Matthew Ward

Dr. Matthew Ward is an assistant professor of the department of politics and global citizenship where he teaches courses in comparative politics. The courses include the politics of the Middle East, democracy and democratic erosion, extremism and radicalization, and research design and methods.

Ward maintains an active research agenda, which is broadly focused on anti-democratic forces and the threats they pose to democracy. Specifically, he investigates the relationships between threat perception and radicalization, political violence and declining support for democratic institutions and norms. Using survey experiments, these problems are investigated through the lenses of intergroup relations and identity politics.

Prior to joining BW in the fall of 2022, he was a visiting assistant professor of world politics at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He earned his master’s and doctoral degrees in comparative politics at the University of Houston, and his bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan.

Ward is also trained in advanced statistical methods, experiments and survey research design. He is fluent in Arabic and French.

Professional Memberships

• American Political Science Association (APSA)
• Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA)
• International Society of Political Psychology (ISPP)

Publications

"Trust in Public Policy Algorithms" (with Ryan Kennedy and Phil Waggoner), Journal of Politics

"The Impact of Racial Representation on Judicial Legitimacy-White Reactions to Latinos on the Bench" (with Susan Achury, Scott Hofer, and Jason Casellas), Political Research Quarterly

"The Impact of Input Rules and Ballot Options on Voting Error: An Experimental Analysis," Politics and Governance

"Explaining Civilian Attacks: Terrorist Networks, Principal-Agent Problems and Target Selection" (with Ryan Kennedy and Max Abrahms), Perspectives on Terrorism