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Christopher Johnston

Professor of Political Science
Political Science
Box 90204, Durham, NC 27708
294J Gross Hall, Durham, NC 27708

Scholarly Works - Books


Curbing the court: Why the public constrains judicial independence

Book · August 20, 2020 What motivates political actors with diverging interests to respect the Supreme Court's authority? A popular answer is that the public serves as the guardian of judicial independence by punishing elected officials who undermine the justices. Curbing the Co ... Full text Cite

Open versus Closed: Personality, identity, and the politics of redistribution

Book · February 17, 2017 Debates over redistribution, social insurance, and market regulation are central to American politics. Why do some citizens prefer a large role for government in the economic life of the nation while others wish to limit its reach? In Open versus Closed, t ... Full text Cite

The Ambivalent Partisan: How Critical Loyalty Promotes Democracy

Book · January 24, 2013 Over the past half-century, two overarching topics have dominated the study of mass political behaviour: How do ordinary citizens form their political judgments, and how good are they from a normative perspective? This book provides a novel goal-based appr ... Full text Cite