Research

I am a problem-driven researcher with a broad methodological toolkit. My published and ongoing work uses in-depth interviewing, participant observation, process tracing, experiments, and large-N analysis of survey data.

To date, my research has clustered around four themes:

• vigilantism, crime, and politics

• the political consequences of conflict and violence

• rights and discrimination

• the rise of illiberal leaders under democracy

I am currently developing a new project on pockets of impunity in societies with strong rule of law, and in the future I also hope to study transnational networks of repression.

Peer-Reviewed Publications

Bateson, Regina. 2023. “Perceptions of Pandemic Resume Gaps: Survey Experimental Evidence from the United States.” PLoS ONE 18(3): e0281449.

Bateson, Regina and Michael Weintraub. 2022. “The 2016 Election and America’s Standing Abroad: Quasi-Experimental Evidence of a Trump Effect.” The Journal of Politics 84(4): 2300-2304.

Bateson, Regina. 2022. “Voting for a Killer: Efraín Ríos Montt’s Return to Politics in Democratic Guatemala.” Comparative Politics 54(2): 203-228.

Bateson, Regina. 2021. “The Politics of Vigilantism.” Comparative Political Studies 54(6): 923-955.

Bateson, Regina. 2020. “Strategic Discrimination.” Perspectives on Politics 18(4): 1068-1087.

• Full text available for free download here.

• Honorable mention for the 2019 Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics.

• See related columns and coverage in Ms. Magazine, Forbes, Politico, The Monkey Cage @ Washington Post, Nautilus, The Conversation (US), The Conversation (Canada), and Men Yell at Me by Lyz Lenz.

• Replication files available here.

Bateson, Regina. 2017. “The Socialization of Civilians and Militia Members: Evidence from Guatemala.” Journal of Peace Research 54(5): 634-647.

Bateson, Regina. 2012. “Crime Victimization and Political Participation.” American Political Science Review 106(3): 570-587.

• Awarded the 2013 Heinz Eulau Award for the best article published in the APSR in the previous year.

• Replication instructions and do-files are available here, here, and here.

Working papers & research in progress

“Finding Meaning in Politics: When Victims Become Activists.” Under review.

• Honorable Mention for the 2023 Kendra Koivu Paper Award from APSA’s Qualitative and Multi-Method Research Section.

“State Actors and the Ethics of Fieldwork in Conflict Settings.” (with Christine Cheng)

“When the Search for Truth Spreads Lies: Polarization, Misinformation, and Transitional Justice in Guatemala.” (with Joséphine Lechartre)

“Human Rights and Criminals’ Rights.”

Vigilantism, Power, and Politics: Contention and Punishment in Guatemala and Beyond (book manuscript)

• See related column in The Monkey Cage @ The Washington Post.