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APSA Dissertation Workshops

APSA sponsors dissertation workshops on the Wednesday prior to the APSA Annual Meeting. Each full-day workshop includes six PhD candidates who present a dissertation chapter, along with two faculty members who lead the workshop and moderate discussions. 

Interested in co-leading one of these workshops at the APSA Annual Meeting? Co-leaders are provided with honoraria for their work. Stay tuned for more information regarding the 2021 workshops. 

Questions? Contact [email protected].

 
 

Public Administration and Policy


Co-Leaders
 
Description
This virtual dissertation workshop focuses on providing both faculty and peer feedback to doctoral candidates pursuing their Ph.D. or doctorate in public administration and policy or with dissertations on topics in public policy. The topical focuses can span the breadth of the field in both policy or public administration, but potential topics include public management, organizational theory, political economy, policy theory (i.e., punctuated equilibrium, policy diffusion, advocacy theory, multiple streams theory), and policy areas such as but not limited to education, housing, drug, immigration, and environmental/energy policy. Dissertations using both qualitative and quantitative methods or a mixed-methods approach are welcome. The goal of the workshop is to offer candidates in these areas a space to workshop their ideas with faculty active in the field and to begin building an academic network. Doctoral candidates will submit a chapter of their dissertation they would like feedback on before the conference. The workshop will consist of two scheduled roundtable discussions on each chapter with feedback from the faculty leaders and fellow candidates. These sessions will be scheduled based on focus and methodology to allow students to work with the leader that fits their projects best and to work with others who are working in similar fields and with similar methodologies. Using breakout sessions, those in the workshop will also have a chance to group by method or topic area to have more focused sessions. We will use the resources in Zoom for holding both large- and small-group discussions. Candidates will be expected to offer quality feedback to their peers so chapters will be expected in advance to give everyone time to come prepared and create the best possible workshop environment.

2019 APSA Dissertation Workshops

Communication and Collaboration in Congress


Co-Leaders
 
Description
The goal of this workshop is to develop a network of emerging scholars working on issues related to collaboration and communication in legislative studies. By broadening traditional Congress research beyond legislative activity, this workshop opens up new avenues for research that explore alternative measures of lawmaker behavior and novel methodologies. Dissertations on a range of topics are welcome, in particular research that addresses negotiation, lawmakers' strategic communication, and new methods for quantitative analysis. Before the workshop, each student participant will share one draft of a dissertation chapter, and all participants will read each other’s work and prepare feedback. Faculty and students will discuss the drafts and suggest potential ways to improve research design, theory development, and writing style. In addition, the workshop will take time to address general professional development issues. Students will leave the workshop with directed revisions to strengthen both their theoretical and methodological approaches to dissertations and future studies.
 

The Intersection of Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in American Political Behavior


Co-Leaders

Description
Co-sponsored by the Women and Politics Research Section, our workshop will focus on research revolving around the intersection of race, ethnicity and gender in American political behavior. Studies of the intersection of identity in American politics are growing significantly. As a part of this growth, scholars are developing increasingly diverse methodological approaches to explore the intersection of gender and ethno-race in America. Yet different methods yield different information about the intersection of identities and come with different strengths and weaknesses. As researchers that have used a variety of approaches to study race and gender in American politics (including content analysis, experiments, interviews and survey data), we hope to help young scholars build their research and guide them towards thinking about all the different ways these subjects may be explored. Dissertation chapters that explore mass and/or elite behavior in American politics from an intersectional perspective are welcome. The potential topics may include but are not limited to: candidate behavior, protest movements, immigration, mass behavior, voting, and legislative or judicial behavior. The panels will revolve around methodological approaches to the topic, with one panel including primarily quantitative work and the other including qualitative approaches. Common themes to our discussion will include theory development, measurement, and methodological approaches to studying intersectionality in American politics. We will also discuss some of the challenges associated with publishing intersectional research and highlight strategies for overcoming those barriers. The workshop will provide students with constructive feedback from both the leaders and the participants. Through the course of this process, we will provide individual students with guidance as well as create a space for a broader discussion about the state of the literature and avenues for new research. The workshop will require participants to engage in peer review and will be a collaborative space. Students will leave the workshop with directed revisions to strengthen both their theoretical and methodological approaches to dissertations and future studies. Finally, this workshop will create a stronger relationship with their peers and others working in their same field. We hope to use this workshop as a networking and mentoring space as well. 
 

Nationalism and Populism in International Relations

 
Co-Leaders

Description
This workshop will bring together PhD candidates researching on nationalism, national identity, populism, and public opinion in international relations (including both international security and international political economy). Each participant will share a chapter of their dissertation prior to the workshop. All participants will read each other’s work and prepare feedback on how the chapter can be improved. For each presentation, one participant will also be assigned as a primary discussant in order to facilitate more focused discussion. This workshop will offer a valuable opportunity for PhD candidates to get constructive feedback on their dissertation chapter, develop a network of peers, and exchange their views on the direction of future research on these under-explored, yet increasingly important topics in international relations. 

 

2018 APSA Dissertation Workshops

Migration and Citizenship


Co-Leaders
  • Fiona Adamson, Associate Professor, SOAS University of London
  • Willem Maas, Jean Monnet Chair and Associate Professor, York University

Description
This workshop will bring together emerging scholars working on diverse topics related to contemporary citizenship, migration, membership, and belonging. By focusing on multilevel and transnational citizenship we hope to widen the debate beyond the established literature on national-level citizenship regimes in established democracies. Dissertations on a range of approaches to citizenship and diaspora politics are welcome. We especially encourage proposals that are grounded in empirical work and that would allow us to undertake cross-regional comparisons of multilevel and transnational forms of citizenship. Before the workshop each student participant will share one draft of a dissertation chapter, and all participants will read each other's work in advance and prepare feedback. Faculty leaders and students will discuss the drafts and provide detailed comments. Each graduate participant will be expected to offer formal comments on one of the papers, scheduled in advance. The workshop will also provide students with a network of peers in the field and allow for a discussion about the broader fields of migration, citizenship, and diaspora politics. 


Militaries and Security Forces: From Repression to Democratization


Co-Leaders
Description
This workshop will bring together PhD candidates researching military and security forces. It will include two thematic panels. The first will explore the role of paramilitaries, militia, and other irregular security forces in mass protests, civil war, and international conflict. The second will examine how military and security forces influence processes of democratization and democratic consolidation. Dissertations on a range of topics related to these themes are welcome. Each participant in the workshop will share a dissertation chapter prior to the workshop, and present it on one of the two panels. The workshop leaders will provide feedback that suggests concrete ways to improve the drafts and draws connections between the chapters presented on each panel. In addition to providing participants with substantive feedback on their work, the workshop will serve as an opportunity for PhD candidates to develop a network of peers in the field. 

State Politics and Policy


Co-Leaders
Description
Dissertation topics covering any aspect of state politics and policy are welcome.  Before the workshop each student participant will submit one draft of a dissertation chapter, and all participants will read each other's work and prepare feedback.  The workshop will provide constructive feedback in a supportive environment on how the chapters can be improved, both in their theoretical rigor, research design and presentation.  Suggestions for additional analyses and how to best emphasize findings will also be discussed.  Possible topics could include, but are not limited to, state legislatures, governors or other state executives, state judiciaries, direct democracy, state elections, or state public policy.  

 

2017 Dissertation Workshop on Comparative Political Theory

Co-Leaders

Description
This workshop will focus on research in the field of comparative political theory. By broadening the traditional canon of political thought to include global and non-western intellectual traditions, comparative political theory opens up new avenues for research while also raising important methodological questions. Dissertations on a range of topics in comparative political thought are welcome. Before the workshop each student participant will share one draft of a dissertation chapter, and all participants will read each other's work in advance and prepare feedback. Faculty leaders and students will discuss the drafts and provide detailed comments. Each graduate participant will be expected to offer formal comments on one of the papers, scheduled in advance. The workshop will also provide students with a network of peers in the field and allow for a discussion about the state of political theory more broadly. 

2017 Dissertation Workshop on U.S. Congressional Politics

Co-Leaders

  • James Curry, Assistant Professor, University of Utah
  • Danielle Thomsen, Assistant Professor, Syracuse University

Description
The goal of this workshop is to develop a network of emerging scholars working on issues related to U.S. congressional politics. Dissertations on a range of topics are welcome, including legislative institutions and processes, parties, gender and politics, leadership, and more. Before the workshop each student participant will share one draft of a dissertation chapter, and all participants will read each other’s work and prepare feedback. Faculty and students will discuss the drafts and suggest potential ways to improve research design, theory development, and writing style. In addition, the workshop will take time to address general professional development issues. Students will leave the workshop with directed revisions to strengthen both their theoretical and methodological approaches to dissertations and future studies.

2016 Dissertation Workshop on the Intersection of Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in American Political Behavior

Co-Leaders

  • Sarah Allen Gershon, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Georgia State University 
  • Nadia Brown, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science & African American Studies Program, Purdue University
Description
This workshop will focus on research revolving around the intersection of race, ethnicity and gender in American political behavior. Studies of the intersection of identity in American politics are growing significantly. As a part of this growth, scholars are developing increasingly diverse methodological approaches to explore the intersection of gender and ethnorace in America. Yet different methods yield different information about the intersection of identities and come with different strengths and weaknesses. As researchers that have used a variety of approaches to study race and gender in American politics (including content analysis, experiments, interviews and survey data), we hope to help young scholars build their research and guide them towards thinking about all the different ways these subjects may be explored. Dissertation chapters that explore mass and/or elite behavior in American politics from an intersectional perspective are welcome.
 
The panels will revolve around methodological approaches to the topic, with one panel including primarily quantitative work and the other including qualitative approaches. Common themes to our discussion will include theory development, measurement, and methodological approaches to studying intersectionality in American politics. We will also discuss some of the challenges associated with publishing intersectional research and highlight strategies for overcoming those barriers. The workshop will provide students with constructive feedback from both the leaders and the participants. Through the course of this process, we will provide individual students with guidance as well as create a space for a broader discussion about the state of the literature and avenues for new research. Students will leave the workshop with directed revisions to strengthen both their theoretical and methodological approaches to dissertations and future studies.

2016 Dissertation Workshop on Advances in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy

This workshop will develop a network of emerging scholars in science, technology and environmental politics through the discussion of ongoing dissertation projects. Each student participant will provide one draft of a chapter/paper and one research plan for another chapter/paper. Organized around panels addressing behavior and institutions, the faculty and students will discuss the drafts and suggest potential ways to improve their theoretical grounding, research design, and writing style. In addition, the workshop will take time to address such issues as building an effective network of research collaborators, finding the right professional mentors, and efficiently managing time for a successful career post-graduation.


Each graduate student participating in this workshop will be given a $250 stipend from the Science, Technology and Environmental Politics Section.