Research Interests
IR and ComparativeMy research interests fall in the fields of International Relations and Comparative Politics. While substantive subjects that interest me are broad, my main research concerns the impact of institutions particularly in studies of international political economy, including causes and effects of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), domestic and international commitment institutions and their interactions, institutional performances in autocracy, and quantitative methodology. Finally, I also concern the role of institutions on the international con ict front, focusing on the logic of costly bargaining. I am currently interested in understanding the mechanisms of credible threats, precisely examining the conditions under which audience costs arguments can (or cannot) function. |
Research Links
Dissertation Project
My dissertation project examines the causes of FDI inflows in autocratic countries, attempting to answer the puzzle “Why do some autocratic countries attract more FDI inflows than others?” Given the credible commitment issue that FDI entails, institutions to protect property rights and enforce contracts are argued to be central mechanisms for attracting FDI inflows. This line of reasoning leads to the stylized conclusion that democracy has more advantages than autocracy in attracting FDI. However, we observe autocratic countries, such as China and Singapore, attracting huge amounts of FDI. This generates a puzzle. I focus on the role of domestic and international commitment institutions and how they affect FDI inflows in autocratic countries. I argue that autocratic regimes can attract FDI inflows by developing domestic commitment institutions particularly when they have long time horizons, and the credibility of the institutions is strengthened by political constraint institutions such as autocratic legislatures and parties. I also contend that autocratic countries benefit by joining international commitment institutions such as Bilateral Investment Treaties, and the effects of those international institutions on FDI inflows are positively modified by the strength of the domestic commitment institutions.
Working Papers & Conference Presentations
Please refer to CV