Research Interests
Political consequences of economic inequality, economic causes of inequality, race/ethnicity and inequality, comparative economic inequality, presidential speechmaking.
Published Research
McGauvran, Ronald J., and Brandon M. Stewart. 2019. “Structural Inequality and Ethnic Bloc Voting.” Social Sciences Quarterly. Available at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/ssqu.12614
Biglaiser, Glen, and Ronald J. McGauvran. (Forthcoming). “The Effect of Debt Restructurings on Social Spending, Tax Rates, and Income Inequality in the Developing World.” Studies in Comparative International Development
Branton, Regina P., and Ronald J. McGauvran 2018. “Mary Jane Rocks the Vote: The Impact of Climate Context on Support for Cannabis Initiatives.” Politics & Policy (forthcoming)
Eshbaugh-Soha, Matthew, and Ronald J. McGauvran. 2018. “Presidential Leadership, the News Media, and Income Inequality.” Political Research Quarterly (forthcoming).
Biglaiser, Glen and Ronald J McGauvran. 2018. “Political Mandate and Clarity of Responsibility: Economic Policies under Rightist Governments in Latin America.” Latin American Research Review (forthcoming).
McGauvran, Ronald J., and Elizabeth Oldmixon. 2018. “God is a pretty fair guy”: Assessing the Relationship between Religion and Economic Attitudes” In The Evangelical Crackup: Will the Evangelical-Republican Coalition Last? eds. Paul Djupe and Ryan Claassen. Temple University Press. (forthcoming)
McGauvran, Ronald J., and Matthew Eshbaugh-Soha. 2017. “Presidential Speeches amid a More Centralized and Unified Congress” Congress & the Presidency 44(1): 55-76.
Biglaiser, Glen, and Ronald J. McGauvran. (Forthcoming). “The Effect of Debt Restructurings on Social Spending, Tax Rates, and Income Inequality in the Developing World.” Studies in Comparative International Development
Branton, Regina P., and Ronald J. McGauvran 2018. “Mary Jane Rocks the Vote: The Impact of Climate Context on Support for Cannabis Initiatives.” Politics & Policy (forthcoming)
Eshbaugh-Soha, Matthew, and Ronald J. McGauvran. 2018. “Presidential Leadership, the News Media, and Income Inequality.” Political Research Quarterly (forthcoming).
Biglaiser, Glen and Ronald J McGauvran. 2018. “Political Mandate and Clarity of Responsibility: Economic Policies under Rightist Governments in Latin America.” Latin American Research Review (forthcoming).
McGauvran, Ronald J., and Elizabeth Oldmixon. 2018. “God is a pretty fair guy”: Assessing the Relationship between Religion and Economic Attitudes” In The Evangelical Crackup: Will the Evangelical-Republican Coalition Last? eds. Paul Djupe and Ryan Claassen. Temple University Press. (forthcoming)
McGauvran, Ronald J., and Matthew Eshbaugh-Soha. 2017. “Presidential Speeches amid a More Centralized and Unified Congress” Congress & the Presidency 44(1): 55-76.
Research Under Review
- A Competition Theory of Income Inequality, Income Diversity, and Voter Turnout
- “The Effects of Changes in Bond Ratings on Social Spending in the Developing World” (With Glen Biglaiser)
- “IMF Programs on Income Inequality in the Developing World” (with Glen Biglaiser)
- The Effects of Class, Race, and Inequality Context on Political Efficacy (With Regina Branton)
Research in Progress
- Neoliberal Economic Policies and inequality in Latin America
- Contextual Inequality and Ethnic Party Defection in Eastern Europe (With Brandon Stewart)
- Income inequality and Electoral Competition (With Regina Branton)
Dissertation
Title: The Middle Matters: Political Responses to Income Inequality in an American State
Abstract: Recent research on the relationship between rising economic inequality and representative inequality in America have come to a myriad of conclusive findings. However, these findings have yet to be tested using micro-level data in a unified framework. For economic inequality to lead to representative inequality, a few elements need to be satisfied. First, rising economic inequality must lead to participatory inequality, where an income bias to participation is introduced. Second, rising inequality must produce a divergence in political/policy preferences between different groups within an economic or racial/ethnic strata. And finally, the political/policy actions of representatives must represent the preferences of certain groups and not others in relation to their placement in an economic or racial/ethnic strata. Using micro-level voting data from California elections on ballot initiatives from between 1990 and 2014, and aggregating data by census block and tract, this dissertation will for the first time be able to trace the causal mechanism that lead from increasing economic inequality to increasing representative inequality.
Committee: Regina P. Branton (Chair), Phil Paolino, Valarie Martinez-Ebers, Tony Carey
Abstract: Recent research on the relationship between rising economic inequality and representative inequality in America have come to a myriad of conclusive findings. However, these findings have yet to be tested using micro-level data in a unified framework. For economic inequality to lead to representative inequality, a few elements need to be satisfied. First, rising economic inequality must lead to participatory inequality, where an income bias to participation is introduced. Second, rising inequality must produce a divergence in political/policy preferences between different groups within an economic or racial/ethnic strata. And finally, the political/policy actions of representatives must represent the preferences of certain groups and not others in relation to their placement in an economic or racial/ethnic strata. Using micro-level voting data from California elections on ballot initiatives from between 1990 and 2014, and aggregating data by census block and tract, this dissertation will for the first time be able to trace the causal mechanism that lead from increasing economic inequality to increasing representative inequality.
Committee: Regina P. Branton (Chair), Phil Paolino, Valarie Martinez-Ebers, Tony Carey
