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Emerson S. Niou CV

Professor of Political Science
Political Science
Box 90204, Durham, NC 27708-0204
140 Science Drive, 273 Gross, Box 90204, Durham, NC 27708
Office hours by appointment only  
CV

Overview


EMERSON M. S. NIOU (Ph.D., U. of Texas at Austin, 1987) is a Professor of Political Science at Duke University.  He co-authors two books: (1) The Balance of Power, Cambridge University Press, 1989; (2) Strategy and Politics: An Introduction to Game Theory, Rutledge, 2015. His recent publications include: (1) “Measuring Preferences for Divided Government: Some Americans Want Divided Government and Vote to Create It.” with Dean Lacy, Philip Paolino, and Robert A. Rein, Political Behavior, December:1-25, 2017; (2) “External Threat, Internal Rivalry, and Alliance Formation” with Sean Zeigler, Journal of Politics, 81(2):571-584, April 2019; (3) “Measuring ‘Closeness’ in 3-Candidate Elections: Methodology and an Application to Strategic Voting” with Daniel Kselman and Austin Wang, Electoral Studies, 68 (December):1-11, 2020; and “Entente Versus Alliance: When Should States Be Friends but not Allies?” with Sean Zeigler, Defence and Peace Economics, May 2023. 

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Professor of Political Science · 2002 - Present Political Science, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

In the News


Published November 9, 2015
Taiwan and mainland China in talks? Here are the 5 things you need to know about what Taiwanese people are thinking
Published February 5, 2015
Bullock to Retire from Duke Kunshan University

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Recent Publications


Entente versus Alliance: When Should States Be Friends but Not Allies?

Journal Article Defence and Peace Economics · January 1, 2024 When faced with a common threat, states have various alignment choices. Formal alliances offer explicit military obligations of support. Others, such as the Triple Entente that preceded World War I, are more ambiguous understandings. These entente-like ali ... Full text Open Access Cite

Measuring ‘closeness’ in 3-candidate elections: Methodology and an application to strategic voting

Journal Article Electoral Studies · December 1, 2020 Past research suggests that voter behavior is influenced by perceptions of electoral competitiveness. For example, when an election is perceived to be close, voters will be more likely to turnout and/or cast strategic votes for their second-most preferred ... Full text Open Access Cite

External threat, internal rivalry, and alliance formation

Journal Article Journal of Politics · April 1, 2019 History reveals enemies often ally to confront a common threat. In such competitive coalitions actors must balance the simultaneous risk of distrust of their ally against external danger. We model this interactive relationship and generate several novel ou ... Full text Open Access Cite
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Recent Grants


Enhancement of Taiwan Studies in the United States

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by College of William and Mary · 2014 - 2014

Taiwanese Public Opinion and Security Stability in the Taiwan Strait

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation · 2006 - 2007

Conference on Cross-Strait Issues: Conflicting or Complementary approaches (October 2002)

ConferencePrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Josiah Charles Trent Memorial Foundation · 2002 - 2003

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Education, Training & Certifications


University of Texas, Austin · 1987 Ph.D.

External Links


C.V. - Emerson Niou