Overview
Rachel Myrick is the Douglas and Ellen Lowey Associate Professor of Political Science at Duke. Her research explores how partisan polarization affects foreign policymaking in democracies, with an emphasis on U.S. national security policy. More broadly, she is interested in the interplay between domestic and international politics in matters of security and conflict. Her first book, Polarization and International Politics: How Extreme Partisanship Threatens Global Stability, was published in 2025 with Princeton University Press in their Studies in International History and Politics Series. Her research is published at journals like International Organization, British Journal of Political Science, The Journal of Politics, The Journal of Conflict Resolution, and International Studies Quarterly, among others.
Current Duke Appointments & Affiliations
Douglas and Ellen Lowey Associate Professor of Political Science
·
2025 - Present
Political Science,
Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Associate Professor of Political Science
·
2025 - Present
Political Science,
Trinity College of Arts & Sciences
Recent Scholarly Works
Security Threats and Support for the Far Right: Evidence from Russian Aggression in Europe
Preprint · July 22, 2026 Do external security threats reduce support for far-right parties? Existing scholarship suggests such threats should weaken extreme parties by generating rally effects, shifting attention to foreign policy, and increasing demand for experienced leadersh ... Full text CiteToday Ukraine, Tomorrow Taiwan? Assessing US Reputation and Deterrence across International Crises
Journal article International Studies Quarterly · March 1, 2026 When does a state’s reputation for resolve transfer across separate international crises and deter future challengers? We propose three assumptions underlying “Cross-Crisis Reputational Deterrence” (CCRD). First, a defender’s response to a crisis leads a n ... Full text CitePermission to Secede? The Impact of Foreign Endorsements on Attitudes Toward Separatist Movements
Journal article Journal of Conflict Resolution · January 7, 2026 How do international endorsements of separatist movements by foreign powers impact popular views toward secession? Much literature on secessionist movements focuses on subnational bargaining between the government and separatist groups. However, these mode ... Full text Open Access CiteEducation
Stanford University ·
2021
Ph.D.
University of Oxford (United Kingdom) ·
2015
M.Phil.