About
I am a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Social Science Division at NYU Abu Dhabi. My research concentrates on the intersection of international and domestic politics, with a particular focus on the role of social transmission of narratives in post-conflict settings. I received my Ph.D. from Princeton University in 2024.
My dissertation examines the consequences of territorial loss for the structure of domestic politics, using a mixed-methods approach based on a combination of formal decision modelling, survey and laboratory experiments in eight countries, geographical causal identification, and field and archival work in Georgia and Armenia to establish links between individual behavior and system-level outcomes. The key finding across all of these approaches is that individual attitudes to territorial losses are primarily structured by the social environments in which people are embedded and lead to an increased likelihood of political participation in support of opposition forces.
Other ongoing projects explore the role of social structure in determining the incentives politicians face to subvert formal election rules through vote-buying and patronage, and the relationship between economic vulnerability and group identification in political cognition. I also work actively on the development of new methodologies, and am the co-author with Dahyun Choi of the scR package for R, which allows researchers to determine the necessary sample size to apply any machine learning algorithm.
Previously, I worked as a professional bassoonist and classical saxophonist, performing solo and with orchestras and ensembles throughout New Zealand, including the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, and Dunedin Symphony Orchestra.
Education
- Ph.D. (2024), MA (2020), Department of Politics, Princeton University
- BA (Hons) (2016), University of Canterbury