What does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8
Research
I am a comparativist with a regional focus of East Asia and Western Europe. My primary research interests lie in regime transition, state-building, development, and authoritarian politics. This research agenda has been driven by three broad puzzles: What are the origins of democracy and dictatorship? What drives the formation of modern states, their success and failure? What explains successful development and the lack thereof?
My dissertation, "Democratization in the Late-Developing World," examines the systemic divergence between late- and early-developing countries in their pathways to democracy.
My second project, "'Settled' and 'Unsettled' Paths: From Traditional Monarchy to Modern Regimes," explores how the sequencing of state centralization and the development of executive constraints in Europe and Asia shapes states' transition away from monarchy, which, in turn, determines their immediately chosen regime type.
My third project, "War and Regime Formation," explores how and why, while wars make states, different types of wars make different types of regimes.
Check out my latest publication which explores why late-development has a strong linkage with authoritarianism: Why Late-Development Breeds Authoritarianism. 2024. E-International Relations July 5.