Austin C Doctor
Biographic Data
| ID | 1494136 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Austin C Doctor |
| GIVEN NAMES | Austin C |
| FAMILY NAME | Doctor |
| SIGNATURE | DOCTOR A C |
| AFFILIATIONS | Eastern Kentucky University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-1397-0092 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 78 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 14 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2017 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
The Mobility of Terror: Examining the Decision to Travel or Remain Home in U.S. Isis Cases from 2014–2025
Everything, Everywhere, All at Once: Looking at the Current Milieu Through Rapoport’s Four Waves Theory of Modern Terrorism
Sentencing terrorist leaders and their followers: Evidence from Islamic State defendants in U.S. Federal courts, 2014–2024
Hundreds of leaders and followers of violent extremist organisations have been prosecuted and sentenced in U.S. federal courts. But case outcomes vary widely. In this study, we argue that leaders may receive more severe sentences than followers through three unique, non-compacting mechanisms: proportional accountability, headhunting, and/or deterrence. Evidence comes from a mixed-method study, based on original data collected from court documents…
Older and Wiser: How Terrorist Leaders’ Tenure Influences Tactical Decisions
Militant Leadership and Terrorism in Armed Conflict
The lethality and the frequency of terrorist attacks conducted by militant organizations vary considerably. Some militants perpetrate extreme and systemic levels of terrorist violence, some only do so occasionally, and others never conduct terror operations. To predict group-level differences in this outcome, we draw on conceptual frameworks in the political science and psychology fields to argue that prior military experience shapes leaders’ wil…
Foreign Fighters, Rebel Command Structure, and Civilian Targeting in Civil War
Recent studies find that the presence of foreign fighters in a rebel organization may increase levels of anti-civilian violence in civil war. But why? Evidence from some cases indicates that foreign fighters may be used intentionally by local rebel commanders to carry out abusive operations against noncombatants. Other cases, however, suggest that foreign fighters possess greater capacity for independent agency in war, stepping outside the chain …
The Coercive Logic of Militant Drone Use
While unmanned aerial systems can serve as a force multiplier for militants, these systems do not embody a transformation in modern insurgent warfare or enable militants to engage regularly in strategic coercion. Instead, drone use is consistent with a militant group's relative capabilities and broader strategic objectives. Consequently, these groups are likely to employ drones primarily for theater and tactical military purposes
Rebel Leadership and the Specialisation of Rebel Operations
Rebels groups adopt different organisational structures, emerging in various shapes and sizes. Some rebel groups construct distinct military and political wings, delegating their military and political operations to specialised units. While recent studies have made great strides towards understanding militant groups’ activities on and off the battlefield, the literature has been less attentive to the root causes of the structural arrangements whi…
Rebel Fragmentation and the Recruitment of Child Soldiers
The recruitment and use of children in armed conflict remains a prevalent feature of modern civil war. But which conflict actors are more likely to recruit children? We argue that the process by which rebel groups form shapes their recruitment strategies. Specifically, we contend that rebels that form as splinter factions from the ranks of pre-existing rebel organizations are more likely to recruit child soldiers than other rebel groups. Splinter…
Foreign Fighters and Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
Do foreign fighters increase the prevalence of rebel-inflicted sexual violence? Evidence from recent armed conflicts indicates that this may be the case. However, little is known regarding the generalizability and nature of this relationship. This article argues that foreign fighters present local insurgencies with both strategic benefits—i.e., a reduced dependency on local civilians for material support—and organizational challenges—i.e., threat…
Conflict-related Sexual Violence and Rebel Group Fragmentation
To what extent does sexual violence influence rebel group fragmentation? A substantial body of research explores wartime rape as a cohesion-building mechanism following forced recruitment. However, the relationship between sexual violence and broader organizational structural integrity has not been systematically tested. Our study on the effects of sexual violence on rebel group fragmentation provides this test. We argue that sexual violence incr…
Risky Business: Foreign Direct Investment and the Economic Consequences of Electoral Violence
While the social and political consequences of electoral violence are widely discussed in the literature, less is known about the economic repercussions of electoral violence. Our study investigates this dynamic, asking how episodes of electoral violence affect existing levels of foreign direct investment. We argue that, when managing their investments in foreign markets, multinational firms weigh the expected gains of the investment with the pro…
A Motion of No Confidence: Leadership and Rebel Fragmentation
Why do rebel organizations splinter into competing factions during civil war? To explain this outcome, I leverage variation in rebel leadership. I argue that rebel leaders draw on their pre-war experiences—i.e., their military and political experiences—to manage their organizations during conflict. These experiences bear unique patterns of rebel management and, thus, corresponding risks of fragmentation. Empirical evidence comes from a two-stage …
Immigration Politics and Partisan Realignment: California, Texas, and the 1994 Election
This article demonstrates how the party identification of various demographic groups in California and Texas changed in response to the gubernatorial campaigns of Pete Wilson and George W. Bush. Using aggregated time series of Field Poll, Texas Poll, and Gallup data, difference-in-differences results show that Wilson's embrace of Proposition 187 was followed by significant Hispanic movement toward the Democratic Party in California. Time series a…
Conflict-related Sexual Violence and Rebel Group Fragmentation
To what extent does sexual violence influence rebel group fragmentation? A substantial body of research explores wartime rape as a cohesion-building mechanism following forced recruitment. However, the relationship between sexual violence and broader organizational structural integrity has not been systematically tested. Our study on the effects of sexual violence on rebel group fragmentation provides this test. We argue that sexual violence incr…
Foreign Fighters and Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
Do foreign fighters increase the prevalence of rebel-inflicted sexual violence? Evidence from recent armed conflicts indicates that this may be the case. However, little is known regarding the generalizability and nature of this relationship. This article argues that foreign fighters present local insurgencies with both strategic benefits—i.e., a reduced dependency on local civilians for material support—and organizational challenges—i.e., threat…
Rebel Fragmentation and the Recruitment of Child Soldiers
The recruitment and use of children in armed conflict remains a prevalent feature of modern civil war. But which conflict actors are more likely to recruit children? We argue that the process by which rebel groups form shapes their recruitment strategies. Specifically, we contend that rebels that form as splinter factions from the ranks of pre-existing rebel organizations are more likely to recruit child soldiers than other rebel groups. Splinter…
A Motion of No Confidence: Leadership and Rebel Fragmentation
Why do rebel organizations splinter into competing factions during civil war? To explain this outcome, I leverage variation in rebel leadership. I argue that rebel leaders draw on their pre-war experiences—i.e., their military and political experiences—to manage their organizations during conflict. These experiences bear unique patterns of rebel management and, thus, corresponding risks of fragmentation. Empirical evidence comes from a two-stage …
Immigration Politics and Partisan Realignment: California, Texas, and the 1994 Election
This article demonstrates how the party identification of various demographic groups in California and Texas changed in response to the gubernatorial campaigns of Pete Wilson and George W. Bush. Using aggregated time series of Field Poll, Texas Poll, and Gallup data, difference-in-differences results show that Wilson's embrace of Proposition 187 was followed by significant Hispanic movement toward the Democratic Party in California. Time series a…
Rebel Leadership and the Specialisation of Rebel Operations
Rebels groups adopt different organisational structures, emerging in various shapes and sizes. Some rebel groups construct distinct military and political wings, delegating their military and political operations to specialised units. While recent studies have made great strides towards understanding militant groups’ activities on and off the battlefield, the literature has been less attentive to the root causes of the structural arrangements whi…
Foreign Fighters, Rebel Command Structure, and Civilian Targeting in Civil War
Recent studies find that the presence of foreign fighters in a rebel organization may increase levels of anti-civilian violence in civil war. But why? Evidence from some cases indicates that foreign fighters may be used intentionally by local rebel commanders to carry out abusive operations against noncombatants. Other cases, however, suggest that foreign fighters possess greater capacity for independent agency in war, stepping outside the chain …
Militant Leadership and Terrorism in Armed Conflict
The lethality and the frequency of terrorist attacks conducted by militant organizations vary considerably. Some militants perpetrate extreme and systemic levels of terrorist violence, some only do so occasionally, and others never conduct terror operations. To predict group-level differences in this outcome, we draw on conceptual frameworks in the political science and psychology fields to argue that prior military experience shapes leaders’ wil…
Immigration Politics and Partisan Realignment: California, Texas, and the 1994 Election
This article demonstrates how the party identification of various demographic groups in California and Texas changed in response to the gubernatorial campaigns of Pete Wilson and George W. Bush. Using aggregated time series of Field Poll, Texas Poll, and Gallup data, difference-in-differences results show that Wilson's embrace of Proposition 187 was followed by significant Hispanic movement toward the Democratic Party in California. Time series a…
Risky Business: Foreign Direct Investment and the Economic Consequences of Electoral Violence
While the social and political consequences of electoral violence are widely discussed in the literature, less is known about the economic repercussions of electoral violence. Our study investigates this dynamic, asking how episodes of electoral violence affect existing levels of foreign direct investment. We argue that, when managing their investments in foreign markets, multinational firms weigh the expected gains of the investment with the pro…
A Motion of No Confidence: Leadership and Rebel Fragmentation
Why do rebel organizations splinter into competing factions during civil war? To explain this outcome, I leverage variation in rebel leadership. I argue that rebel leaders draw on their pre-war experiences—i.e., their military and political experiences—to manage their organizations during conflict. These experiences bear unique patterns of rebel management and, thus, corresponding risks of fragmentation. Empirical evidence comes from a two-stage …
Conflict-related Sexual Violence and Rebel Group Fragmentation
To what extent does sexual violence influence rebel group fragmentation? A substantial body of research explores wartime rape as a cohesion-building mechanism following forced recruitment. However, the relationship between sexual violence and broader organizational structural integrity has not been systematically tested. Our study on the effects of sexual violence on rebel group fragmentation provides this test. We argue that sexual violence incr…
The Coercive Logic of Militant Drone Use
While unmanned aerial systems can serve as a force multiplier for militants, these systems do not embody a transformation in modern insurgent warfare or enable militants to engage regularly in strategic coercion. Instead, drone use is consistent with a militant group's relative capabilities and broader strategic objectives. Consequently, these groups are likely to employ drones primarily for theater and tactical military purposes
Rebel Leadership and the Specialisation of Rebel Operations
Rebels groups adopt different organisational structures, emerging in various shapes and sizes. Some rebel groups construct distinct military and political wings, delegating their military and political operations to specialised units. While recent studies have made great strides towards understanding militant groups’ activities on and off the battlefield, the literature has been less attentive to the root causes of the structural arrangements whi…
Rebel Fragmentation and the Recruitment of Child Soldiers
The recruitment and use of children in armed conflict remains a prevalent feature of modern civil war. But which conflict actors are more likely to recruit children? We argue that the process by which rebel groups form shapes their recruitment strategies. Specifically, we contend that rebels that form as splinter factions from the ranks of pre-existing rebel organizations are more likely to recruit child soldiers than other rebel groups. Splinter…
Foreign Fighters and Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
Do foreign fighters increase the prevalence of rebel-inflicted sexual violence? Evidence from recent armed conflicts indicates that this may be the case. However, little is known regarding the generalizability and nature of this relationship. This article argues that foreign fighters present local insurgencies with both strategic benefits—i.e., a reduced dependency on local civilians for material support—and organizational challenges—i.e., threat…
Foreign Fighters, Rebel Command Structure, and Civilian Targeting in Civil War
Recent studies find that the presence of foreign fighters in a rebel organization may increase levels of anti-civilian violence in civil war. But why? Evidence from some cases indicates that foreign fighters may be used intentionally by local rebel commanders to carry out abusive operations against noncombatants. Other cases, however, suggest that foreign fighters possess greater capacity for independent agency in war, stepping outside the chain …
Militant Leadership and Terrorism in Armed Conflict
The lethality and the frequency of terrorist attacks conducted by militant organizations vary considerably. Some militants perpetrate extreme and systemic levels of terrorist violence, some only do so occasionally, and others never conduct terror operations. To predict group-level differences in this outcome, we draw on conceptual frameworks in the political science and psychology fields to argue that prior military experience shapes leaders’ wil…
Sentencing terrorist leaders and their followers: Evidence from Islamic State defendants in U.S. Federal courts, 2014–2024
Hundreds of leaders and followers of violent extremist organisations have been prosecuted and sentenced in U.S. federal courts. But case outcomes vary widely. In this study, we argue that leaders may receive more severe sentences than followers through three unique, non-compacting mechanisms: proportional accountability, headhunting, and/or deterrence. Evidence comes from a mixed-method study, based on original data collected from court documents…
Older and Wiser: How Terrorist Leaders’ Tenure Influences Tactical Decisions
The Mobility of Terror: Examining the Decision to Travel or Remain Home in U.S. Isis Cases from 2014–2025
Everything, Everywhere, All at Once: Looking at the Current Milieu Through Rapoport’s Four Waves Theory of Modern Terrorism
Political science (11 works) · Politics (9 works) · Law (7 works) · Sociology (6 works) · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence (6 works) · Criminology (5 works) · Law (5 works) · Political Conflict and Governance (4 works) · Political economy (4 works) · Spanish Civil War (4 works)