a movement issue which requires action. I examine this hypothesis using evidence from autobiographies and press releases, as well as from semi-structured interviews I conducted with former political prisoners and experts. 

 Thesis Advisor: Wendy Pearlman

Abstract: COVID-19 serves as a stress test for democratic consolidation. Ghana proves a case study
demonstrative in the nuanced coexistence of democratic consolidation in terms of programmatic
policy creation and backsliding in terms of enforcement mechanisms. The programmatic nature
of government assistance bodes well for democratic consolidation in the country while the pre-existing clientelistic tendencies reflect the complex transparency and accountability difficulties
in the country. When pressed the government cuts corners, resorting to patron client politics
affected by scarcity of resources. The performance is impaired by the fall back of patron-client
politics, which was an issue in the country prior to the pandemic. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Will Reno

Abstract: The effectiveness or lack thereof of campaign spending has significant implications for
campaign finance issues. While research on the impact of campaign spending is not uncommon,
it is rarely used to explore primary election spending. This study attempts to measure the
relationship between primary spending and electoral outcomes while also adjusting for a number
of confounding variables. Using data from the last decade of U.S. Senate primaries, the study
finds that even after adjusting for these variables, there is a statistically significant positive
relationship between primary spending and electoral outcomes.

Thesis Advisor: Professor J. Seawright

Abstract: Existing discourse surrounding the introduction of artificial intelligence technologies centers
largely around the ramifications that are predicted to be felt by blue-collar workers. This project
focuses on examining a different aspect of the AI revolution by looking to the political impacts
created by the potential involvement of white-collar workers in job losses, especially in the light
of their disproportionate wealth and influence on politics. By looking to mentions of technology-driven job losses in the media, party platforms, and legislation, I attempt to quantitatively test
whether there is evidence that at-threat white collar workers are driving a more robust social and
political response to technology-driven job losses now when compared to the automation-driven
job losses of the 20th century that implicated only blue-collar workers. I find that technology-driven job losses are unquestionably more prominent in the media discourse now, but any thrust
by white-collar workers to create change in this area is yet to register in the later stage political
indicators of party platforms and legislation.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Benjamin I. Page

Abstract: Over 75 years have passed since American bombers dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during the last hours of the Second World War. In the decades following, the world carefully avoided the use of nuclear weapons in the context of war despite a years-long arms race between the Soviet Union and the United States, the world’s two largest nuclear powers at the time. Some experts point toward nuclear arms control agreements between the two parties as a key factor in preventing the introduction of nuclear warheads into the realm of warfare. Despite initial support, several of these agreements have fallen into a state of
disarray, and ultimately, collapse. This study examines four nuclear arms control treaties between
the United States and the USSR/Russia — the INF Treaty, Strategic Arms Limitation Talks
(SALT II), START, and New START — and considers each treaty as a case study. The results of
this study suggest that no one factor is responsible for the collapse of these treaties. Instead, this
study shows that the nature of nuclear arms control faces the same problems as other types of
alliance-building. Nuclear arms control treaties are not robust and do not exist outside the larger
context of the relationship between the involved entities, therefore, they are subject to the same
variability as other manners of diplomacy and international engagement.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Hendrik Spruyt

Abstract: In recent years, scrutiny over China’s increasing participation in UN Peacekeeping Operations has grown, with many worrying that China’s participation will lead to a weakening of human rights norms in peacekeeping missions as well as a decrease in the efficacy of peacekeeping missions. An argument often made by the Western news media is that China’s interest in peacekeeping, especially in Africa, is driven solely by China’s dependence on African resources and the economic dividends reaped from resource extraction and trade. In response, there has been an increase in peacekeeping literature addressing China’s motivations when it comes to participating in UNPKOs. Several of these disregard, or wholly discredit, the claim that resource interests motivate China’s deployment of peacekeepers to UNPKOs. This thesis finds that while trade and resources play a role in China’s decision-making process, they are not the sole explanation for the deployment of Chinese peacekeepers. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Hendrik Spruyt

Abstract: This thesis analyzes Supreme Court clerk data to evaluate whether a justice’s ideology, race, gender or birth year affects the racial and gender diversity of their clerk hires. It first provides updated statistics on clerk racial, gender, and law school diversity from 1994-2018. After evaluating the research question using established clerk recruitment models, the thesis develops a distinct method for evaluating the impact of justice identities on clerk hiring outcomes using multi-level models and link-function comparison. The paper concludes that a justice’s ideology impacts the racial and gender composition of their clerks. Additionally, the paper finds that a justice’s gender and birth year impact their clerk gender diversity, with mixed evidence regarding the impact of these traits on clerk racial diversity. By exploiting clerk hiring as a novel form of judicial decision-making, the thesis finds support for the different voice, representational, and informational theories of gender and judicial decision-making.  

Thesis Advisor: Professor Chloe Thurston and Professor Grisinger

Abstract: Despite its relative infancy, clear trends regarding interstate reactions to cyber attacks
have begun to emerge. This thesis investigates whether or not nations respond disproportionately
mildly to cyber attacks. Three distinct national case studies are compared utilizing Mill’s method
of agreement to attempt to answer whether or not nations respond more mildly.
The concluding results confirm that nations respond less aggressively toward cyber
attacks when directly compared to like physical attacks. This thesis further posits that this
disparity stems from both a neoliberal as well as realist school of thought as national and
international leaders lack norms governing how to respond to interstate cyber conflict between
nations with asymmetric digital infrastructure.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Will Reno

Abstract: Private prisons and detention centers are prominent topics in political discourse due to concerns of inhumane conditions and unfair treatment of detainees. Despite these concerns, private
detention center corporations house over 70% of detainees and continue to procure contracts
with the federal government. This paper examines the bureaucratic capital that the private
corporations have accrued by hiring powerful public sector employees, a phenomenon known as
the “revolving door.” I first created a database of all revolvers at the five major private detention
center corporations and then conducted quantitative analysis. My findings show that the
revolvers generate an inequality of influence among corporations. Next, I used qualitative
analysis to understand ways that revolvers impact the contract procurement process and threat of
corruption that powerful revolvers pose within the industry. Lastly, this paper offers prescriptive
policy recommendations intended to limit the revolving door and resolve ethical and normative
political concerns.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Daniel Galvin

Abstract: Having been founded on the principles of economic and social cohesion, the European Union succeeds when its Member States succeed. A major avenue for maintenance of economic and
social cohesion, the EU Budget funds countless programs throughout various Member States and
provides financial stability and additional funds for grant-seeking projects. When the 2015
Migrant Crisis brought an influx of migrant and refugee populations in, programs tasked with
integrating and resettling those populations along with programs aimed at crisis and terror
prevention received institutional funds through the EU Budget. In order to ensure proper
distribution, the EU Budget and its various distributary agencies maintained social cohesion
between Member States and incoming third-country nationals. So how are funds distributed
within the European Union? This project explores the relationship between the European
Union as an Institution and the various actors by which it disseminates, legitimizes, and
reinforces social norms through fiscal policy and answers the question, how are norms affected
by fiscal policy within International Institutions? While creating a standardized and legally
binding set of communal values helps mitigate crises and aides in streamlining ethical financing
at an institutional level of ground-level programming, several key accountability issues arise.
Within existing institutional structures, high-quality accountability is necessary for the effective
internalization of norms throughout all levels of EU society.Transparency, knowledge of impact,
and the exclusion of non-citizens each pose distinct issues for the Budget of the European Union
achieving its goals of promoting cohesion.

Thesis Advisor: Professor Galya Ben-Arieh and Professor Jean Clipperton

Abstract: Since 2019, tensions between Hindu nationalists and Muslims in India have received greater
attention in mainstream political discourse. This thesis evaluates the impact of Hindu nationalism
on India’s relations with Iran, Turkey, and Malaysia during Narendra Modi’s premiership. While
Modi’s increasingly Hindu nationalist agenda has provoked rhetorical condemnations from these
three countries, the direct impact of Hindu nationalism on bilateral relationsis negligible. Although
this trio’s criticisms of India are partly out of solidarity with Muslims, they are largely symptoms
of their desire to challenge Saudi and Emirati hegemony in the Muslim world. Through detailed
analysis of current scholarship, newspaper articles, government publications, and interviews with
experts, I demonstrate that Hindu nationalism plays a superficial role in India’s relations with these
three countries, and is ultimately outweighed by pragmatic considerations. This research draws
attention to an understudied area of India’s foreign relations and the intersections between religion
and foreign policy, painting a clearer picture of India’s great power trajectory

Thesis Advisor: Dr. Elizabeth Shakman Hurd

Abstract: The role media institutions play in civil conflict is a widely contested topic in political science. Some scholars view the media as watchdogs, while others see media institutions as powerbrokers of public discourse. This work seeks to demonstrate the importance of contributing factors in the study of media and civil conflict. Using a mixed methods approach, this study seeks to highlight the second-order impact the RTLM broadcasts had on Rwandan political culture through the lens of deference to authority and normalization of violence. Through the exploration of both the Concordia RTLM transcript and ICTR transcript databases, this study concludes that the RTLM transcripts did have a contributing effect on the Rwandan genocide through short term changes in civilian political culture. The results of this paper suggest that scholars need to rethink their approach to explaining the onset of political violence and highlight the importance of the ‘contributing factors’ theory.  

Thesis Advisor: Professor Ana Arjona

Abstract: Over the last decade, artificial intelligence (AI) has become a mainstay in the everyday
lives of Americans. This thesis seeks to better understand what conditions can foster greater
regulation of government use of AI systems. The present government reliance on private politics
and the relatively low level of traditional government regulation of AI poses strong technical and
ethical concerns affecting the liberties of Americans. Critical to answering questions surrounding
regulation of AI are the legislative and electoral influences involved. How do legislator
preferences, interest groups, and public pressure affect whether lawmakers are incentivized to
engage in proactive regulation or to continue the current path of narrow, reactive measures? I
argue that the pace of technological change and the place of government as the direct consumer
of AI provide sizable regulatory hurdles. As a result, I hypothesize on the importance of the role
of outside influences in driving regulation of government use of AI systems. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Laurel Harbridge-Yong

Abstract: I have so many people to thank from this process. Obviously, my advisor, Dr. Jaime Dominguez was a massive help in refining my topic and reassuring me that I was on the right track even when I felt I was nowhere near it. Dr. Galvin was also incredibly helpful and provided some much-needed direction when I was at a difficult crossroads. I owe perhaps the largest thank you to my TA, Jeremy Levy who answered every question I had, no matter how insignificant or ridiculous and without whom this thesis would have no chance of existing. I also owe a large thank you to former Director of Speechwriting for President Obama, Cody Keenan. Discussing this topic during his office hours, for a class I was not even a part of, helped me lay the foundation for what would eventually become this project. His willingness to also talk with me on the phone despite being on paternity leave was truly above and beyond. I also must thank my friends and family for putting up with my neurotic self during these past few months. I could never have done it without you all.  

Thesis Advisor: Professor Julie Lee Merseth 

Abstract: I have so many people to thank from this process. Obviously, my advisor, Dr. Jaime Dominguez was a massive help in refining my topic and reassuring me that I was on the right track even when I felt I was nowhere near it. Dr. Galvin was also incredibly helpful and provided some much-needed direction when I was at a difficult crossroads. I owe perhaps the largest thank you to my TA, Jeremy Levy who answered every question I had, no matter how insignificant or ridiculous and without whom this thesis would have no chance of existing. I also owe a large thank you to former Director of Speechwriting for President Obama, Cody Keenan. Discussing this topic during his office hours, for a class I was not even a part of, helped me lay the foundation for what would eventually become this project. His willingness to also talk with me on the phone despite being on paternity leave was truly above and beyond. I also must thank my friends and family for putting up with my neurotic self during these past few months. I could never have done it without you all.  

Thesis Advisor: Dr. Jaime Dominguez

Abstract: This paper describes the sexual harassment, race discrimination, and endangerment experienced by Northwestern cheerleaders during the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 academic years and investigates the University’s response to multiple complaints. To understand the case, this paper presents evidence based on interviews with cheerleaders, the design of which was approved by the University’s IRB.  Supplementing the case study is a close textual analysis of the University’s long, inconsistent, and disorganized Title IX Policy. The analysis highlights the disorienting interactions had by those accessing the Policy and seeking help from the University’s Office of Equity. These interactions occurred under the guise of the Office serving as a resource for students. I also review recent scholarship addressing Title IX implementation limitations and its impacts on those who report. This analysis advances two conclusions in tandem. First, it demonstrates that the abuse and other problems detailed were not the result a single bad actor but were widespread and persisted after multiple formal complaints to NU’s Title IX administrators. Second, it demonstrates that the University’s Office of Equity exercised its discretion in ways that prioritized the University’s interests and excluded cheerleaders from participating in the disciplinary process. The University’s Policy resulted, intentionally or not, in a power imbalance between students trying to access resources articulated in the Policy and Title IX administrators in the Office of Equity. This power imbalance gave administrators excessive control, discretion, and personal protection when responding to complaints of harassment and discrimination. Cheerleading at Northwestern University: A Case Study of Institutional Failure shows that decisions of great consequence for both individuals and the University were made by individual administrators with great discretion and little oversight. The case of Northwestern cheerleading detailed in this thesis is an exemplary case of institutional failure. Students were told the Office of Equity exists to support them. Support is not what they found there.  

Thesis Advisor: Professor Sara Monoson and Kimberly Yuracko

Abstract: In March 2018, President Donald Trump acted to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. Not all firms have to pay tariffs though. American companies can receive tariff exclusions by
applying for them at the Department of Commerce. Using a unique dataset containing tariff
exclusion request decisions made between March 2018 and June 2019, I study how the political
affiliation of American firms may impact their ability to secure tariff exclusions from the
Department of Commerce and examine how increasing partisanship in the United States has
impacted bureaucratic decision-making with respect to individual American firms. The results of
data analysis suggest that the Trump Administration and the Department of Commerce favored
American firms with no partisan political affiliation as well as firms affiliated with the
Democratic Party when making decisions to grant or deny tariff exclusion requests. In addition,
the Department of Commerce was more likely to grant tariff exclusions submitted by smaller
Republican-affiliated firms, larger Democratic-affiliated firms, and smaller firms with neither
affiliation. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Stephen Nelson

Abstract: Over the last decade, researchers have paid increasing attention to the phenomenon of
foreign entrepreneurs opening micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya.
Existing research on this subject has found that these foreign-owned firms often outcompete their
Kenyan counterparts and that the interactions between these two groups tend to be tenuous. This
research adds to the existing literature by taking a micro-level approach to understanding the
outcomes of interactions between Kenyan and foreign-owned MSMEs, through an original large-N survey and interviews with Kenyan businessowners, union leaders, and a government official.
The analysis of these data has resulted in several key conclusions: that the possession of
proprietary assets by Kenyan firms provides them leverage in bargaining with their foreign-owned counterparts, that the extent of collective action established between Kenyan firms in a
given industry can grant them an advantageous bargaining position in inter-firm negotiations,
that the degree of legal codification of inter-firm arrangements can provide incentives for a given
party (the foreign firm is examined here) to defect from an agreement or not, and that Sino-Kenyan business relations in particular are shaped by existing understandings of inter-firm trust
and Chinese cultural mores, as well as the existence of an oft prohibitive language barrier. These
conclusions yield multiple implications, namely that greater unionization within the MSME
sector in Kenya can benefit domestic business, legal education could reinforce partnerships and
increase institutional trust, a more robust language education system in Kenya can reduce friction
in inter-firm interactions, and more realistic depictions of inter-firm interactions in Kenya can
increase relational trust between the studied groups.

Thesis Advisor: Dr. William Reno

Abstract: For most of the 20th and 21st centuries, political scientists studied Chicago politics due to its powerful and infamous political machine. Due to the dominance of the machine, students and observers of Chicago politics often failed to notice the current of cohesive anti-machine politics slowly developing in opposition to the long-tenured machine mayors. This thesis gives a comprehensive account of the development of anti-machine politics from 1955 to present, studying both winning and losing anti-machine mayoral candidates, and providing a new framework for analyzing differences in machine platforms. Through a layered understanding of political development, this thesis shows how anti-machine politics has changed over time, leading to three main categories of ideology – reform, progressivism, and qualified progressivism. 

Thesis Advisor: Professor Daniel Galvin

Abstract: In 2020, the United States and world was impacted greatly by the COVID-19 Pandemic. In response to the pandemic, several state governments created rules and regulations to limit travel and necessitate mask wearing and social distancing for the summer and into the fall. As a result, many right-wing groups began to protest these executive orders and regulations at state capitols, federal buildings, and public spaces. In May of 2020, the murder of George Floyd sparked the largest civil rights protest movement in American history. Many communities began to question their role in policing, and many protests, although peaceful, were met with seemingly arbitrary state-sanctioned violence. Through the use of a multinomial logarithmic regression model, this thesis finds that protest ideology has a significant impact on how state agencies respond to a given demonstration. Notably, the size of the protest does not heavily determine the given outcome of a protest.   

Thesis Advisor: Professor Reuel Rogers