Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Despite the large number of competitive authoritarian regimes, we know relatively little about how and why individuals would engage in political participation. This paper will explore political participation in competitive authoritarian regimes.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Feminists argue that the public/private distinction (where women are associated with the private sphere of the home and family and men are associated the public sphere of economy and politics) perpetuates the ‘silence’ of international law on women’s rights. Unlike most previous research in this area, this study uses qualitative methods (Ordinary Least Squares multivariate regressions on cross-sectional data) to test the hypothesis that where there is a greater presence of women in the public sphere of a given state, that state will have a higher level of participation in international law that protects women’s rights. The results indicate that the hypothesis can only be partially verified, and that a differentiation may need to be made between various facets of the ‘public sphere.’

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper examines the effect of neoliberal reforms on the political activity of the poor in Mexico by paying attention to how low-income actors experience these reforms and how they adapt their political behavior in response to these changes. While many analysts maintain that free-market and democratic reforms reinforce each other, this paper argues that neoliberal reforms and the new linkages they establish between the state and citizens stifle the voice of the poor and create new foundations for their powerlessness. They do this not through the threat of force or sanctions, but by making mobilization and demand making more difficult, or by channeling discontent into arenas such as local governments or neighborhood councils that have little decision making power. As a result, lower-class citizens channel their activities less and less into state-directed activities such as petitions and protests and more into informal and self-help modes that do not put pressure on state-actors. The net effect is to insulate policy makers from pressures from below, with significant negative consequences for representation, accountability and voice.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper will report on what differentiates re-interviews from non-interviews in the second and third waves of a panel study tracking psychological sequelae of the World Trade Center attacks on residents of the New York Metropolitan area. The first wave of the survey was conducted 6-9 months after the World Trade Center Disaster; the second wave was conducted 6-9 months after that; and the third wave is now being conducted one year later.

In each follow-up wave, the entire base of the initial survey is eligible for participation (N=2755). Wave 2 participation was just over 70 percent, split between those not located and those located but not interviewed. The surveys at each wave include sensitive subject matter involved in the measurement of psychological outcomes and exposures (including stressor experiences and reports of psychological distress).

The analysis will focus on differences between participants and non-participants in the second and third waves, differences between locates and non-locates among the non-participants, and differences between “easy” and “difficult” re-interview respondents. Differences of key interest will be World Trade Center exposure and psychological outcomes as identified in earlier waves (primarily baseline, but also wave 2), in addition to basic demographics. The objective is to identify what factors determine respondents’ likelihood to continue participating in a longitudinal panel study over multiple waves and how these impact design and analysis in surveys of this type.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This project explores how the likelihood and nature of Latino participation is influenced by objective constraints such as citizenship as well as by one's level of acculturation.