Overview
Professor Hillygus has published widely on the topics of American political behavior, campaigns and elections, survey methods, public opinion, and information technology and politics. She is co-author of Making Young Voters: Converting Civic Attitudes into Civic Action (Cambridge University Press, 2020), The Persuadable Voter: Wedge Issues in Political Campaigns (Princeton University Press, 2008) and The Hard Count: The Social and Political Challenges of the 2000 Census (Russell Sage Foundation, 2006). She is director of the Duke Initiative on Survey Methodology (https://dism.duke.edu/) and co-director of the Polarization Lab (https://www.polarizationlab.com/).
Current Appointments & Affiliations
Professor of Political Science
·
2015 - Present
Political Science,
Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Director of the Duke Initiative on Survey Methodology
·
2010 - Present
Social Science Research Institute,
University Institutes and Centers
Interim Director of the Social Science Research Institute
·
2025 - Present
Social Science Research Institute,
University Institutes and Centers
Professor in the Sanford School of Public Policy
·
2016 - Present
Sanford School of Public Policy
In the News
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Recent Publications
Experiments offering social media users the choice to avoid toxic political content
Journal Article New Media and Society · January 1, 2026 Social media platforms increasingly offer users control over their feeds, promising to reduce toxic discourse. This study tests how the mere offer of algorithmic control shapes user experiences. Respondents evaluated identical posts from a fictional platfo ... Full text CiteA Sociological Turing Test: Social Identity Cues Shape Who is Classified as Human Online
Preprint · July 23, 2025 Full text CiteDesigning Social Media to Promote Productive Political Dialogue on a New Research Platform
Preprint · June 3, 2025 Full text CiteRecent Grants
Can AI-Agents Increase Open-Mindedness and Facilitate Productive Dialogue about Social Problems?
ResearchCo-Principal Investigator · Awarded by John Templeton Foundation · 2022 - 2028Redesigning Social Media to Reduce Partisan Animosity
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Carnegie Corporation of New York · 2024 - 2026The 2024 American National Election Studies (ANES)
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by University of Michigan · 2018 - 2025View All Grants
Education
Stanford University ·
2003
Ph.D.
Stanford University ·
2000
M.A.