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I am an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Akron, and a Fellow at the Ray Bliss Institute of Applied Politics. My research focuses on the ideological foundations of American politics. Some of my work focuses on the ideas expressed in state party platforms. The platforms provide rich evidence of ideological polarization and my research on these platforms helps to illuminate the fundamental principles that divide the two parties. In addition, my recent research is in the area of political psychology. I have published or am currently working on several projects that explore how political attitudes shape social, often non-political, behavior. In addition, my colleagues and I in the Bliss Institute are active in analyzing Ohio Politics. We recently published a book, Buckeye Battleground, on the distinctiveness of the “Five Ohios” and how this intra-regional diversity serves to make Ohio the quintessential battleground state. In continuing this research, I am hoping to show how some of Ohio’s regional diversity is traceable to cultural differences across the regions. This stands in contrast to most political science research, which currently argues that regional differences in voting patterns are rooted in compositional, or demographic, diversity. I am a native of Niskayuna, New York. I currently live in Shaker Heights, OH.
Recent Publications:
The State of the Parties, 6th edition, co-edited with John C. Green (Rowman and Littlefield, 2011).
(papers are available at the SSRN) Polarization and Education: How Cognitive Resources Affect the Acceptance of Polarized Arguments
The Behavioral Implications of Ambivalence
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