Hi, I'm Erin.

I study how trust and risk relate to political attitudes, behavior, and willingness to challenge institutional norms.

My research is supported by the National Science Foundation, National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource Pilot, Rapoport Family Foundation, Institute for Humane Studies, and International Foundation for Electoral Systems, among others.

You can find my recent publications in Scientific Reports, British Journal of Political Science, Behavioural Public Policy, Public Opinion Quarterly, Party Politics, and the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, among others.

Education Publications In Progress Grants and Awards Teaching Proficiencies CV ↗
Education
PhD Candidate, Political Science2021 – present
Colorado State University · Fort Collins, CO
BA, Political Science
Georgia Gwinnett College, Lawrenceville, GA
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Who Considers, Who Owns? Multi-Study Evidence on the Behavioral Process of Cryptocurrency Adoption in the United States2026
Ideological Asymmetries of Trust in Elections and Non-Voting Political Participation2026
Party Politics · with Kyle Saunders
Mindset to Gain? Framing Effects, Need for Chaos, and the Limits of "Burning It All Down"2025
Behavioural Public Policy · with Dominik Stecuła, Matthew Hitt, and Kyle Saunders
Information Processing2025
Distrusting the Process: Electoral Trust, Operational Ideology, and Non-Voting Political Participation in the 2020 American Electorate2024
Public Opinion Quarterly 88(SI): 843–857 · with Kyle Saunders
Objective Numeracy Exacerbates Framing Effects from Decision-Making Under Political Risk2024
Scientific Reports 14(10473) · with Dominik Stecuła, Matthew Hitt, and Kyle Saunders
By Any Memes Necessary: Belief- and Chaos-Driven Motives for Sharing Conspiracy Theories on Social Media2023
Research & Politics 10(3) · with Christina Farhart, Joanne Miller, and Kyle Saunders
Going Green or Making Green? The Effects of Partisanship and Inflation on Environmental Executive Orders, 1945 - 20202023
Can Exceptionalism Withstand Crises? An Evaluation of the Arctic Council’s Response to Climate Change and Russia’s War on Ukraine2022
Global Studies Quarterly 2(3) · with Gabriella Gricius
Who Are the 3 Per Cent? The Connections Among Climate Change Contrarians2021
British Journal of Political Science 52(4): 1503–1522 · with Laura Young
Works in Progress
Who Takes Which Risks? Replicating the Psychometric Structure and Latent Profiles of the Domain-Specific Risk-Taking (DOSPERT) Scale
Large Language Model Responses to Conspiracy Theory Claims
with Kyle Saunders
The Politics of Risk or Reward? Cryptocurrency Preferences in the Era of Trump
with Kyle Saunders
Reassessing the Theory and Measures of Non-Voting Political Participation
with Kyle Saunders
Advocacy or Ideal? Examining Scientists' Communication with Policymakers
with Dominik Stecuła and Elizabeth Suhay
Grants & Awards
National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) Pilot, Supplemental Support$4,571 · 2026
Institute for Humane Studies Fellowship$3,000 · 2026
Mercatus Center Fellowship$1,000 · 2026
CSU, Office of the Vice President for Research Democracy Small Grant Program$7,000 · 2026
National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) Pilot$5,000 · 2025
National Science Foundation (NSF) Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant$24,663 · 2025
Rapoport Family Foundation$14,000 · 2025
International Foundation for Electoral Systems$5,000 · 2025
Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR)$3,800 · 2022
$6,731 in internal grants and awards not listed
Teaching

Instructional Designer // Instructor of Record

  • US Political Parties and Elections (POLS 302) · 2024–26

Instructor of Record

  • Issue Polarization in the US (POLS 495) · 2026
  • American Government and Politics (POLS 101) · 2025–26
  • US Political Parties and Elections (POLS 302) · 2025

Teaching Assistant

  • American Government and Politics (POLS 101) · 2021–24
  • International Relations (POLS 232) · 2022
  • Judicial Politics (POLS 305) · 2022
Service & Peer Review

Service

  • Graduate Representative, Misc. Faculty Search Committees · 2022–25
  • Conference Coordinator, FRAPSA · 2023

Peer Review

  • Humanities & Social Sciences Communications
  • Mass Communication and Society
  • Political Behavior
  • Personality and Individual Differences
  • Politics, Groups, and Identities
  • Political Studies
  • Political Research Quarterly
  • SN Social Sciences
  • The Journal of Politics
Proficiencies
LaTeXPythonRStataSPSS
Curriculum Vitae
Download CV ↗