Lehigh Research Explores Complex Issues Challenging American Voters

As a community of scholars working in an interdisciplinary environment, Lehigh researchers seek to answer the most challenging questions and work to inform, educate and empower others. It’s with that lens that we share a collection of research stories relevant to the upcoming elections.

This collection of research serves as an additional resource for those who wish to further explore complex issues challenging American voters during this election cycle. However, exploring multiple resources from various perspectives is important in informing one's own opinion around these topics. Lehigh aims to explore research in areas that impact lives, shed light on complex issues and provide opportunities for constructive discourse, globally and locally.

1. New Study on Psychology of Blame Points to Promising Strategies for Reducing Animosity in Political Divides

The study by Michael Gill, psychology professor, and Raihan Alam ’23 shows partisan animosity can be reduced by a historicist thinking intervention.

2. Want to Prevent Misinformation? Present Data With an Interactive Visual

With polarization and misinformation on the rise, new research explores a solution using interactive data visualization to inform and engage readers.

3. Anthony DiMaggio Explores the Social Movements Behind Protest

DiMaggio's book dissects the progression of social movements in the United States since 2008.

4. Human Behavior, Climate Risk and the Food-Water-Energy Nexus

Y.C. Ethan Yang works with a team of researchers incorporating data on human behavior into a climate-risk modeling framework to improve resilience of critical water, food and energy systems.

5. U.S. Abortion Politics: How Did We Get Here and Where Are We Headed?

Sociologist Ziad Munson explores the complex ways religion and the pro-life movement have intersected, an idea he also examines in his book, “Abortion Politics,” about how abortion in the U.S. has been “constructed as a controversial issue.”

6. Threat of Deportation Leads to Psychological Distress Among Both Latino Citizens and Noncitizens

Amy Johnson and research collaborators find it’s not just undocumented immigrants who feel at risk.

7. Politically Connected Corporations Received More Exemptions from U.S. Tariffs on Chinese Imports, Study Finds

Exemption grant process functioned as a “spoils system” rewarding political supporters and punishing opponents.

We invite you to read more about the work of our talented researchers. https://www2.lehigh.edu/tags/research.