Research
Book Project
"Territorial Gains and Losses: The Political Psychology of Issue Indivisibility"
Why do some states develop intransigent preferences for territory such that bargained outcomes become impossible? Territorial disputes are ubiquitous in international politics and often costly. Concurrent with many territorial disputes is a discourse of indivisibility; actors claim they will be satisfied only with the whole of the territory and will reject any compromised outcome. While such rhetoric often reflects political posturing, it may also represent actual intransigent preferences. My book project traces the source of inflexible territorial preferences. I argue that shifting relative power dynamics between states may push foreign policy elites into positions where they are averse to any compromise. To test the role of perception and the causal mechanisms of my theory I take a multimethod approach using survey experiments and comparative case studies to understand the political psychology of intransigent preferences.
Publications
"Was the Malvinas/Falklands a Diversionary War? A Prospect-Theory Reinterpretation of Argentina's Decline," with Luis Schenoni and Jorge Battaglino, Security Studies, (forthcoming).
Contributor, The Modern Middle East: An Encyclopedia of Civil War, Revolutions, and Regime Change, Jonathan Zartman, editor. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO (forthcoming).
Contributor, Conflict in the Holy Land: An Encyclopedic History from Ancient Times to the Arab-Israeli Conflicts, Robert DiPrizio, editor. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO (forthcoming).
Working Papers
"Accounting for Taste: Preference Formation and Prospect Theory in International Relations" (under review)
“Discounting Democracy: American Perceptions of Interstate Relations”
"Nuclear Proliferation and Policies of Ambiguity: Why the Israel Model Does Not Travel to Other States" with Nathaniel Huston
Presentations
"Discounting Democracy: The Political Psychology of American Threat Perception," American Political Science Association (APSA) Annual Meeting, Boston, MA, 2018
"Loss Frames and Bargaining Dynamics: An Experimental Approach," International Society of Political Psychology (ISPP) Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX, 2018
“Loss Aversion and Territorial Indivisibility: An Experimental Approach," International Society of Political Psychology (ISPP) Annual Meeting, Edinburgh, Scotland, 2017
"Preference Formation and Prospect Theory: The Sources of Loss Aversion,” International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, Baltimore, MD, 2017
“Loss Aversion and Territorial Indivisibility: The Case of the Falkland Islands,” International Studies Association (ISA) Annual Convention, Baltimore, MD, 2017
“Accounting for Tastes: Preference Change and the Origins of Maximalist Territorial Claims,” University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, 2016
“Regional Patterns of Interstate Conflict,” Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA) Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, 2016
“Territorial Gains and Losses: Issue Indivisibility as an Irrational Explanation for War,” American Political Science Association (APSA) Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, 2015
“Online Learning of Languages and Cultures,” Inaugural African and Southeast Asian Languages Education and Resource Network (LEARN) Workshop, Madison, WI, 2012
“’When Sorrows Come…’ A Regional Approach to Yemen’s Diverse Challenges,” The Gulf and the Globe (II), hosted jointly by the Corbett Centre for Maritime Policy Studies (King’s College London) and the US Naval Academy, UK Joint Services Command and Staff College, Shrivenham, England, 2010
Commentary
"Trump's new national security adviser disagrees a lot with... Trump", Washington Post / Monkey Cage, February 22, 2017 (read here)