Biography

Daniel Goldstein holds a PhD in Political Science from Yale University. He holds a BA from Washington University in St. Louis and an MSc from the London School of Economics, both in political economy. He also holds an MA in Economics from Yale University. A political economist and formal theorist, his research primarily examines how informal factors, such as social norms, augment the stability and efficacy of political institutions. Working across comparative political economy, he most often leverages game theory and experimental methods. His dissertation, 'Institutional Fault Lines: Crises, Norms, and the Informal Foundations of the State,' examined how norms and crises impact the functioning of state capacity and democratic electoral institutions.

Daniel's aim during the Max Weber Fellowship is to continue his examination of how norms impact the performance of political institutions. He is also excited to broaden the scope of this research, such as considering how norms operate across different political regimes. Moreover, he aims to build on his past research to also consider the means by which political norms initially arise.

Daniel has extensive experience teaching game theory at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Moreover, through both the hiring of research assistants and formal advising roles, he has had the opportunity to introduce undergraduate and PhD students to contemporary social science research methods and to help guide their development of research questions and designs.