The attitude of individuals towards prevailing social norms can change over time. When
these changes are not observable, norm abidance can remain high due to social costs. We …

The central puzzle of persuasion is why a receiver would listen to a sender who they know is
trying to change their beliefs or behavior. This article summarizes five approaches to solving …

Decision makers often rely on experts' evaluations to decide on complex proposals.
Proponents want the approval of their proposals and can work to improve their quality. The …

It is hypothesized that Bayesian individuals choose their news media with the goal of
preserving their political identity and that this will have electoral implications. They are also …

We consider the classic veto bargaining model but allow the agenda setter to engage in
persuasion to convince the veto player to approve her proposal. We fully characterize the …

Political attacks are the results of strategic decisions by actors who choose how much to
learn about the issue at hand and whether to politicize it. Why do parties sometimes pay …

Presidents go public to raise issue salience, but doing so risks polarizing lawmakers.
Legislative polarization can manifest in different ways—some harmful and some beneficial …

The number of private sector contractors conducting the work of government far outstrips the
number of federal bureaucrats. Yet, despite the aphorism that “personnel is politics,” …

An autocrat's power depends on gaining support, managing agents, and preventing the
opposition from mobilizing. The language of game-theoretic modeling is designed …

Individuals differ in their propensity to violate social norms. Over time, the propensity of some
individuals to violate these norms may change in response to socioeconomic shocks. When …