I study the politics of statebuilding and state development.  Why some states are capable but others are not? I take a elite-focused approach to unpack the microfoundations of statebuilding. My exploration of this big question unfolds across three distinct research projects. 

1. Postwar construction:
Existing theories on state-building emphasize the role of warfare and industrialization.  However, these factors are insufficient to explain the trajectories of state building given the divergent paths to statebuilding. How do leaders reestablish political order and rebuild state apparatuses? In an interrelated series of papers, I highlight the role of political leadership in managing principal-agent relations in state organizations to facilitate postwar state building, and this perspective helps to crystallize the micro-foundations of state building.

2. Elite strategies:
My second major line of research examines the role of elite strategies in building state capacity in early industrialized countries. I explore how political elites build a modern state when the economy was rapidly industrializing. In economically developed states, we take for granted that state’s authority is entrenched. Yet how the modern state came to be, where the political struggle was, and political elites bargained are not well understood.

3. Ideational Foundation of Statehood 
Existing theories on statebuilding mainly examine the formal institutions of statehood. Durable states also have an ideational foundation, that is, the people accept the rule of the state. The third line of my research delves into this puzzle. 

Please feel free to email me for working papers. 

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