Research
The Politics of Dispute Settlement
My dissertation focused on the politics of dispute settlement. In particular, I argue that the design of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Dispute Settlement Mechanism (DSM) was optimal for the institution itself, but the flexibility in the design allowed for countries to use the DSM itself as, functionally, a political escape clause. Using statistical analysis and interviews, I find that dispute initiation, dispute abandonment, and legal claims in disputes all seem to be subject to political gamesmanship, all possible due to the necessary limitations in the DSM.
Media Bias in Terrorism Coverage
I have research with Bryan Arva and Muhammed Idris on potential biases in how the American media covers terrorism. We focus on the identity of the attacker, and argue that there is a difference in the content of the U.S. media's coverage based on the religion of the perpetrator of political violence. We rely on topic models and find evidence that the media adopts distinctly different frames when the attacker is Muslim compared to when the attacker is a white right-wing extremist.
Forced Migration Patterns and Civil War
I have research with Cyrus Mohammadian on forced migration patterns during civil wars. We examine why some civilians are forced to migrate across borders to become refugees, while others stay within-country to become internally displaced persons (IDPs), when caught in a civil war. We find that the type of civil war has a significant influence on the types of forced migration.
Effectiveness of Drone Strikes
I have research with Cyrus Mohammadian and Yu-Ming Liou on the effectiveness of drone strikes. We use geo-coded data to test whether drone strikes in Pakistan help mitigate or agitate political violence. We find evidence that strikes seem to set off a reaction game, whereby domestic actors have incentives to signal their strength soon after a strike, resulting in a rise in political violence after a drone strike.
CV
Click here for my CV.
Peer Reviewed Journal Articles
"Waiting for Election Season: The Strategic Timing of International Trade Disputes." Review of International Organizations (2015): 10(2): 265-303.
"Documenting Citizenship in Medicaid: The Struggle between Ideology and Evidence." (with Leighton Ku) Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law (2010): 35(1):5-28.
Book Chapters
Pervez F. Jemah Islamiyah, Abu Sayyaf, Moro Islamic Liberation Front, in Katz R, Zilinskas R (ed). Encyclopedia of Bioterrorism Defense. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2005.
Select Policy Papers
"Where Public Health and Peacebuilding Converge." (with Chris Bosley) United States Institute of Peace, January 16, 2020.
"Can Policy Catch up to the Golden Age of Terrorism Research?" (with Leanne Erdberg) United States Institute of Peace, November 5, 2020.
"Almost all news coverage of the Barcelona attack mentioned terrorism. Very little coverage of Charlottesville did." (with Bryan Arva and Muhammed Idris) Washington Post, August 31, 2017.
"American Muslim Poll: Participation, Priorities, and Facing Prejudice in the 2016 Elections.'' (with Dalia Mogahed) Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, March 2016.