Biography

I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Strategy and Policy at the US Naval War College. Last year, I was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Albritton Center for Grand Strategy (CGS) at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A & M University. From 2020 to 2022, I worked at Southern Methodist University where I served as a Visiting Assistant Professor and Colin Powell Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Political Science and the John G. Tower Center for Public Policy and International Affairs.

In my research, I examine why, and under what conditions, leaders initiate conciliation in strategic rivalries. Of the many ways decision-makers can extend olive branches, I am particularly interested in studying their motivations for undertaking what I refer to as bold gestures. These are conciliatory acts or statements in which one state offers a major unilateral concession to its adversary that is unprecedented, irreversible, and noncontingent. Why leaders choose to initiate conciliation in such a risky manner when smaller, less radical avenues exist to engage adversaries is puzzling and has important implications for our understanding of decision-making, diplomatic signaling, and trust building. I argue that the ability of leaders to empathize, or take the perspective of others, explains how they choose to accommodate their rivals. My research has been published in such academic journals as International Security and Security Studies and my commentary featured in such outlets as the National Interest and E-International Relations.

Education

Ph.D  Political Science, University of California Los Angeles M.A.  Political Science, University of California Los Angeles B.A.   Political Science, University of Southern California

Research Interests

International Security, Foreign Policy Decision-Making, Diplomacy/Diplomatic History, Conflict Resolution, Political Psychology, International Relations Theory, the Cold War, and the International Relations of the Middle East

Selected Publications

“Empathy, Risk-Taking, and Concession-Making: Gorbachev’s Bold Proposals at Reykjavik to End the US-Soviet Arms Race,” Security Studies Vol. 32, No. 2 (2023): 306-337. Published online Dec. 2022.

“Sadat and the Road to Jerusalem: Bold Gestures and Risk Acceptance in the Search for Peace,” International Security Vol. 45, No. 1 (Summer 2020): 127-163.

“Consumers and the Case for Labeling Genfoods.” Journal of Research for Consumers Issue13, 2007.

Graduate Advisors

Deborah Larson, Robert Trager, Marc Trachtenberg, and Stanley Wolpert