Hannah M. Ridge

Welcome! I am an assistant professor of political science at Chapman University. I was previously a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Pozen Center for Human Rights at the University of Chicago. I completed my PhD in Political Science at Duke University, specializing in comparative politics and political methodology.

My research focuses on how citizens understand democracy, what makes them want democratization, and what makes them satisfied with the democracy they have. This includes their attitudes towards political institutions, like party systems and liberal values. I also examine the role religion and ethnic hierarchies play in the state and citizens' political behavior. My teaching interests include theories of democracy, religion and politics, and the Middle Eastern/North Africa. My research has been published in Political Science Research and Methods, Political Behavior, Party Politics, Democratization, and Religion, State and Society.