Research Assistantships

DIPLOMACY OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR

Faculty Name: Jennifer Siegel 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Jennifer Siegel 

This project is a large-scale examination of the diplomacy of the First World War from the perspective of all the combatant and key neutral powers, from the outbreak of the war through the conclusion of the armistice in November 1918.  It will explore key questions of neutrality, financial diplomacy, inter-state relations, transnational civil-military relations, and the nature of alliances during a period of war and revolution.  The research assistant will summarize and catalog archival materials collected from the Foreign Ministry archives of various European countries.  Reading proficiency in at least one of the following archives is necessary: French, German, Flemish.

 

CYBERSECURITY CAPACITY BUILDING

Faculty Name: David Hoffman 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Spencer Reeves 

The student will help create program materials for our Duke Cybersecurity Leadership Program with a focus on research of government requirements and controls for cybersecurity.

 

LAYING THE FOUNDATION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PEACEBUILDING

Faculty Name: Erika Weinthal 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Erika Weinthal 

A research assistant will help examine environmental peacebuilding efforts both during the Cold War and in the immediate years following the break-up of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union to take stock of their political and environmental impact. The research assistant will help compile instances of efforts to support citizen to citizen diplomacy, scientific cooperation, and environmental cooperation.  

 

HUMAN RIGHTS AND ETHICS CASE STUDIES

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Catherine Admay 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Catherine Admay  

We will work together to develop role play cases for a new graduate course on human rights (including around climate change litigation, male boycotting of education in Afghanistan, ICC indictment of Pres. Putin for the unlawful transfer of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia, and accountability mechanisms directed towards international organizations like the WHO discriminating against poor people).  Also, for a leadership training course sponsored by US Department of State on social justice and human rights, researcher will help finalize a portfolio of case studies for Distinguished Humphreys Fellows around the world.  Activities: knowledge review, archive development, scanning, interview-related research and the like.  

 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND COURTHOUSE COVERAGE FOR THE 9TH STREET JOURNAL

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Stephen Buckley 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Alison Jones 

The selected students will closely monitor and report on local criminal justice and courthouse issues and will write a series of stories on those topics. Applicants should have prior journalism experience and/or should have taken News Writing and Reporting. Applicants should also be prepared to present writing samples. 

 

BELLA (BRIDGING ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING AND ACADEMICS)

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Leslie Babinski 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Jennifer Mann 

We are developing a new online professional development program for elementary school teachers. The BELLA program provides English as a Second Language (ESL) and classroom teachers with a framework for collaboration, skills for implementing high-impact instructional strategies, and approaches for incorporating families’ cultural wealth into the classroom.

Our research assistant will support the team by updating our website, supporting our Canvas course site, updating Qualtrics surveys, supporting data management, conducting literature reviews, entering classroom observation data, participating in team meetings, and preparing materials for teachers. We expect the workload to consist of one or two longer-term projects combined with a variety of clerical research tasks in support of the project. 

Qualified candidate will be a quick learner, flexibility to adapt to changing priorities, excellent attention to detail, and a willingness to learn new skills. Experience with WordPress, Qualtrics, Canvas, conducting literature reviews, and/or online learning are a plus but are not required. Most of the work will be in-person in Rubenstein Hall.

 

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES ON THE GOVERNANCE OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Edward Balleisen 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Edward Balleisen  

This project will involve historical analysis of selected case studies that illuminate the patterns by the United States has sought to regulate emerging technologies, for an essay in an edited, interdisciplinary volume.  The student will assist with a literature review, drawing on relevant scholarship across the social sciences.  Focal areas might include: automobile emissions; pharmaceutical approvals; the early internet; carbon capture.

 

CENTER FOR CHILD AND FAMILY POLICY RESEARCH & POLICY BRIEFS

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Jennifer Lansford 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Berkeley Yorkery  

The RA will work with CCFP faculty and staff to support current research projects through literature reviews, legislative analysis, infographic development and policy research. The RA will develop 1-2 policy briefs in collaboration with CCFP faculty and staff on topics related to child and family well-being and education. Interns will perform substantive work to support and promote the work of CCFP. 

 

DIGITAL EQUITY AND MEASURING HARM

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Ken Rogerson

Position Contact/Supervisor: Ken Rogerson   

Student RAs will contribute to ongoing projects with 1) the North Carolina Office of Digital Equity and Literacy and 2) a new project to explore how to better measure the harms created by online and phone fraud. Students will conduct desk research, review datasets, and help with report writing and editing. Work is flexible. Comfort with spreadsheets will be helpful.

 

THE LYING PROJECT 

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Bill Adair

A study of lying in American politics

 

ENHANCING WORKER POWER IN THE LABOR MARKET 

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Matt Johnson

Collect data, conduct background research, and create new datasets to assist research understanding how various policies affect workers’ wages, wellbeing, and other labor market outcome. 

 

UNDERSTANDING THE EFFECTS OF THE COVID PANDEMIC ON LOW-WAGE WORKING PARENTS WITH YOUNG CHILDREN

*Position Filled 

Faculty Name: Anna Gassman-Pines

Beginning in March 2020, I gathered survey data from a sample of low-wage working parents with young children throughout the pandemic. We are now working on a book manuscript about the families' experiences. RA will work on data cleaning and analysis tasks. 

 

PARENTING ACROSS CULTURES

*Position Filled 

Faculty Name: Ann Skinner/Jennifer Lansford

The Research Assistant for this project will be responsible for contacting families participating in our longitudinal study of parenting young adult competence taking place in 9 countries.  Work will include emails, phone calls and possible in-person  meetings with research participants, developing Qualtrics surveys, assisting in maintaining our project website, and data cleaning work. 

 

DEMOCRACY AND AMERICAN HIGHER EDUCATION

*Position Filled 

Faculty Name: Eric Mlyn

Position Contact/Supervisor: Eric Mlyn 

WHAT: We are looking for an advanced undergraduate to help with advancing the Democracy and Higher Education project. Responsibilities will include:
•    Organizing and producing a monthly newsletter for distribution to interested stakeholders
•    Staying on top of news about the politics of American higher education, with special attention to The Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Education.
•    Writing summaries of recent publications on this topic.
•    Helping program coordinator as needed with organizing webinars and other events.

 

RESEARCH ASSISTANT FOR STEPS PROJECT, LONGITUDINAL ASSESSMENT OF ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Christina Gibson-Davis 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Christina Gibson-Davis 

RA will help collect data for STEPS (Study of Teen Experiences that Promote Success) project, a longitudinal study of 300 adolescent-parent dyads. STEPS assesses how familial economic precarity contributes to adolescent mental health and well-being. RA will work in a team to recruit sample members, direct them on to online surveys, and follow up with respondents to maintain them in study. Spanish-speaking students particularly encouraged to apply.

 

(1) POLARITY OR PLURALISM: 21ST CENTURY GEOPOLITICS PUSHES AND PULLS 
(2) AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY PUBLIC OPINION: (A) UKRAINE, (B) GENERATIONAL PATTERNS

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Bruce Jentleson

Position Contact/Supervisor: Bruce Jentleson

On both projects the student conducts some of the original research under my supervision. For Polarity or Pluralism this is principally qualitative, gathering and analyzing scholarly books and articles, government documents, think tank reports, and other related sources. For American Foreign Policy Public Opinion the research is mainly on polling data. Weekly or biweekly memos are prepared, and we meet and discuss.

 

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANT NEEDS ASSESSMENT UPDATE - FAMILY CHILD CARE HOMES AND CHILD CARE DESERTS

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Nicole Lawrence

Position Contact/Supervisor: Nicole Lawrence

Together with the Hunt Institute, researchers from CCFP are implementing a collaborative partnership to support NC DHHS’ Division of Child Development and Early Education in completing updates to North Carolina’s Preschool Development (Birth Through Five) Needs Assessment required as part of the state’s current PDG B-5 Renewal Grant. These updates will be focused on exploring strategies for increasing family child care homes to meet demand and help to address child care deserts across the state. Students will assist in scheduling listening sessions, interviews and advisory panel meetings, recruiting participants, transcribing recordings, and report development. 

 

PUBLIC POLICY OF GLEANING IN NORTH CAROLINA

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Norbert Wilson

Position Contact/Supervisor: Norbert Wilson 

This project is to work with the World Food Policy Center on research to support a stakeholder gathering for the charitable food sector. Gleaning is a long-standing practice of harvesting food for needy families from farms that would otherwise be lost. In 2014, the North Carolina General Assembly repealed a tax credit for farmers who donated food through gleaning. The student working on this project will explore the effect of the lost tax credit and contribute to a larger effort to coordinate research and convening on the role of gleaning in the resiliency of the North Carolina food system.

 

LEGAL ADVOCATES' KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDES TOWARD TECHNOLOGY-ENABLED ABUSE

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Pardis Emami-Naeini 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Pardis Emami-Naeini  

Technology (e.g., apps on mobile phones, smart speakers) could be used to spy on partners and abuse them. One of the main stakeholders in the context of intimate partner violence is the legal practitioners (e.g., lawyers, judges), who could help provide resources for the victim-survivors with their technology-enabled abuse cases. However, it is not clear how much legal stakeholders know about these technologies, their security and privacy risks, and practices, and how these technologies can be used to monitor partners without their consent. This research involves conducting systematic interviews with several legal stakeholders to capture a holistic understanding of their knowledge, attitudes, and practices toward technology-enabled abuse. The proposed research welcomes students who are interested in the intersection of policy, privacy, and human-computer interaction (HCI). Although not required, we are especially interested in students who have qualitative research expertise (e.g., conducting interviews and focus groups and analyzing qualitative data). Upon mutual interest and time investment, we aim to publish this research at a top-tier security, privacy, and HCI conference. 

 

IMPACT OF EARLY LIFE EXPERIENCES ON ADULT WELL-BEING

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Ken Dodge

Position Contact/Supervisor: Jennifer Godwin

Researchers at the Center for Child and Family Policy are using data from the Child Development and Fast Track Projects to understand how early life experiences relate to adult well-being including prescription drug misuse. This RA will help with this effort by conducting literature searches, writing summaries of those searches, cleaning data, and performing statistical analyses using SAS and MPlus. An ability to manage details, meet deadlines, work independently, and learn new skills is required. Prior statistical experience is strongly recommended.

 

MUNICIPAL ELECTION COVERAGE AND ANALYSIS

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Phil Napoli

Position Contact/Supervisor: Alison Jones

The student will closely monitor and report on the upcoming city elections in Durham, potentially including gathering campaign data, surveying candidates, attending city council meetings and conducting candidate interviews. The student will also write a series of stories related to municipal elections. 

 

1) POLITICAL INFLUENCE ON HEALTH POLICY REGULATION; 2) MEDICAID REDETERMINATION AND HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Kate Bundorf

Position Contact/Supervisor: Kate Bundorf

Both projects represent extensions of work done with public policy undergraduates as summer interns during the summer of 2023.  Activities include literature review, data analysis, data interpretation, and drafting of manuscripts.

 

SEXUAL & GENDER MINORITY WELLNESS PROGRAM

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Kate Whetten

Position Contact/Supervisor: Jess McDonald

The Center for Health Policy Research and Inequalities Research (CHPIR) and the Sexual and Gender Minority Wellness Program (SGMWP) are focused on improving the health of individuals and communities by addressing health inequities through interdisciplinary policy-relevant research, interventions, and evaluations. We are looking for a student to assist with diverse research and program activities including assisting with a series of SGM-related educational programs; building CHPIR and the SGMWP’s branding and visibility via the website, social media, and newsletter; assisting SGMWP research study teams as needed; are more. This is a fantastic opportunity for any student interested in gaining experience in research involving health disparities, global health, and the rights of sexual and gender minorities.

 

THE STATE AND THE SELF

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Doug Brook

Position Contact/Supervisor: Doug Brook

This project will involve preparation of an annotated bibliography on the major philosophical approaches to the relationship between the state and the individual. We will then develop an analytical framework to examine the approaches to this relationship being espoused in current US policy debates. The ultimate products of this research could be a paper for an academic journal, op-eds and presentations.

 

ON GUARD FOR PEACE AND SOCIALISM: THE WARSAW PACT, 1955–1991

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Simon Miles

Position Contact/Supervisor: Simon Miles  

Book project on the international history of the Warsaw Pact with a focus on intra-alliance dynamics in the diplomatic, military, and intelligence fields. Work will be in primary (archival) and secondary sources preparing synopses and similar research products, exact nature to be determined based on skills and experience. Should have reasonable language proficiency in one of: Albanian, Czech, German, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, or Russian. Students with a strong background in history but none of these language skills will be considered.

 

REPORTER, THE 9TH STREET JOURNAL 

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Alison Jones 

Position Contact/Supervisor: Alison Jones  

Student will report on and write about Durham events for a public-facing news outlet, The 9th Street Journal. Candidates should have prior reporting experience and/or should have taken News Writing and Reporting. Candidates should also be prepared to present writing samples. 

 

Spring 2024 Projects

Improving victim cooperation with police investigations of shootings

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Philip Cook

Professor Cook has several research projects focused on victim cooperation on the investigation and prosecution of shootings.  The projects are in Durham, Denver, and Chicago.  The student will locate and summarize relevant literature, and help prepare presentations based on the original research findings of these projects.

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Laying the Foundation for Environmental Peacebuilding

Faculty Name/Position Contact /Supervisor: Erika Weinthal

This project examines environmental peacebuilding and science diplomacy efforts during the Cold War and afterwards that sought to bring adversaries together to enhance security and build political cooperation The project asks: 1) did donors have a theory of change for how environmental programming could further trust and cooperation, foster environmental sustainability, and build a vibrant civil society in countries moving away from authoritarianism and 2) why were some programs more successful than others? A student will help with a literature review and case studies.

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Diplomacy and Intelligence in the First World War

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Jennifer Siegel

There are two projects.  The first is a large-scale examination of the diplomacy of WWI from the perspective of all the combatant and key neutral powers, from the outbreak of the war through the conclusion of the armistice in 1918.  The second looks at civilian intelligence in occupied Belgium during WWI, using the memoir by Marthe McKenna, _I Was a Spy_, as a frame.  The research assistant will summarize and catalog archival materials collected from the Foreign and/or War Ministry archives of various European countries.  Reading proficiency in at least one of the following languages is necessary: French, German, Flemish.

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Hyper(In)Visible: Exploring the impact of race and gender in Non-Profit Leadership Transitions

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Alexandra Zagbayou 

Non-profit organizations across the US are experiencing leadership transitions and many are moving towards representational leadership to align their commitment to racial justice to their leadership models. This projects seeks to explore the experience of women of color who are taking on executive and leadership roles in non-profits previously lead by white identifying leaders.

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Through their Eyes: Women on Leadership and Institution Building

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Alexandra Zagbayou

This project will explore how women leaders define leadership, apply their leadership frameworks within the institutions that they lead and the impact of their leadership models have on their sectors. Students will listen, transcribe and code over 100 interviews done by the Women As Leaders class over the past 4 semesters to identity major themes. In addition to this, students will work with Professor Zagbayou to co-author an article for the Stanford Social Innovation Review about our key findings and their implications for the social sector.

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Center for Child and Family Policy Research Dissemination RA

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Jennifer Lansford

Position Contact /Supervisor: Berkeley Yorkery bbs2@duke.edu

The RA will work with CCFP faculty and staff to support current research projects through literature reviews, legislative analysis, infographic development and policy research. The RA will develop 1-2 policy briefs in collaboration with CCFP faculty and staff on topics related to child and family well-being and education. Interns will perform substantive work to support and promote the work of CCFP.

 

Parenting Across Cultures

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Ann Skinner  askinner@duke.edu

Parenting Across Cultures (PAC) is a 9-country longitudinal study that collects annual data from mothers, fathers, and young adults. RA will be responsible for contacting families via email, phone, and text regarding survey completion, conducting interviews over the phone or in person when necessary, arrange stipend payments, and manage Qualtrics work for multiple sites. Additional work with literature reviews or other project tasks may be included. Previous interviewing experience preferred.

 

The Lying Project

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Bill Adair  bill.adair@duke.edu

Analysis of fact-checking data to assess the patterns of lying by American politicians; also, fact-checking content for a book in progress

 

North Carolina Resilience and Learning

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Katie Rosanbalm

Position Contact /Supervisor: Sonya Ulrich Sonya.ulrich@duke.edu

This student will assist in tasks related to the evaluation Resilience and Learning, a trauma-informed schools initiative. Tasks include entering data into spreadsheets, summarizing data in tables and figures, coding qualitative responses, and creating school-specific feedback reports to inform ongoing intervention. Also may include literature review and administrative assistance (e.g., making copies, assisting with mailings)

 

Health Policy and Inequalities Research Storytelling

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Kathryn Whetten

Position Contact /Supervisor: Hy Huynh hy.huynh@duke.edu

The Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research (CHPIR) is seeking a student interested in the intersection of Communications and Outreach and Health Policy, Research, and Practice, with a specific interest in sexual and gender minority (SGM) health and wellness. The student will work with a community psychologist and humanitarian photographer to develop meaningful communications and outreach-related materials for the Center as well as a CHPIR-based program called the Duke Sexual and Gender Minority Wellness Program (DSGMWP). The student will be encouraged to think creatively about ways to enhance outreach and disseminate important research findings and messages to a variety of stakeholders. The student will have the opportunity to interact with numerous faculty and staff within the Center, providing an opportunity to engage with a variety of content areas, types of research, populations, etc. The student will also be invited to participate in both broader CHPIR meetings as well as DSGMWP meetings.

 

This research assistantship is for 6-8 hours/week over the Spring 2024 semester with flexible starting and ending dates. Please email your resume and a letter that outlines your interest in the position and how your skills and passions match the job requirements to: Dr. Hy Huynh, hy.huynh@duke.edu. Please include ‘CHPIR RA’ in the subject line.

 

BELLA (Bridging English Language Learning and Academics)

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Leslie Babinski

Position Contact /Supervisor: Jennifer Mann jennifer.mann@duke.edu

We are developing a new online professional development program for elementary school teachers. The BELLA program provides English as a Second Language (ESL) and classroom teachers with a framework for collaboration, skills for implementing high-impact instructional strategies, and approaches for incorporating families’ cultural wealth into the classroom.

 

Our research assistant will support the team by updating our website, supporting our Canvas course site, updating Qualtrics surveys, supporting data management, conducting literature reviews, entering classroom observation data, participating in team meetings, and preparing materials for teachers. We expect the workload to consist of one or two longer-term projects combined with a variety of clerical research tasks in support of the project.

 

Qualified candidate will be a quick learner, flexibility to adapt to changing priorities, excellent attention to detail, and a willingness to learn new skills. Experience with WordPress, Qualtrics, Canvas, conducting literature reviews, and/or online learning are a plus but are not required. Most of the work will be in-person in Rubenstein Hall.

 

On Guard for Peace and Socialism: The Warsaw Pact, 1995-1991

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact /Supervisor: Simon Miles simon.miles@duke.edu

Book project on the international history of the Warsaw Pact with a focus on intra-alliance dynamics in the diplomatic, military, and intelligence fields. Work will be in primary (archival) and secondary sources preparing synopses and similar research products, exact nature to be determined based on skills and experience. Should have reasonable language proficiency in one of: Albanian, Czech, German, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, or Russian. Students with a strong background in history but none of these language skills will be considered.

 

Gleaning in NC: Policy Considerations and Next Steps for Research

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Norbert Wilson

Position Contact /Supervisor: Jack Daly jack.daly@duke.edu

St. Andrews Society of North Carolina has approached the World Food Policy Center (the WFPC) about working together for a convening on "gleaning," which repurposes would-be agricultural waste for more productive uses. The WFPC has utilized a student, Matt Peljovich, this fall on EADS Research Assistantship. Mr. Peljovich has done exemplary work on a policy paper that will have a draft by the end of December. The WFPC would like to continue working with Mr. Peljovich in the spring and have him present his paper at a gleaning convening in February. We would also be interested in identifying opportunities for future research questions.

 

Infrastructure Destruction and Climate Resilience in the Middle East

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact /Supervisor: Erika Weinthal weinthal@duke.edu

A student will research infrastructure destruction in wars in the Middle East to understand the links to climate resilience. Research will 1) characterize forms of infrastructure destruction and 2) examine how countries rebuild so that infrastructure is both conflict and climate-resilient. Research will examine the role of donors and humanitarians in promoting different types of infrastructure, especially pertaining to the water and energy sectors. Research will also explore the constraints conflict-affected countries face in introducing climate-sensitive strategies that would strengthen resilience.

 

Cybersecurity Capacity Building

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: David Hoffman

Position Contact /Supervisor: Spencer Reeves spencer.reeves@duke.edu

Research into cybersecurity policy improvements needed to help protect individuals in developing world countries. The focus will be on Latin America and specifically preparation for our Spring event in Costa Rica.

 

STEPS project: Study of Teen Experiences that Promote Success

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact /Supervisor: Christina Gibson-Davis cgibson@duke.edu

Students will identify, recruit, and enroll participants in the STEPS project, a longitudinal study of economic and adolescent well-being. STEPS surveys parents and adolescents at six month intervals over a two year period. Both students worked on this project in the fall and will continue in the spring.

 

Child Maltreatment Prevention

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact /Supervisor: Beth Gifford

This student will work with a team of researchers to support various tasks around research for child maltreatment prevention and policy.

 

Keeping Workers Off the Ballot

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact /Supervisor: Nick Carnes nicholas.carnes@duke.edu

I'm working on a series of projects related to a book I'm drafting this spring. Students will assist with collecting data, proof/reading drafts, and other tasks related to the preparation of the book. Timing flexible; work can be done from home on your own schedule.

 

Research and Writing Assistant, Duke Center for International Development

*Position Filled

Faculty Name: Edmund Malesky

Position Contact /Supervisor: Dean Storelli storelli@duke.edu

Are you interested in getting cutting-edge research into the hands of policy decision-makers? The Duke Center for International Development (DCID) is looking for a research assistant to help with research translation projects in a broad range of areas. The RA will work with Dean Storelli, the Master of International Development Policy’s Director of Writing and Communication Services, and several faculty. Potential projects include technology adoption, climate migration, deforestation, corruption, e-governance, global value chains, and health.

 

Ethics and Human Rights Case Studies

*Position Filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact /Supervisor: Catherine Admay admay@duke.edu

We will work together to develop the role play cases on the adoption (or not) of a new constitution in Chile and on accountability mechanisms directed towards international organizations like the WHO discriminating against poor people.  We will also begin work on a writing project centered on the UN principle of Leave NoOne Behind/LNOB. What infrastructure has been developed to provide disaggregated/stratified data? Is the data modelled rather than directly collected? What data/algorithms informs the models? Activities: knowledge review, archive development, scanning, interview-related research and the like. 

Summer 2024 Projects

NEW PROJECT:  China's Influence on Emerging Market Tech Policy Via the Digital Silk Road

Faculty Name: Laura Sallstrom

Students will be asked to take existing research and identify common trends in China's investments through the Digital Silk Road. Student will work with professor to document China's influence on public policy making in the technology sector as a result of Digital Silk Road money.  Ideally student will have statistical background and be able to help document a relationship between Silk Road Money and policy decision making. Multiple countries will be studied. Students will be asked to conduct additional research to verify or supplement data. Students will be asked to help develop an online format (website, data base, etc) for sharing the information in an organized and searchable manner.  In this case, computer website development and data base development skills will be valuable.

If time permits, we will also develop blogs and articles for publication around the information.

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Has the Decline in Local News Contributed to the Weakening of Labor Unions? POSITION FILLED

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Matthew Johnson

The last several decades have seen a decimation of both the local newspaper environment and organized labor in the U.S. Are these trends related? This project examines the relationship between the presence and strength of local newspapers on various dimensions of worker power, as manifested through labor unions. The primary task for this work will be identifying newspaper coverage of labor union campaigns over the last few decades, using spreadsheets and news databases. Other tasks may include data assembly and cleaning, internet searches, among others.

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3 Projects:  Parenting Across Cultures, Risk and Resilience in Ukraine, Parent-child relationship Quality and Substance Use.

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Ann Skinner

This summer's Eads student will have the opportunity to engage with 3 projects. Work will include contacting families in a longitudinal study to encourage survey participation, and documenting all contacts and completions; assisting with data cleaning and analyses for 2 others studies. The position will also include helping to draft reports, presentations,  and manuscripts related to all 3 studies.

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Analyzing Digital Equity Plans

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Ken Rogerson

Every US state is in the process of creating digital equity plans. Counties in North Carolina are also creating these plans. This project will do two things: 1) analyze the content of these plans for similarities and differences and 2) work on an assessment plan for these plans. Students should have some experience with spreadsheets.

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Statebuilding and Development after Civil War

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Shelley Liu

We explore how conflict processes and conflict termination shapes post-war reconstruction and statebuilding efforts. Research assistants' main involvement will be to help code a dataset on post-war changes in law and any development initiatives. For each conflict assigned, students will follow a codebook to code the information and document sources of information. Students are expected to complete one conflict per week, and the weekly time commitment is around 10 hours.

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Child Maltreatment Prevention Research

Faculty Name: Beth Gifford

Position Contact/Supervisor: Megan Golonka

Our team has a variety of projects occurring around Child Maltreatment Prevention Research. The student will work with various team members to support projects.

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Center for Child and Family Policy Undergraduate Summer Research Assistant

Faculty Name: Jen Lansford

Position Contact/Supervisor: Berkeley Yorkery

The Center for Child and Family Policy (CCFP) is looking for a summer research assistant to help with projects across the center. The RA will work with CCFP faculty and staff to support current research projects through literature reviews, legislative analysis, and policy research. The RA will develop 2 research/policy briefs in collaboration with CCFP faculty and staff on topics related to child and family well-being and education. Interns will perform substantive work to support and promote the work of CCFP.

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Health Policy & Inequities Research Storytelling

Faculty Name: Dr. Kate Whetten

Position Contact/Supervisor: Dr. Hy Huynh

The Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research (CHPIR) is seeking a student interested in the intersection of Communications and Outreach and Health Policy, Research, and Practice, with a specific interest in sexual and gender minority (SGM) health and wellness. The student will work with a community psychologist and humanitarian photographer to develop meaningful communications and outreach-related materials for the Center as well as a CHPIR-based program called the Duke Sexual and Gender Minority Wellness Program (DSGMWP). The student will be encouraged to think creatively about ways to enhance outreach and disseminate important research findings and messages to a variety of stakeholders. The student will have the opportunity to interact with numerous faculty and staff within the Center, providing an opportunity to engage with a variety of content areas, types of research, populations, etc. The student will also be invited to participate in both broader CHPIR meetings as well as DSGMWP meetings.

This research assistantship is a hybrid in-person/remote position for the summer of 2024 with flexible starting and ending dates. Please email your resume and a letter that outlines your interest in the position and how your skills and passions match the job requirements to: Dr. Hy Huynh, hy.huynh@duke.edu. Please include ‘CHPIR RA’ in the subject line.

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BELLA Online

Faculty Name: Leslie Babinski     

Position Contact/Supervisor: Jennifer Mann

We are continuing to develop an online professional development program for elementary school teachers. The BELLA program provides English as a Second Language (ESL) and classroom teachers with a framework for collaboration, skills for implementing high-impact instructional strategies, and approaches for incorporating families’ community cultural wealth into the classroom.

Our research assistant will support the team by helping to draft materials and resources for our Canvas course site, conducting literature reviews, participating in team meetings, preparing materials for teachers, preparing example products based upon rubrics, and updating Qualtrics surveys and supporting data management. We expect the workload to consist of one or two longer-term projects combined with a variety of clerical research tasks in support of the larger project.

Qualified candidate will be a quick learner, flexibility to adapt to changing priorities, excellent attention to detail, and a willingness to learn new skills. Experience with Qualtrics, Canvas, Canva, conducting literature reviews, and/or online learning are a plus but are not required. The candidate must be a declared Public Policy major. Education minors are preferred, but not required. Most of the work will be in-person in Rubenstein Hall.

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Trust in Government: Public Engagement in Budgeting

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Doug Brook

Examine public participation strategies in Raleigh, Greensboro and Durham. Assist in designing interview and survey tools. Attend public budgeting events. Write summary reports.

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Arts, Documentary, and Public Policy Assistant

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Christopher Sims

Undergraduate assistant will work with Christopher Sims to support an on-going artistic and policy research project that will explore the rich and contentious history of race and racism in Alamance County, North Carolina. Known in political circles as a battleground county in a battleground southern state, Alamance County (located between Durham and Greensboro) is riven with systemic inequities, while also undergoing rapid and dramatic demographic, social, and cultural changes.

Assistant will:

• conduct in-person and online archival research

• organize photo database

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Hospital Competition in the U.S. - position filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Kate Bundorf

The student will work as part of a team on a project examining the effects of hospital competition on access to and quality of care for low-income populations.  The student will update a dataset on hospital mergers by validating survey data with original research on merger events.

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The Federal Government and the Politics of American Higher Education

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Eric Mlyn

I am looking for research and logistical assistance for this Washington DC–based gathering will examine the state of the politics of American higher education, with a focus on a variety of policy proposals that focus on the federal government’s funding and regulatory roles.

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Older Adults' Health Needs Post-Incarceration in North Carolina

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Nathan Boucher

Research Assistant needed for qualitative research study informing a survey examining older adults needs following prison in NC. Requires summer, fall, and spring commitment of 2-5 hours a week. Good communication (including timely email communication) and writing skills needed. This is a mentored research opportunity with Dr. Nathan Boucher and will involve preparing research documents, submitting to the Duke Univ IRB, engaging with community members, securing and analyzing data, and manuscript preparation (co-authorship). Contact nathan.boucher@duke.edu with CV/resume and short note of what you bring to the position.

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The STEPS (Study of Teen Experiences that Promote Success) Survey

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Christina Gibson-Davis

The goal of this research project is to understand how wealth and other economic factors relate to adolescent mental health. The project, known as STEPS (Study of Teen Experience that Promote Success), is a longitudinal survey of 750 adolescent-parent pairs. Each adolescent and parent fill out a survey every six months, and complete information related to their wealth, income, and other economic factors, adolescent mental health and behavior, and family practices and routines. The STEPS study will collect data from a racially and ethnically diverse sample.

Students selected for this project will work with the STEPS team to recruit participants, screen and consent them, and administer online surveys.  The student will also aid in sample retention and outreach. Good candidates for this position will have good people skills and be comfortable working with individuals from a variety of backgrounds.

Preference will be given to candidates who are native Spanish speakers and/or are fluent in Spanish.

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Climate Change, Conflict, and South Sudan

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Erika Weinthal

The assistantship would focus on climate change impacts in South Sudan. This research is part of a larger interdisciplinary research team at Duke studying climate change, migration, and fragility/conflict. The assistantship would carry out research on cattle raiding in South Sudan – largely focusing on media coverage to assess whether there is an increase or decrease in cattle raiding depending on climate variables. The outcome would be a policy memo based upon the data collected. Opportunities could exist for additional research with the larger team. 

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Public Policy Case Studies

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Suzanne Katzenstein

This project involves doing research on case studies at the local, state, national and international levels on various topics to be used primarily to integrate into course syllabi. We will focus on traditional academic cases studies but also narratives/first person accounts, and non-written materials - podcasts, films, and more creative sources. 

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Summer Research Assistant in Health Policy

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Nathan Boucher 

We are seeking a Research Assistant (RA) for the summer, with a keen interest in health policy and research, specifically in the areas of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (HPM) and Critical Care Medicine. The selected RA will play a crucial role in supporting new initiatives aimed at enhancing member engagement within a national HPM Research special interest group (SIG). Additionally, the RA will contribute to efforts in increasing applications for NIH funding by researchers from under-represented backgrounds.
 
Key Responsibilities:
•    Assist in conducting and coordinating a systematic review focused on methods ICUs use to promote family caregiver engagement.
•    Coordinate various research project activities within the field.
•    Support Research SIG as described above.
 

Preferred Qualifications:
•    Experience with research methods including any of the following: qualitative research, systematic reviews, statistics/analysis of large data sets, and implementation science.
•    Experience with grant and/or scientific writing.
•    Familiarity with medical terminology and/or the clinical setting. (Position is non-clinical.)
•    While these qualifications are helpful, they are not mandatory to apply.
 

Position Details:
•    This is primarily a remote position.
•    The workload will average 6-8 hours per week.
•    It may be possible to extend the position into the fall term, though this has yet to be determined.

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Breaking the Mold: How College Preparatory School Programs Shape the Worlds of Young Strivers - POSITION FIlled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Garry Mitchell

The student will be helping to code and analyze interview data for the project. I currently have 150 interview transcribed. The student will be helping to clean the transcripts and data while also coding a subset of the interviews for an upcoming paper. The paper aims to analyze the complex philanthropic and organizational conceptions of equity given unideal constraints within the realm of education. The student will also be an analytical thought partner in addition to supporting the cleaning of the data.

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Revisiting Must Carry: What Cable TV Regulation Can Teach Us About the Regulation of Digital Platforms - position filled

Faculty Name/Position Contact/Supervisor: Philip Napoli

Two of the most prominent regulatory questions related to digital platforms are: 1) Can/should digital platforms be regulated as “common carriers” and be required to host/distribute speech that, under their own editorial discretion, they would opt not to host/distribute?; and 2) Can/should digital platforms be required to financially compensate news outlets for the news content that the platforms host/distribute? Both of these questions can – and should – be informed be an important regulatory precedent – the must-carry/retransmission consent rules that have been imposed on cable and (to a lesser degree) satellite television providers since 1992. This research project will revisit the must-carry/retransmission consent rules to identify lessons that should inform contemporary deliberations about digital platform regulation.

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Resilience and Learning and Infant-Toddler Trauma-Informed Care *PosItion Filled

Faculty Name: Katie Rosanbalm

Position Contact/Supervisor: Sonya Ulrich

The RA will assist with two projects: ITTI Care and Resilience and Learnr ing. ITTI Care is an evaluation of a trauma-informed professional development program foearly childhood educators. Resilience and Learning is an evaluation of a trauma-informed elementary and middle school intervention. On both projects, the student will assist with data management, data entry, preliminary data analysis and summarization (e.g., tables and figures), coding qualitative responses and creating school-specific reports to inform on-going interventions. The RA may also help with literature reviews and administrative assistance (e.g., making copies, scanning).

Fall 2024 Projects

NEW PROJECT!

breaking the mold: how college preparatory school programs shape the worlds of young Strivers - position filled

Faculty Name: Garry Mitchell

The student will help code and analyze interview data for the project. Clean transcripts and data while coding a subset of the interviews for an upcoming paper (currently have 150 interviews transcribed). The paper aims to analyze the complex philanthropic and organization conceptions of equity given unideal constraints within the realm of education. The student will also be an analytical thought partner in addition to supporting the cleaning of the data.

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Gun Violence in Durham - position filled

Faculty Name: Philip J. Cook

The student would work in managing data sets on police investigations and court processing of shootings in Durham. Students would conduct statistical analysis and prepare presentations.

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Gun Violence in K-12 Schools - position filled

Faculty Name: Sarah Komisarow

The research assistant will analyze and synthesize information from our major existing databases that track incidents of gun violence in K-12 schools. The research assistant will compare/contrast existing sources with published media accounts and other sources.

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Wealth and Adolescent Mental Health - position filled

Faculty Name: Christina Gibson-Davis

The goal of this research project is to understand how wealth and other economic factors relate to adolescent mental health. The project, known as STEPS (Study of Teen Experience that Promote Success), is a longitudinal survey of 750 adolescent-parent pairs. Each adolescent and parent fill out a survey every six months, and complete information related to their wealth, income, and other economic factors, adolescent mental health and behavior, and family practices and routines. The STEPS study will collect data from a racially and ethnically diverse sample.

Students selected for this project will work with the STEPS team to recruit participants, screen and consent them, and administer online surveys. The student will also aid in sample retention and outreach. Good candidates for this position will have good people skills and be comfortable working with individuals from a variety of backgrounds.

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An Organized Controversy: A History of NATO Since 1959

Faculty Name: Susan Colbourn

This project is an international history of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization from its founding to the present, based primarily on archival records from its members in Europe and North America. The end product will be a book designed to provide and overview of major topics in the alliance's existence thus far, including strategy, defense posture, burdensharing, information policy, the interaction between alliance politics and domestic politics in individual members, among others. Students will help identify available archival material, particularly digital collections, and will prepare reviews of relevant literature on key topics.

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Parenting Across Cultures

Faculty Name: Ann Skinner

Parenting Across Cultures (PAC) is a 9-country longitudinal study that collects annual data from mothers, fathers, and young adults. RA will be responsible for contacting families via email, phone, and text regarding survey completion, conducting interviews over the phone or in person when necessary, arrange stipend payments, and manage Qualtrics work for multiple sites. Additional work with literature reviews, data cleaning, manuscript preparation, or other project tasks may be included. Previous interviewing experience and bi-lingual (English-Spanish) preferred.

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research analyzing the causes of the decline in labor union strength and effects on u.s. workers

Faculty Name: Matthew Johnson

This project will involve working with data, tracking down primary sources, and other tasks to provide support for a series of projects examining, for example, whether the decline in local news has contributed to the decline in labor union strength, and what effects successful union campaigns have on earnings in the broader labor market.

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CCFP Research to policy - position filled

Faculty Name: Jen Lansford

Contact Person: Berkeley Yorkery

The Center for Child and Family Policy Research to Policy RA will work with CCFP faculty and staff to develop 1-2 policy briefs topics related to child and family well-being and education. Interns will perform substantive work to support and promote the work of CCFP.

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statebuilding and development after war - position filled

Faculty Name: Shelley Liu

We explore how conflict processes and conflict termination shapes post-war reconstruction and statebuilding efforts. Research assistants' main involvement will be to help code a dataset on post-war changes in law and any development initiatives. For each conflict assigned, students will follow a codebook to code the information and document sources of information. Students are expected to complete one conflict per week, and the weekly time commitment is around 10 hours.

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Documenting century-long trends in the U.s. - position filled

Faculty Name: Charles Clotfelter

Using data published in tables and generated by researchers, the aim of this project will be to record and document information on a variety of economic and social measures. Data stretching from the mid-1920s to the present day will be sought for such measures as the birth rate, the share of men and women employed in the labor force, the average age or retirement, and the percentage of adults who have a college degree. For a curious and detailed-oriented student, this project will provide a good introduction to interesting information, data sources, and ways to document information in doing research.

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Do Better managers bribe less? results of a randomized field experiment

Faculty Name: Edmund Malesky

This project will scale up the successful DCID project on management training and reduced corruption: https://dcid.sanford.duke.edu/project/reducing-corruption-businesses-through-managerial-training/

We will be expanding the training to a large sample of firms in a more diverse set of training. Research assistants will help with overseeing endline survey results, analyzing data, and policy briefs summarizing the experiment.

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Laying the foundation for environmental peacebuilding - position filled

Faculty Name: Erika Weinthal

This project examines environmental peacebuilding and science diplomacy efforts during the Cold War and afterwards that sought to bring adversaries together to enhance security and build political cooperation The project asks: 1) did donors have a theory of change for how environmental programming could further trust and cooperation, foster environmental sustainability, and build a vibrant civil society in countries moving away from authoritarianism and 2) why were some programs more successful than others? A student will help with a literature review and case studies.

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analyzing digital equity plans and measuring online harms to the elderly - position filled

Faculty Name: Ken Rogerson

1) Every US state is in the process of creating digital equity plans. Counties in North Carolina are also creating these plans. This project will do two things: 1) analyze the content of these plans for similarities and differences and 2) work on an assessment plan for these plans. Students should have some experience with spreadsheets. 2) Work with a project that explores how better measure online harms to the elderly.

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diplomacy and intelligence in the first world war

Faculty Name: Jennifer Siegel

There are two projects.  The first is a large-scale examination of the diplomacy of WWI from the perspective of all the combatant and key neutral powers, from the outbreak of the war through the conclusion of the armistice in 1918.  The second looks at civilian intelligence in occupied Belgium during WWI, using the memoir by Marthe McKenna, I Was a Spy, as a frame.  The research assistant will summarize and catalog archival materials collected from the Foreign and/or War Ministry archives of various European countries.  Reading proficiency in at least one of the following languages is necessary: French, German, Flemish.

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Democracy and the Politics of Higher Education - position filled

Faculty Name: Eric Mlyn

I am looking for a student to help with my project on Democracy and the Politics of American Higher Education, with a focus on the role that higher education will play in the fall elections.  I also need more general research assistance for this project to look at current political controversies in higher education.

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historical perspectives on regulatory responses to emerging technologies in the U.S. - position filled

Faculty Name: Edward Balleisen

Dean Lori Bennear and I are writing an essay on historical patterns in American policy responses to emerging technologies. The RA will assist with identifying relevant scholarly literature (with extensive guidance), and provide summaries of key arguments and evidence. 

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Impact of crisis lines on health and well-being - position filled

Faculty Name: Jonathan Zhang

In July 2022, a national crisis line (9-8-8) was rolled out. How did this crisis line causally impact outcomes? Did more people use the line? Did it connect more people with care? Did it save lives?

The student involved in this project will help with the following:
- Literature review
- Reading and explaining policy changes from online sources and policy documents
- Finding potential data sources
- Collecting and cleaning datasets
- If quantitative skills allow for it: Data analysis

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SGM Wellness Program Communications & Outreach - position filled

Faculty Name: Kate Whettan

Contact Person: Dr. Hy Huynh

The Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research (CHPIR) is seeking a student interested in the intersection of Communications and Outreach and Health Policy, Research, and Practice, with a specific interest in sexual and gender minority (SGM) health and wellness. The student will work with a small team of researchers and practitioners working in SGM health and wellness to develop meaningful communications and outreach-related materials for the Center as well as the Duke Sexual and Gender Minority Wellness Program (DSGMWP). The student will be encouraged to think creatively about ways to enhance outreach and disseminate important research findings and messages to various stakeholders. The student will have the opportunity to interact with numerous faculty and staff within the Center, providing an opportunity to engage with a variety of content areas, types of research, populations, etc. The student will also be invited to participate in both broader CHPIR meetings as well as DSGMWP meetings.

This research assistantship is for 6-8 hours/week over the Fall 2024 semester with flexible starting and ending dates. Please email your resume and a letter that outlines your interest in the position and how your skills and passions match the job requirements to sgmwellness@duke.edu. Please include DSGMWP in the subject line.

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do recent swaps of debt for investments in nature get it right?

Faculty Name: Alex Pfaff

We've just published [Losos, Pfaff, Pimm in Science] our view that non-results of past debt-for-nature swaps, alongside evaluations of a variety of environment and development policies, suggest principles for reforming swaps. On the other hand, there has been some evolution. We now want to look more closely at the details of recent swaps -- which cannot yet be evaluated in terms of outcomes -- to see whether we think new formulas are right or require significant further reform. We'd love help finding and reading such materials, including others' commentary.

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citizen engagement in public budgeting

Faculty Name: Doug Brook

We are studying citizen engagement in public budgeting in Raleigh, Durham, and Greensboro. In the Fall semester. Most of the work will involve attending community meetings in Raleigh and Durham, to observe, take notes, interview citizen participants, transcribe and analyze the data. Transportation to these mostly evening meetings will be required.

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