CV
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Contact Information:
Andrew Therriault
Department of Politics
New York University
19 West 4th Street, 2nd Floor
New York, New York 10012
therriault (at) nyu.edu
Education
New York University, Doctor of Philosophy
Major: Politics, Expected Graduation: 2011
New York University, Master of Arts
Major: Politics, Graduated: 2008
New York University, Bachelor of Arts
Major: Politics, Minor: Creative Writing, Graduated: 2003
Research Interests
Campaign strategy, voter behavior, public opinion, political methodology
Dissertation Synopsis
Existing theories of issue emphasis by candidates center around priming strategies, in which candidates emphasize favorable issues in order to increase their salience, but empirical studies have consistently shown that competing candidates often discuss many of the same issues, particularly when those issues are highly salient. I begin with the assumption that these candidates are not being irrational—that they are instead calculating that there is sometimes more to be gained by improving one’s standing on a salient issue than by trying to change the subject. I then develop a number of alternative strategies to priming which are implied by the broader literature on vote choice and public opinion, investigate the extent to which candidates’ choice of strategies is driven by campaign context, and study the impacts these strategies have on voters.
Conference Presentations and Invited Talks
“Issue Advantages in Targeted Campaigns: What a Closer Look at Issue Positions Can Reveal About Campaign Strategy”
Society for Political Methodology Annual Conference, July 2009 (Poster)
“The Cross-Pressured Citizen: Revisiting Social Influence on Voting Behavior” (with Joshua A. Tucker)
Democratic Politics Colloquium, Center for the Study of Democratic Politics, Princeton University, May 2009 (Slides)
“Shaping Campaign Agendas: How Policy Opinions Affect Issue Emphasis in US Senate Campaigns”
Midwest Political Science Association Annual Conference, April 2009 (Slides)
“The Cross-Pressured Citizen: Revisiting Social Influence on Voting Behavior” (with Joshua A. Tucker)
Midwest Political Science Association Annual Conference, April 2009 (Slides)
Working Papers
“The Cross-Pressured Citizen: Revisiting Social Influence on Voting Behavior”
(with Joshua A. Tucker and Ted Brader)
“The Impact of Negative Advertising on Turnout: Explaining Why it is Sometimes Positive, and Sometimes Not”
(with Jonathan Nagler and Jan Leighley)
“Taking Campaign Strategy Online: Issue Emphasis and Candidate Websites, 2002–2008″
“Is Anybody Listening? The Impact of Issue Appeals in Presidential Campaigns”
Other Research Experience
Research Assistant, Prof. Jonathan Nagler, 2007–Present
Research Assistant, Prof. Joshua A. Tucker, 2008–2009
Research Assistant, Prof. Bruce Bueno de Mesquita, 2007–2009
Teaching Interests
Political behavior, electoral campaigns, American politics, research methods
Teaching Experience
Teaching Assistant, American Politics, New York University, 2008–2009
Instructor, International Relations, Excel at Amherst College, 2004
Professional Service
Reviewer, American Politics Research
Grants and Awards
McCracken Fellowship, New York University, 2006–2011
Bradley Fellowship, New York University, 2007–2009
Additional Experience
Production Editor, Elsevier Science & Technology Group, 2005–2006
Production Coordinator, Pearson Education, 2005
Field Organizer, 21st Century Democrats, 2004