RESEARCH & ONGOING WORK

My research interests lie at the intersection of political behaviour, research methods, and comparative politics, specialising in civic education, political socialization, and democratic engagement. In my research, I examine how political attitudes form and evolve, how education can foster democratic resilience, and how authoritarian legacies shape contemporary political behaviour. Through the generation of interdisciplinary datasets and experimental research, I have advanced our understanding of how citizens learn about, engage with, and sustain democracy.

AUTHORITARIAN POLITICS & LEGACIES

Democratic transitioning: The legacy of authoritarian regimes on democratic attitudes

POLITICAL SOCIALIZATION & CIVIC EDUCATION

How do political attitudes form and change over the life course? How can civic education offset weak parental socialization? Political generations differ in redistribution preferences, immigration attitudes, and support for female leadership.

SUPPORT FOR DEMOCRACY AND AUTOCRACY

What drives support for different forms of political regimes? How to measure support for democracy or autocracy?

Book projects on authoritarian legacies and nostalgia

Authoritarian Imprinting: Explaining the Challenges of Democratic Consolidation (with Natasha Lindstead). Book manuscript under contract with Oxford University Press. In progress. [Proposal]

Nostalgia and the threat to democracy (with Natasha Lindstead). Book manuscript under contract with Cambridge University Press, Elements Series in Comparative Political Behavior. In progress.

WORKING PAPERS

Papers on civic education

Mobilizing for Democracy Under Authoritarianism: The Power of Social Media Campaigns (with Aykut Öztürk, Steve Finkel, and Ericka Rascón Ramírez). Under review [Working paper]

Adult Civic Education and Support for Democratic Values: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (with Steven Finkel, Junghyun Lim, Aykut Öztürk, and Daniel Shephard). In progress [Registration][working paper]

Prospect Theory and Reference Points in Civic Education Campaigns: Cross-National Experimental Evidence(with Ericka Rascón Ramírez, Steven Finkel, and Aykut Öztürk). In progress [Registration]

Educating Citizens: The Content and Implementation of Civic Education and Students' Democratic Citizenship Orientations (with Susanne Garritzmann). Draft presented at EPSS 2026.

Prebunking for Democracy: Experimental Evidence on Modes of Civic Reasoning Training (with Florian Foos, Aykut Öztürk, Ericka Rascón Ramírez, and Souleymane Yameogo). Draft presented at EPSS 2026.

Papers on authoritarian legacies

Democracy Learned or Lost? Formative Regime Experiences and Attitudinal Legacies During Backsliding (with Gina Aniano). In progress.

Papers on authoritarian indoctrination and autocratic ruling strategies

Democracy and the Politicization of Education (with Agustina Paglayan and Wooseok Kim). In progress [Working paper]

Rallying'Round the School House: The Politicization of Education in Times of Conflict (with Ksenia Northmore-Ball, Katerina Tertytchnaya, Eugenia Nazrullaeva, and Wooseok Kim). Under review. [Working paper]