I am a Lecturer in Politics in the Department of Political & Cultural Studies at Swansea University. I study political institutions and elite behavior, with specialization in subnational politics. My research has been published at Legislative Studies Quarterly, Electoral Studies, and State Politics & Policy Quarterly, as well as interdisciplinary research published at the journal of European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and the Journal of East Asian Studies. I currently have an offer to Revise & Resubmit at the British Journal of Political Science.
My primary research interests focus on legislative institutions, exploring in particular the effects of institutions and institutional reforms on the behavior of political elites. My dissertation focuses on the conditions under which sitting lawmakers profit from office. My dissertation finds that electoral constraints, and not institutionally-derived prestige or power, deter income acquisition while in office. My investigation of institutional effects on individual legislative behavior are not constrained to subnational government. I have research under review that explores the role of competence and in-group trait evaluations of members of the U.S. Cabinet. Additionally, my research on the financial gains of members of the U.S. Congress and U.K. Parliament demonstrates that self-enriching behavior influences policymaking outcomes, from legislative effectiveness to support for Prime Minister Teresa May's Brexit deal.
My work outside financial gains continues the pattern of focusing on political elites and how they react to institutional changes. I show that term limits and staffing cuts did not weaken incumbents, and may have even strengthened them. In research under review, I show that conscription rates in the United States in World War 2 was lower in electorally-marginal counties, supplementing the existing literature showing that class influences conscription rates. In a working paper, I demonstrate that publicly-traded firms of UK Government Non-Executive Directors report better market performance than other publicly-traded firms.
My ongoing research agenda explores self-enriching opportunities in twenty-three national and subnational legislatures in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Brazil, Ireland, and New Zealand. I also explore other battlefield consequences of partisanship among political elites in the United Kingdom and United States. Further, I have ongoing interdisciplinary work in criminology, psychology, and public administration that emphasizes the use of mixed methods and advanced econometric analyses in answering substantive questions.
Beyond my research, I am active in developing and teaching modules, graduate supervision, and departmental service. I currently teach modules on Parliamentary Studies, Comparative Politics, and Analysis in the Social Sciences.
My primary research interests focus on legislative institutions, exploring in particular the effects of institutions and institutional reforms on the behavior of political elites. My dissertation focuses on the conditions under which sitting lawmakers profit from office. My dissertation finds that electoral constraints, and not institutionally-derived prestige or power, deter income acquisition while in office. My investigation of institutional effects on individual legislative behavior are not constrained to subnational government. I have research under review that explores the role of competence and in-group trait evaluations of members of the U.S. Cabinet. Additionally, my research on the financial gains of members of the U.S. Congress and U.K. Parliament demonstrates that self-enriching behavior influences policymaking outcomes, from legislative effectiveness to support for Prime Minister Teresa May's Brexit deal.
My work outside financial gains continues the pattern of focusing on political elites and how they react to institutional changes. I show that term limits and staffing cuts did not weaken incumbents, and may have even strengthened them. In research under review, I show that conscription rates in the United States in World War 2 was lower in electorally-marginal counties, supplementing the existing literature showing that class influences conscription rates. In a working paper, I demonstrate that publicly-traded firms of UK Government Non-Executive Directors report better market performance than other publicly-traded firms.
My ongoing research agenda explores self-enriching opportunities in twenty-three national and subnational legislatures in the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Brazil, Ireland, and New Zealand. I also explore other battlefield consequences of partisanship among political elites in the United Kingdom and United States. Further, I have ongoing interdisciplinary work in criminology, psychology, and public administration that emphasizes the use of mixed methods and advanced econometric analyses in answering substantive questions.
Beyond my research, I am active in developing and teaching modules, graduate supervision, and departmental service. I currently teach modules on Parliamentary Studies, Comparative Politics, and Analysis in the Social Sciences.