Information About Me

I am a first generation scholar that obtained my Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. While at Milwaukee, I studied American politics, comparative politics, and political methodology. I currently hold the position of Associate Professor of Political Science at University of Turku/Turun Yliopisto in Finland.

My research interests include political behavior in the United States and Europe. In particular, my research focuses on underrepresented groups in these regions and political movements that target minority groups. The focus of my dissertation was on the electoral behavior of individuals that cast a vote for populist radical right political parties throughout Europe. I find that institutional structures, individual attitudes, and macro-social forces combine to explain vote choice through the use of a comprehensive empirical model. 

I continue to research European political behavior and have published in journals such as Comparative European Politics, Social Science Quarterly, German Politics, German Politics & Society, Sexuality Research and Social Policy, and Party Politics. The topics I published on have included radical right party voting behavior, radical left party voting behavior, the impact of Chancellor candidates in German politics, attitudes towards social policy and sexual behavior, and attitudes towards democracy. I currently have research under review on these topics.

Additionally, a substantial amount of my current research explores gender and politics. I have published articles in journals such as Politics and Gender, Journal of Women, Politics, and Policy, Political Research Quarterly, Political Behavior, and American Politics Research on gendered politics. The topics I have published on include attitudes towards the #MeToo movement, perceptions of women candidates underrepresentation in elected office, the gender gap in political knowledge, the gender gap in voting for radical right parties, and the gender gap in the use of force in conflicts. A lot of my work in this area demonstrates the ever important role that partisanship plays in the subfield.

I have recently been interested in exploring topics within the field of criminal justice. To that end, I have published a study on law enforcement transparency in Policing: An International Journal. In addition, I have a publication in Crime & Delinquency that explored racial, gender, and partisan gaps in support for policing and correctional reforms. Currently, I have a manuscript under review that investigates rape myth acceptance among university students, as well as the role of political ideology on the views of policing and corrections. 

Another newer research area of interest involves views on sex work. To that end, I have a published article in The Journal of Sex Research that explores how survey question wording impacts views on sex work. I also currently have research under review that explores positive and negative associations with the sex industry, as well as investigates the types of activities that individuals view as encompassing sex work. 

Ph.D., Political Science, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, 2 May 2016
Exam Fields: Comparative and American Politics
Thesis: Voting Radical Right in Europe: A Comprehensive Explanation for Vote Choice
Committee: Dave A. Armstrong (chair), Thomas M. Holbrook, Ora John Reuter, Natasha Borges Sugiyama  

M.A., Political Science, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, May 2012
Thesis: The Populist Right-Populist Radical Right Distinction: Are Their Voters Actually Different?
Committee: Jennifer K. Smith (chair), Dave A. Armstrong, and Erin B. Kaheny  

B.A., Political Science (w/ Law Concentration), University of Wisconsin–Parkside, May 2010
Cum Laude (w/ distinction in the major)
2010 Academic Achievement Award Winner (Political Science and Law)
Thesis: The British Election Game Changer: Labour’s Rise and Tory Decline
Advisor: Jonathan R. Olsen  

Additional Methods Training: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) Summer Program in Quantitative Methods of Social Research, University of Michigan, Summer 2013 Studied: Maximum Likelihood Estimation, Time-Series Analysis, Bayesian Statistics 

Additional Pedagogical Training: Lunds Universitet, Sweden, Division for Higher Education Development, Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Course Completion, Spring 2018