Christopher Johnston | Scholars@Duke

Christopher Johnston
Associate Professor of Political Science

Professor Johnston teaches courses in public opinion, political behavior, and political methodology, with an emphasis on the application of psychological theory and methods to mass politics. His teaching and research examine the motivational underpinnings of political judgment and decision making. His research appears in a wide range of journals in political science, and he is co-author of The Ambivalent Partisan: How Critical Loyalty Promotes Democracy (2012, Oxford University Press), which won book of the year in mass politics from the International Society of Political Psychology, and book of the year in political psychology from the American Political Science Association. Professor Johnston is a member of the editorial board for Advances in Political Psychology.

Current Appointments & Affiliations

Associate Professor of Political Science, Political Science, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2018
Director of Graduate Studies of the Department of Poitical Science, Political Science, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2020

Contact Information

294J Gross Hall, Durham, NC 27708
Box 90204, Durham, NC 27708
christopher.johnston@duke.edu (919) 660-4300
My personal website

Background
Education, Training, & Certifications
- Ph.D., State University of New York, Stony Brook 2011
Previous Appointments & Affiliations
- Assistant Professor of Political Science, Political Science, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2011 - 2018
Recognition
In the News
- MAR 9, 2016 The Washington Post
  
  Christopher Johnston, co-author: Here's why Trump's supporters tolerate his 'liberal' economic positions
- JAN 5, 2015 he New York Times
  
  Commentary: The paradox of the free-market liberal
- AUG 21, 2014 The Economist
  
  Economists and public opinion: Economics for the masses
- AUG 19, 2013 New York Times
  
  Thriving in Cape Cod’s waters, gray seals draw fans and foes
- JUL 23, 2013 San Francisco Chronicle, AP
  
  App developed to help protect Hawaii's dolphins
- JUN 12, 2013 Cape Cod Times
  
  David Johnston comments: Seal tagging will be first on East Coast
Awards & Honors
Expertise
Global Scholarship
- Expertise
  - United States of America (Country)
Research
External Relationships
- Statistical Horizons
Publications & Artistic Works
Selected Publications
- Books
  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. Curbing the Court Why the Public Constrains Judicial Independence. Cambridge University Press, 2020.
  - Johnston, C. D., H. G. Lavine, and C. M. Federico. Open versus Closed: Personality, identity, and the politics of redistribution, 2017.
  - Lavine, H. G., C. D. Johnston, and M. R. Steenbergen. The Ambivalent Partisan: How Critical Loyalty Promotes Democracy, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199772759.001.0001.
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- Academic Articles
  - Hjermitslev, I. B., and C. D. Johnston. “Mixed evidence for a relationship of cognitive fatigue to political engagement (Accepted).” Electoral Studies 83 (June 1, 2023). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2023.102621.
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  - Hassell, H. J. G., C. D. Johnston, J. Khan, and E. Cook. “The nature and impact of emotional content in congressional candidate emails to supporters.” Electoral Studies 79 (October 1, 2022). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2022.102501.
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  - Johnston, Christopher D., and Gabriel J. Madson. “Negativity bias, personality and political ideology.” Nature Human Behaviour 6, no. 5 (May 2022): 666–76. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01327-5.
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  - Guay, B., and C. D. Johnston. “Ideological Asymmetries and the Determinants of Politically Motivated Reasoning.” American Journal of Political Science 66, no. 2 (April 1, 2022): 285–301. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajps.12624.
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  - Ollerenshaw, T., and C. D. Johnston. “The Conditional Relationship of Psychological Needs to Ideology.” Public Opinion Quarterly 86, no. 2 (January 1, 2022): 369–80. https://doi.org/10.1093/poq/nfac004.
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  - Johnston, C. D., and T. Ollerenshaw. “How different are cultural and economic ideology?” Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences 34 (August 1, 2020): 94–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cobeha.2020.01.008.
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  - Johnston, C. D., B. J. Newman, and Y. R. Velez. “Erratum: Ethnic change, personality, and polarization over immigration in the American public (Public Opinion Quarterly (2020) DOI: 10.1093/poq/nfv022).” Public Opinion Quarterly 84, no. 1 (March 1, 2020): 182–87. https://doi.org/10.1093/poq/nfaa003.
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  - Johnston, C. D. “Authoritarianism, Affective Polarization, and Economic Ideology.” Political Psychology 39 (February 1, 2018): 219–38. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12483.
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  - “Erratum.” American Journal of Political Science 60, no. 3 (July 2016): 805–6. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajps.12254.
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  - Johnston, C. D., M. Mak, and A. H. Sidman. “On the Measurement of Judicial Ideology.” Justice System Journal 37, no. 2 (April 2, 2016): 169–88. https://doi.org/10.1080/0098261X.2015.1084249.
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  - Johnston, C. D., and A. O. Ballard. “Economists and public opinion: Expert consensus and economic policy judgments.” Journal of Politics 78, no. 2 (April 1, 2016): 443–56. https://doi.org/10.1086/684629.
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  - Johnston, C. D., and B. J. Newman. “Economic Inequality and U.S. Public Policy Mood Across Space and Time.” American Politics Research 44, no. 1 (January 1, 2016): 164–91. https://doi.org/10.1177/1532673X15588361.
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  - Johnston, C. D., H. Lavine, and B. Woodson. “Emotion and Political Judgment: Expectancy Violation and Affective Intelligence.” Political Research Quarterly 68, no. 3 (September 13, 2015): 474–92. https://doi.org/10.1177/1065912915593644.
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  - Bartels, B. L., C. D. Johnston, and A. Mark. “Lawyers' Perceptions of the U.S. Supreme Court: Is the Court a "Political" Institution?” Law and Society Review 49, no. 3 (September 1, 2015): 761–94. https://doi.org/10.1111/lasr.12154.
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  - Johnston, Christopher D. “Competing Motives in the Partisan Mind: How Loyalty and Responsiveness Shape Party Identification and Democracy.” Political Science Quarterly 129, no. 3 (September 1, 2014): 547–48. https://doi.org/10.1002/polq.12231.
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  - Federico, Christopher M., Christopher D. Johnston, and Howard G. Lavine. “Context, engagement, and the (multiple) functions of negativity bias.” The Behavioral and Brain Sciences 37, no. 3 (June 2014): 311–12. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0140525x13002550.
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  - Feldman, S., and C. Johnston. “Understanding the determinants of political ideology: Implications of structural complexity.” Political Psychology 35, no. 3 (January 1, 2014): 337–58. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12055.
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  - Johnston, Christopher D., D Sunshine Hillygus, and Brandon L. Bartels. “Ideology, the Affordable Care Act Ruling, and Supreme Court Legitimacy.” Public Opinion Quarterly 78, no. 4 (2014): 963–73. https://doi.org/10.1093/poq/nfu036.
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  - Johnston, C. D. “Dispositional sources of economic protectionism.” Public Opinion Quarterly 77, no. 2 (June 1, 2013): 574–85. https://doi.org/10.1093/poq/nft004.
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  - Bartels, B. L., and C. D. Johnston. “On the Ideological Foundations of Supreme Court Legitimacy in the American Public.” American Journal of Political Science 57, no. 1 (January 1, 2013): 184–99. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-5907.2012.00616.x.
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  - Johnston, C. D., and J. Wronski. “Personality Dispositions and Political Preferences across Hard and Easy Issues (Accepted).” Political Psychology, 2013. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12068.
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  - Newman, B. J., C. D. Johnston, A. A. Strickland, and J. Citrin. “Immigration Crackdown in the American Workplace: Explaining Variation in E-Verify Policy Adoption Across the U.S. States.” State Politics and Policy Quarterly 12, no. 2 (June 1, 2012): 160–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/1532440012442910.
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  - Bartels, B. L., and C. D. Johnston. “Political justice? Perceptions of politicization and public preferences toward the supreme court appointment process.” Public Opinion Quarterly 76, no. 1 (March 1, 2012): 105–16. https://doi.org/10.1093/poq/nfr032.
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  - Johnston, Christopher D., and Brandon L. Bartels. “Sensationalism and Sobriety Differential Media Exposure and Attitudes Toward American Courts.” Public Opinion Quarterly 74 (2010): 260–85.
  - Johnston, C. D. “Context, Engagement, and the (Multiple) Functions of Negativity Bias.” Behavioral and Brain Sciences 37 (n.d.): 311–12.
  - Johnston, C. D., B. Newman, and P. Lown. “False Consciousness or Class Awareness? Local Income Inequality, Personal Economic Position, and Belief in American Meritocracy (Accepted),” n.d.
  - Johnston, C. D., B. Newman, and Y. Velez. “Ethnic Change, Personality, and Polarization over Immigration in the American Public (Accepted).” Public Opinion Quarterly, n.d.
- Book Sections
  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “Theories of Public Support for Court-Curbing.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 27–59, 2020.
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  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “Procedural Perceptions and Motivated Reasoning.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 215–44, 2020.
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  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “General Policy Disagreement and Broadly Targeted Court-Curbing.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 93–125, 2020.
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  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “Partisan Polarization and Support for Court-Curbing.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 175–214, 2020.
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  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “Specific Policy Disagreement and Support for Court-Curbing.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 126–74, 2020.
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  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “Reconsidering the Public Foundations of Judicial Independence.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 245–78, 2020.
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  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “A Deep Dive into Supreme Court Evaluation and Support.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 60–92, 2020.
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  - Bartels, Brandon L., and Christopher D. Johnston. “The Guardians of Judicial Independence.” In CURBING THE COURT: WHY THE PUBLIC CONSTRAINS JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE, 1-+, 2020.
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- Other Articles
  - Johnston, C. D. “The Unexpected Impact of Coded Appeals.” New York Times Campaign Stops, September 10, 2012.
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  - Johnston, C. D., and S. Hillygus. “Perceptions of Supreme Court Legitimacy.” Yougov Model Politics, July 15, 2012.
    Link to Item
  - Johnston, C. D. “Review of Competing Motives in the Partisan Mind: How Loyalty and Responsiveness Shape Party Identification and Democracy.” Political Science Quarterly, n.d.
Teaching & Mentoring
Recent Courses
Scholarly, Clinical, & Service Activities
Presentations & Appearances
Outreach & Engaged Scholarship
- Bass Connections Team Leader. Politics and Polarization in Mainline Protestant Congregations . 2022 - 2023 2022 - 2023
Service to the Profession
- Ad Hoc Reviewer : reviewer for journals, university presses, universities. 2009 2009

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Education, Training, & Certifications

Previous Appointments & Affiliations

In the News

Awards & Honors

Global Scholarship

Expertise

External Relationships

Selected Publications

Books

Academic Articles

Book Sections

Other Articles

Recent Courses

Presentations & Appearances

Outreach & Engaged Scholarship

Service to the Profession