My dissertation investigates the choice of writing -- one of the most political decisions among all aspects of language -- and explains the political dynamics and political consequences of such decisions.
To theorize why languages change their scripts and writing systems, I conceptualize the standardization of scripts and writing systems as political institutions and formalize the theory of script adoption as a sequential game between a state and an ethnic group. To test the model’s implications, I built an original dataset documenting script reform occurrences for languages spoken by ethnic groups in Asia and Europe since 1900.
I examine the effect of script choice on political attitudes in three cases: Japan, Taiwan, and Mongolia. The Japan study examines the implications of script variations between Sinitic characters (Kanji) and Japanese syllabaries (Hiragana and Katakana) on Japanese election posters. The Taiwan study studies the choice of script for Taiwanese Hokkien and implications for ethnic identity. The Mongolian study investigates the political implications of reintroducing the Mongol bichig on ethnic and national attitudes.
Gender, Ethnicity, and Intersectionality in Cabinets: Asia and Europe in Comparative Perspective, Cambridge Elements, with Amy Liu, Roman Hlatky, Keith Padraic Chew, Eoin Power, Sam Selsky, and Betty Compton.
"Languages and Linkages: Explaining Diaspora Attitudes towards the Ancestral Homeland", accepted for Journal of Race, Ethnicity, and Politics, with Amy Liu and Richard Turcsanyi.
"The framing effects of COVID-19 on ethnic intolerance: evidence from Romania." East European Politics 38, no. 4 (2022): 617-640. with Amy Liu and Eoin Power.
"Computational social science for nonprofit studies: Developing a toolbox and knowledge base for the field." VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations (2021): 1-12. with Ji Ma, Islam Akef Ebeid, Arjen de Wit, Yongzheng Yang, René Bekkers, and Pamala Wiepking.
"Attitudinal Effects of Bilingual Ballot Designs: Evidence from Three Survey Experiments", with Amy Liu and Sam Selsky. (R&R-ed)
"Three Approaches for Surveying Hard-to-Reach Communities: Evidence from the English-Limited Speakers among the Asian Americans", with Amy Liu et al.
"Post-Covid healthcare in the PRC", 2022, Asia Society Australia.
"Why China’s Economic Reforms Often Backslide", 2019, The Diplomat.
"Gaokao: reform and reality clash", 2019, China Policy.
"Making commercial R&D a state priority", 2018, China Policy.
"Trials in Pharmaceutical Innovation", 2017, EUROBiz.