Political Science
- Home
- Political Science
- Societal challenges, from climate change to public health crises to advancements in artificial intelligence, have been intrinsically linked with scientific progress for generations. But as politics become more polarized, the role of science in law making has become increasingly contested.
- Imagine a country with deep political divisions, where different groups don't trust each other and violence seems likely. Now, imagine a flood of political images, hateful memes and mocking videos from domestic and foreign sources taking over social media. What is likely to happen next?
- With Canada's federal election approaching, political parties are focused on mobilizing voters. However, they may be overlooking how ethnic communities are already shaping the country's political life.
- A new study co-led by Dr. Eran Amsalem from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Dr. Michael Nicholas Stagnaro of MIT challenges long-held beliefs about the role of information in political discourse: factual knowledge, rather than deepening political divides, can actually help bridge them.
- Politically motivated attacks, carried out by lone individuals lacking direct affiliation with any terrorist group, have become more common in Europe during the last few decades.
- Dr. Ozge Ozduzen and co-authors Dr. Bogdan Lanosev and Dr. Billur Aslan Ozgul have collaborated on a study recently published in European Politics and Society. The paper titled "'They don't care about you, me or anyone else': populist storytelling in anti-lockdown protests" explores populism and populist social movements based on go-along interviews and participant observation during anti-lockdown protests in three cities in the U.K.
- Most people generally are more concerned about the immediate risks of artificial intelligence than they are about a theoretical future in which AI threatens humanity. A new study by the University of Zurich reveals that respondents draw clear distinctions between abstract scenarios and specific tangible problems and particularly take the latter very seriously.
- While all people are innately driven to find meaning in their lives, this subconscious desire pulls some people to conspiracy theories and dangerous belief systems.
- A new analysis of school shootings in the U.S. suggests that most shooters had a social background in which guns were a key leisure item, with attached meanings of bonding and affection, which also translated into easy access to firearms. Anne Nassauer of the University of Erfurt, Germany, presents these findings in PLOS One.
- Female lobbyists are more likely to gain access to meetings with policymakers, regardless of the policymaker's gender, indicating gender is used strategically by interest groups to improve their influence, finds a new UCL led study.
- Snipers in helicopters have shot more than 700 koalas in the Budj Bim National Park in western Victoria in recent weeks. It's believed to be the first time koalas have been culled in this way.
- Recent royal commissions and inquiries into Crown and Star casino groups attracted much media attention. Most of this was focused on money laundering and other illegalities.
- In today's polarized online landscape, fact-checking has become a vital tool for countering misinformation. But for fact-checks to make a difference, people have to actually pay attention to them.
- What happens when politicians post false or toxic messages online? My team and I found evidence that suggests U.S. state legislators can increase or decrease their public visibility by sharing unverified claims or using uncivil language during times of high political tension. This raises questions about how social media platforms shape public opinion and, intentionally or not, reward certain behaviors.
- Large majorities of U.S. adults support the role of the courts and Congress in serving as checks on presidential power, even though the public has less trust in all three branches of the federal government than it does in many other American institutions and professions, according to a survey from the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania.
- Courts around the world are struggling to keep up with growing caseloads, leaving individuals and businesses waiting months—sometimes years—for resolution. But a new study in the journal Manufacturing & Service Operations Management has uncovered a surprisingly simple way to speed up the system that doesn't require hiring more judges.
- Understanding the acceleration of human impacts on the environment is key to addressing the complex planetary and social challenges of the Anthropocene. But even as the inter-relatedness of environmental, political, and social processes becomes clearer, the conditions that produce sustainable outcomes remain little understood.
- In a February 2025 Truth Social post, President Donald Trump declared a "Golden Age in Arts and Culture."
- President Donald Trump and members of his administration have long used allegations of anti-Christian discrimination as a rallying cry for supporters, arguing that policies and laws on issues like school prayer and LGBTQ+ rights threaten Christians' right to express their beliefs.
- Following George Floyd's death at the hands of police in Minneapolis in 2020, the U.S. has undergone a national reckoning over crime prevention and police reform.
Photographer:
