My overarching research goal is to contribute simultaneously to academic and policy debates, both in my regional area of expertise (East Asia) and beyond.

My main research agenda focuses on public opinion and electoral politics of East Asian democracies (Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan). Research in this area has expanded from the effects of mixed-member electoral systems on voter and legislator behavior to public opinion on coattail voting, satisfaction with democracy, same-sex marriage, and immigration.

Regarding Taiwan, I have conducted extensive research on diplomatic relations, including constructing original cross-national data sets to assess why a country would recognize Taiwan over China as well as Taiwanese public opinion about maintaining formal diplomatic partners.

Additionally, I have published on various aspects of North Korean politics. This has included content analysis of English language news reports from the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), public opinion research in the US and South Korea about North Korea, and analysis of the factors influencing Chinese investment in North Korea.

My research beyond East Asia has included analysis of the “Nigerian” email scam, losers’ consent in Germany and South Africa, political stability in Lesotho, public opinion in Mexico, and the politics of microstates. My thematic interests have also expanded into the intersection of misinformation, fact checking, and free speech.

Taiwan

• All are Not Equal: Taiwanese Public Opinion on Southeast Asian Immigration

• Should I Stay or Should I Go?: Diplomatic Recognition of Taiwan (1950-2016)

• Taiwanese Public Perceptions of Diplomatic Recognition: An Experimental Analysis

• Explaining Support for Same-Sex Marriage: Evidence from Taiwan

• The Influence of Incumbency and Partisanship on Fenno’s Paradox: Evidence From Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan

• Coattails and Mixed Electoral Systems: Evidence from Taiwan’s 2016 Election

• Electoral Paths and Support for Same-Sex Marriage Legislation: Evidence From Taiwan’s Mixed Member System

• Running Out of Time? The Evolution of Taiwan’s Relations in Africa

• Understanding the Rules of the Game: Evidence From Taiwan’s Mixed Legislative System

• The Effects of Election Reform on Legislator Perceptions: The Case of Taiwan

• Status for Sale: Taiwan and the Competition for Diplomatic Recognition

South Korea

• Cost Tolerance and South Korean Public Perceptions of the US Military Presence

• Who is Welcome? South Korean Public Opinion on North Koreans and Other Refugees

• The Ties That Bond? Attitudinal Factors Influencing South Korean Support for Unification and Peaceful Coexistence

• Religion, Contact, and LGBT Acceptance: Survey Evidence from South Korea

• South Korean perceptions of North Korean immigration: evidence from an experimental survey

• Winners, Losers, and the Others: Disaggregating South Korean Satisfaction with Politics

• The Lingering Effects of Losing and Nonvoting on Institutional Trust: An Analysis of South Korea

• Unpacking the Roles of Religion and Partisanship on Support for Same-Sex Marriage: Evidence from South Korea

• Proximity, Contact and Tolerance of Homosexuals in Korea: Evidence from an Experimental Survey

• South Korean Perceptions of Unification: Evidence from an Experimental Study

• Explaining the Success of the People’s Party: An Analysis of South Korea’s 2016 Legislative Elections

• The Impact of Gender and Nomination Paths on Strategic Voting: Experimental Evidence from South Korea

• Religion and Public Perceptions of Gays and Lesbians in South Korea

• Is Duverger’s Law Working in South Korea? An Analysis of District Level Elections 1988–2012

• The Timing of Split-Ticket Voting Decisions in Mixed Systems: Evidence From South Korea

• Institutional Variation and the Effects on District Competition: The Case of South Korea

Japan

• When the Choice is Made Matters: Voting in Japan’s 2012 House of Representatives Election

• District Competition in Japan’s 2014 Election: The Roles of Nominations, Incumbency, and Dual–Listing

North Korea

• Are They Paying Attention? Survey Analysis of South Korean Attention to North Korea

• Casualties and Public Support for Military Conflict with North Korea

• Introducing the Great Successor: North Korean English language news coverage of Kim Jong Un 2010–2011

• Propaganda With Purpose: Uncovering Patterns in North Korean Nuclear Coverage, 1997–2012

• Deciphering North Korea’s Nuclear Rhetoric: An Automated Content Analysis of KCNA News

East Asia

• Partisanship, Polling and Strategic Voting in East Asia: Evidence From an Experimental Web Survey

• Losers Consent or Non–Voter Consent? Satisfaction with Democracy in East Asia

• The Rationales for Chinese Investment in North Korea Under Kim Jong Un

• Why Invest in North Korea? Chinese Foreign Direct Investment in North Korea and Its Implications

• Party Voting Cohesion in Mixed Member Legislative Systems: Evidence from Korea and Taiwan

• Understanding Sino–African Relations: Neocolonialism or a New Era?

• The Electoral Incentives for Legislator Perceptions in Mixed Systems: Integrating Evidence From East Asia

Other

• Does the Public Support Fact Checking Social Media? It Depends Who and How You Ask

• You Can Trust Me: A Multimethod Analysis of the Nigerian Email Scam

• Losers and Nonvoters Consent: Democratic Satisfaction in Germany’s 2009 and 2013 Elections

• Lesotho’s 2015 Legislative Election: Providing or Undermining Stability?

• District Level Competition in Mexico’s Chamber of Deputies: An Embedded Analysis

• Winning Is Not Everything: Public Perceptions of Losers and Non-Voters in South Africa

• Predatory Publishing, Open Access and the Costs to Academia

• Duverger’s Law in Mixed Legislative Systems: The Impact of National Electoral Rules on District Competition

• Identifying the Institutional Effects of Mixed Systems in New Democracies: The Case of Lesotho

• Integrating Microstates into Cross-National Research: An Exploratory Analysis

• Publishing as a Graduate Student: A Quick and (Hopefully) Painless Guide to Establishing Yourself as a Scholar

• Island Microstates and Political Contention: An Exploratory Analysis of Cape Verde and Comoros