Lauren is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at UC Davis. She is teaching a unit on democratic erosion as part of UCD’s introduction to comparative politics course. Lauren studies political behavior in communities affected by violence and coercion. Her book project explores how authoritarian states use emotions to manipulate the perceived risks of pro-democracy political participation. Other ongoing research examines the effects of narco-trafficking violence on preferences over criminal justice policy in Mexico, economic coercion on vote choice in Eastern Europe, and police abuse and crime on economic productivity in the US. She received her B.A. from Stanford and her Ph.D. with distinction from Columbia University. Her research has been published in the Journal of Peace Research and the Annual Review of Political Science.
