Erica De Bruin
Biographic Data
| ID | 315488 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Erica De Bruin |
| GIVEN NAMES | Erica |
| FAMILY NAME | De Bruin |
| SIGNATURE | DE BRUIN E |
| AFFILIATIONS | Hamilton College |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-4168-9898 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 130 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 14 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2018 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
Can you mitigate gender bias in student evaluations of teaching? Evaluating alternative methods of soliciting feedback
Student evaluations of teaching can be unreliable indicators of effective teaching and affected by implicit bias. We conduct a randomized experiment at a selective U.S. liberal arts college in which we vary both the instrument and timing at which we solicit student feedback to assess whether either intervention can mitigate gender disparities in qualitative evaluation comments. External evaluators with expertise in teaching evaluation scored the …
Can student evaluations be made more representative? Testing alternative strategies
Student evaluations are regularly used to assess the quality of faculty teaching. However, low response rates and unrepresentative student samples can bias the conclusions drawn from them. We conduct a randomized experiment at a selective liberal arts college in the United States to test whether student evaluations can be made more representative of the broader student population through changes to the prompt or timing at which feedback is solici…
Out-Competing Rivals: Armed Group Governance and Civilian Attitudes in Colombia
What determines the legitimacy of aspiring rulers? Questions about support of the governed are central to theories of state-building and political order. Millions worldwide live under the influence of competing armed groups, yet we know little about how people in these contexts make comparative assessments of would-be rulers. We theorize how local norms, social networks, and the provision of goods and services influence these comparative judgment…
Power Sharing and Coups d'état in Postconflict Settings: Evidence From Burundi and Guinea-Bissau
In postconflict settings, peace agreements often include power-sharing provisions that integrate formerly warring parties into the state. The aim of such provisions is to prevent conflict from resuming. At the same time, however, they can inadvertently increase the risk of coups d'état. Existing research identifies a correlation between peace agreements and coups, but the causal mechanisms underlying this association remain underexplored. This ar…
Did Covid-19 Change Armed Group Governance? Evidence from a Survey of Local Security Authorities in Colombia
As the Covid-19 pandemic began, initial reports suggested that armed groups would seize the opportunity to expand their control over territory and civilians. However, drawing on an original survey of local security officials responsible for monitoring armed group behaviour in Colombia, we find little evidence of significant shifts in the presence or behaviour of political or criminal groups. Contrary to prevailing expectations, we also find that …
Forum: A Coup At the Capitol? Conceptualizing Coups and Other Antidemocratic Actions
The term “coup” has been used to describe a diverse range of events. Although recent decades have seen the academic study of coups focus on an increasingly narrow type of military intervention in politics, the general public, governments, and international organizations frequently apply the coup label to a broader set of antidemocratic actions. This was dramatically illustrated after the overrunning of the US Capitol Building on January 6, 2021, …
Teaching Undergraduates Research Methods: A “Methods Lab” Approach
This article introduces a “methods lab” approach to teaching undergraduates about different types of research in political science. In this approach, students are given explicit instruction on what a specific research method entails and the opportunity to practice it before conducting their own research. Methods labs can help students craft more creative research designs as well as understand the strengths and potential pitfalls associated with e…
Policing insurgency: Are More Militarized Police More Effective
Is militarized policing an effective way to combat insurgency? This article uses new global data on policing practices to evaluate whether states with militarized police perform better than those without them. The analysis provides no evidence that militarized police are an asset in counterinsurgency. Indeed, states with militarized units within their national or federal-level police are generally less likely to achieve favorable counterinsurgenc…
Militarized Policing in the Middle East and North Africa
This article explains changing patterns in police militarization in the Middle East and North Africa. It presents new data on police forces in nineteen countries in the region, 1946–2020, which demonstrate that police have become more militarized over time – increasingly adopting the weaponry, tactics, and organizational practices of military forces. The authors distinguish between the use of militarized riot squads and tactical units embedded wi…
Mapping coercive institutions: The State Security Forces dataset, 1960-2010
How rulers organize and use their security forces is thought to have important implications for regime survival, repression, and military effectiveness. While a number of studies provide insight into the coercive institutions of individual states, efforts to understand systematic patterns have been hampered by a lack of reliable data on state security forces that can be compared across states and within them over time. This article presents the S…
How to Prevent Coups d'État: Counterbalancing and Regime Survival
How to Prevent Coups D'État: Counterbalancing and Regime Survival
Will there be blood? Explaining violence during coups d'état
Although just under half of all coup d'état attempts involve fatalities, there has been surprisingly little attention to the conditions under which coups turn violent. Existing research emphasizes the incentives coup plotters have to avoid bloodshed but does not explain the conditions under which violence nonetheless occurs. This article develops a theoretical framework that predicts that the extent of violence that occurs during coup attempts wi…
Preventing Coups d’état: How Counterbalancing Works
Although coups remain a pressing concern for rulers across the globe, the mechanisms through which common coup-prevention strategies operate have not been well theorized or rigorously tested. This article analyzes how “counterbalancing” the military with other security forces prevents coups. Using new cross-national time-series data on state security forces along with evidence from sixteen case studies, the article demonstrates that counterbalanc…
Preventing Coups d’état: How Counterbalancing Works
Although coups remain a pressing concern for rulers across the globe, the mechanisms through which common coup-prevention strategies operate have not been well theorized or rigorously tested. This article analyzes how “counterbalancing” the military with other security forces prevents coups. Using new cross-national time-series data on state security forces along with evidence from sixteen case studies, the article demonstrates that counterbalanc…
Mapping coercive institutions: The State Security Forces dataset, 1960-2010
How rulers organize and use their security forces is thought to have important implications for regime survival, repression, and military effectiveness. While a number of studies provide insight into the coercive institutions of individual states, efforts to understand systematic patterns have been hampered by a lack of reliable data on state security forces that can be compared across states and within them over time. This article presents the S…
Will there be blood? Explaining violence during coups d'état
Although just under half of all coup d'état attempts involve fatalities, there has been surprisingly little attention to the conditions under which coups turn violent. Existing research emphasizes the incentives coup plotters have to avoid bloodshed but does not explain the conditions under which violence nonetheless occurs. This article develops a theoretical framework that predicts that the extent of violence that occurs during coup attempts wi…
Forum: A Coup At the Capitol? Conceptualizing Coups and Other Antidemocratic Actions
The term “coup” has been used to describe a diverse range of events. Although recent decades have seen the academic study of coups focus on an increasingly narrow type of military intervention in politics, the general public, governments, and international organizations frequently apply the coup label to a broader set of antidemocratic actions. This was dramatically illustrated after the overrunning of the US Capitol Building on January 6, 2021, …
Power Sharing and Coups d'état in Postconflict Settings: Evidence From Burundi and Guinea-Bissau
In postconflict settings, peace agreements often include power-sharing provisions that integrate formerly warring parties into the state. The aim of such provisions is to prevent conflict from resuming. At the same time, however, they can inadvertently increase the risk of coups d'état. Existing research identifies a correlation between peace agreements and coups, but the causal mechanisms underlying this association remain underexplored. This ar…
Policing insurgency: Are More Militarized Police More Effective
Is militarized policing an effective way to combat insurgency? This article uses new global data on policing practices to evaluate whether states with militarized police perform better than those without them. The analysis provides no evidence that militarized police are an asset in counterinsurgency. Indeed, states with militarized units within their national or federal-level police are generally less likely to achieve favorable counterinsurgenc…
Teaching Undergraduates Research Methods: A “Methods Lab” Approach
This article introduces a “methods lab” approach to teaching undergraduates about different types of research in political science. In this approach, students are given explicit instruction on what a specific research method entails and the opportunity to practice it before conducting their own research. Methods labs can help students craft more creative research designs as well as understand the strengths and potential pitfalls associated with e…
Militarized Policing in the Middle East and North Africa
This article explains changing patterns in police militarization in the Middle East and North Africa. It presents new data on police forces in nineteen countries in the region, 1946–2020, which demonstrate that police have become more militarized over time – increasingly adopting the weaponry, tactics, and organizational practices of military forces. The authors distinguish between the use of militarized riot squads and tactical units embedded wi…
Out-Competing Rivals: Armed Group Governance and Civilian Attitudes in Colombia
What determines the legitimacy of aspiring rulers? Questions about support of the governed are central to theories of state-building and political order. Millions worldwide live under the influence of competing armed groups, yet we know little about how people in these contexts make comparative assessments of would-be rulers. We theorize how local norms, social networks, and the provision of goods and services influence these comparative judgment…
Did Covid-19 Change Armed Group Governance? Evidence from a Survey of Local Security Authorities in Colombia
As the Covid-19 pandemic began, initial reports suggested that armed groups would seize the opportunity to expand their control over territory and civilians. However, drawing on an original survey of local security officials responsible for monitoring armed group behaviour in Colombia, we find little evidence of significant shifts in the presence or behaviour of political or criminal groups. Contrary to prevailing expectations, we also find that …
Preventing Coups d’état: How Counterbalancing Works
Although coups remain a pressing concern for rulers across the globe, the mechanisms through which common coup-prevention strategies operate have not been well theorized or rigorously tested. This article analyzes how “counterbalancing” the military with other security forces prevents coups. Using new cross-national time-series data on state security forces along with evidence from sixteen case studies, the article demonstrates that counterbalanc…
Will there be blood? Explaining violence during coups d'état
Although just under half of all coup d'état attempts involve fatalities, there has been surprisingly little attention to the conditions under which coups turn violent. Existing research emphasizes the incentives coup plotters have to avoid bloodshed but does not explain the conditions under which violence nonetheless occurs. This article develops a theoretical framework that predicts that the extent of violence that occurs during coup attempts wi…
How to Prevent Coups d'État: Counterbalancing and Regime Survival
How to Prevent Coups D'État: Counterbalancing and Regime Survival
Militarized Policing in the Middle East and North Africa
This article explains changing patterns in police militarization in the Middle East and North Africa. It presents new data on police forces in nineteen countries in the region, 1946–2020, which demonstrate that police have become more militarized over time – increasingly adopting the weaponry, tactics, and organizational practices of military forces. The authors distinguish between the use of militarized riot squads and tactical units embedded wi…
Mapping coercive institutions: The State Security Forces dataset, 1960-2010
How rulers organize and use their security forces is thought to have important implications for regime survival, repression, and military effectiveness. While a number of studies provide insight into the coercive institutions of individual states, efforts to understand systematic patterns have been hampered by a lack of reliable data on state security forces that can be compared across states and within them over time. This article presents the S…
Forum: A Coup At the Capitol? Conceptualizing Coups and Other Antidemocratic Actions
The term “coup” has been used to describe a diverse range of events. Although recent decades have seen the academic study of coups focus on an increasingly narrow type of military intervention in politics, the general public, governments, and international organizations frequently apply the coup label to a broader set of antidemocratic actions. This was dramatically illustrated after the overrunning of the US Capitol Building on January 6, 2021, …
Teaching Undergraduates Research Methods: A “Methods Lab” Approach
This article introduces a “methods lab” approach to teaching undergraduates about different types of research in political science. In this approach, students are given explicit instruction on what a specific research method entails and the opportunity to practice it before conducting their own research. Methods labs can help students craft more creative research designs as well as understand the strengths and potential pitfalls associated with e…
Policing insurgency: Are More Militarized Police More Effective
Is militarized policing an effective way to combat insurgency? This article uses new global data on policing practices to evaluate whether states with militarized police perform better than those without them. The analysis provides no evidence that militarized police are an asset in counterinsurgency. Indeed, states with militarized units within their national or federal-level police are generally less likely to achieve favorable counterinsurgenc…
Did Covid-19 Change Armed Group Governance? Evidence from a Survey of Local Security Authorities in Colombia
As the Covid-19 pandemic began, initial reports suggested that armed groups would seize the opportunity to expand their control over territory and civilians. However, drawing on an original survey of local security officials responsible for monitoring armed group behaviour in Colombia, we find little evidence of significant shifts in the presence or behaviour of political or criminal groups. Contrary to prevailing expectations, we also find that …
Power Sharing and Coups d'état in Postconflict Settings: Evidence From Burundi and Guinea-Bissau
In postconflict settings, peace agreements often include power-sharing provisions that integrate formerly warring parties into the state. The aim of such provisions is to prevent conflict from resuming. At the same time, however, they can inadvertently increase the risk of coups d'état. Existing research identifies a correlation between peace agreements and coups, but the causal mechanisms underlying this association remain underexplored. This ar…
Can you mitigate gender bias in student evaluations of teaching? Evaluating alternative methods of soliciting feedback
Student evaluations of teaching can be unreliable indicators of effective teaching and affected by implicit bias. We conduct a randomized experiment at a selective U.S. liberal arts college in which we vary both the instrument and timing at which we solicit student feedback to assess whether either intervention can mitigate gender disparities in qualitative evaluation comments. External evaluators with expertise in teaching evaluation scored the …
Can student evaluations be made more representative? Testing alternative strategies
Student evaluations are regularly used to assess the quality of faculty teaching. However, low response rates and unrepresentative student samples can bias the conclusions drawn from them. We conduct a randomized experiment at a selective liberal arts college in the United States to test whether student evaluations can be made more representative of the broader student population through changes to the prompt or timing at which feedback is solici…
Out-Competing Rivals: Armed Group Governance and Civilian Attitudes in Colombia
What determines the legitimacy of aspiring rulers? Questions about support of the governed are central to theories of state-building and political order. Millions worldwide live under the influence of competing armed groups, yet we know little about how people in these contexts make comparative assessments of would-be rulers. We theorize how local norms, social networks, and the provision of goods and services influence these comparative judgment…
Political science (11 works) · Political Conflict and Governance (10 works) · Politics (8 works) · Sociology (8 works) · Economics (7 works) · Law (7 works) · Political economy (7 works) · Psychology (5 works) · Criminology (4 works) · Development economics (4 works)