Nicholas Rush Smith
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nickrushsmith.bsky.social
Nicholas Rush Smith
@nickrushsmith.bsky.social
Reader in Politics and IR at @soasuni.bsky.social. Researcher @UJoburg. Co-Editor-in-Chief @comppol.bsky.social. Studies crime, police, vigilantism, ethnographic, interpretive, qual methods, 🇿🇦.
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
New article on Fast Track by Sanghoon Kim-Leffingwell and Yujeong Yang, “The Political Legacy of Anti-Chinese Violence in Indonesia,” www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...
www.ingentaconnect.com
December 18, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
New article on Fast Track by Olena Nikolayenko, “Emotional Contagion and Labor Mobilization in an Autocracy,” www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...

@fordhamposc.bsky.social
www.ingentaconnect.com
December 16, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
New article on Fast Track by Benedikt Bender, Katharina Bluhm, Stanislav Klimovich, Sabine Kropp, Ulla Pape, and Claudius Wagemann, “Why Are State-Business Relations Formalized in Russia’s Authoritarian Regime? A Set-Theoretic Analysis,” www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...
www.ingentaconnect.com
December 12, 2025 at 10:21 PM
What's in a title? A lot, if this awesome new article in @comppol.bsky.social by Adam Almqvist is anything to judge by. Why would autocrat governments create NGOs, an ostensibly independent source of power? Find out 👇

www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...
GONGOs, Zombies, and Astroturfers...se of Jordanian Youth Governance: Ingenta Connect Fast Track Article
www.ingentaconnect.com
November 19, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
Check out my review of some exciting new books in qualitative methods!
November 7, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
Quite an honor to be reviewed by @ajayverghese.bsky.social -- and in such great company! It was a privilege to work with Jen to bring Doing Good Qualitative Research into the world, and I’m thrilled that Ajay saw the book as the public good we hoped it would be.
November 6, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
Very nice and really thoughtful review of new work on qualitative methods (with some fair criticisms of our *Integrated Inferences* book!).

Looking forward now to spending more time reading *Doing Good Qualitative Research* and *Qualitative Literacy*

Thanks for sharing and engaging!
November 6, 2025 at 1:12 PM
Review Article: The Qualitative Metamorphosis: Ingenta Connect Fast Track Article
www.ingentaconnect.com
November 6, 2025 at 12:33 PM
I'm honored to have become co-Editor-in-Chief of Comparative Politics, alongside Eva Bellin of Brandeis. After thirty years of amazing service, Lenny Markowitz and Ken Erickson, have passed the torch. Along with our extraordinary editorial committee, I'm excited to see the journal into its next era.
October 6, 2025 at 4:33 PM
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A New Era of Editorial Leadership at Comparative Politics
With the first issue of the 58th volume of Comparative Politics, we mark a change in the guard of the leadership of the journal.
October 3, 2025 at 4:47 PM
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You're invited to learn more about interpretive methods at the 20th annual IMM Methods Cafe at #APSA2025! Sept. 11, 4-5:30 pm, Marriot Point Grey Room.
September 5, 2025 at 11:50 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
This is the kind of article APSR used to be famous for. The ones that make your brain explode, that challenge you, confuse you, test your patience, and make you smarter by making you realize your limitations. Well done Erica Simmons and @nickrushsmith.bsky.social‬ 👏
July 28, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
New article on Fast Track by @kaimthaler.bsky.social “From Insurgent to Incumbent: Ideology, Rebel Governance, and Statebuilding after Rebel Victory in Civil Wars,” www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...
From Insurgent to Incumbent: Ideo...fter Rebel Victory in Civil Wars: Ingenta Connect Fast Track Article
www.ingentaconnect.com
June 7, 2025 at 11:36 AM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
For those podcast inclined, Nick Cheesman's Interpretive Political and Social Science podcast series on the New Books Network is an excellent resource, with interviews of exemplary authors and editors of interpretivist works: newbooksnetwork.com/category/spe...
New Books Network - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
April 25, 2025 at 5:14 AM
Great conversation here in the @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social political science feed on Marcus Kreuzer’s wonderful book on comparative historical analysis and ways to synthesize positivist and interpretive approaches to the study of history. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/n...
Marcus Kreuzer,
Podcast Episode · New Books in Political Science · 04/22/2025 · 59m
podcasts.apple.com
April 23, 2025 at 10:51 PM
Excited to see my new article with Erica Simmons out in APSR FirstView! We argue that when social scientists extend their arguments to new cases, they are often not generalizing their findings, but translating them to new contexts instead.

Want to know more? Read it. It's open access. 👇
How Cases Speak to One Another: Using Translation to Rethink Generalization in Political Science Research | American Political Science Review | Cambridge Core
How Cases Speak to One Another: Using Translation to Rethink Generalization in Political Science Research
www.cambridge.org
April 2, 2025 at 10:41 AM
Colleagues who use interpretive methods in all or part of their work, check out the awards call below. There are awards for books, articles, and student conference papers on offer from APSA’s IMM group. Get your awesome work recognized!
The deadline to submit nominations for book and paper awards from IMM is March 30, 2025. Self-nominations welcomed!

Details on the awards, which recognize books, articles, and conference papers, are available on the IMM website: https://www.<wbr>interpretivemethods.com/<wbr>summary-of-awards
March 27, 2025 at 7:55 PM
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If you are interested in interpretive methods, I hope you can join the @interpretivemm.bsky.social tomorrow for the research presentations of our Spotlight Scholars!

mailchi.mp/ad01ac9a3016...
TOMORROW - March 21: Spotlight Scholars Research Presentations
mailchi.mp
March 20, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Delighted for the opportunity to discuss the politics of inequality with an extraordinary group of scholars last week at @mortaracenter.bsky.social. Left with my mind blown by colleagues’ work. Folks in this photo are reinventing how we think about inequality. A lot of important work is on the way!
Last week the Mortara Center and Professors Diana Kim and @pauliinapatana.bsky.social, with the support of @cgesgeorgetown.bsky.social, hosted the Politics of Social Stratification: Global Perspectives, a workshop aimed at examining the politics of social stratification, inequality, and identity.
February 24, 2025 at 11:21 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
New article on Fast Track by Omar Báez and Kent Eaton, “Recentralization in Mexico: Reconfiguring the Center in Intergovernmental Relations,” www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...
Recentralization in Mexico: Recon...r in Intergovernmental Relations: Ingenta Connect Fast Track Article
www.ingentaconnect.com
February 17, 2025 at 2:46 PM
This is a thoughtful primer on a misunderstood and mischaracterized issue by one of the most astute observers of South African politics. Great work as always from @carolyneholmes.bsky.social. Read it to really understand what’s happening around land reform!
February 11, 2025 at 4:27 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
The book isn't going to promote itself, so I will. Here is a New Books Network podcast episode on Intent to Destroy, if you don't have anything better to listen to. Thanks to John Vsetecka for the conversation.
Eugene Finkel, "Intent to Destroy: Russia's Two-Hundred-Year Quest to Dominate Ukraine" (Basic Books, 2024) - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
January 29, 2025 at 2:05 PM
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New article on Fast Track by Juan J. Fernández, @amjaime.bsky.social‬ and @bcaihuelas.bsky.social “The Socio-Structural Basis of the Long-Term Decline in Traditional Left-Right Class Voting in Affluent Democracies, 1964–2019,” www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...
The Socio-Structural Basis of the...ent Democracies, 1964–2019: Ingenta Connect Fast Track Article
www.ingentaconnect.com
January 27, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
New article on Fast Track by Neil Loughlin, “Is Chinese Investment Driving Authoritarianism? Evidence from the First Decade of the Belt and Road in Southeast Asia,” www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cuny...
Is Chinese Investment Driving Aut... Belt and Road in Southeast Asia: Ingenta Connect Fast Track Article
www.ingentaconnect.com
January 25, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Reposted by Nicholas Rush Smith
Scholars! I'm in charge of African Politics at @mpsa.bsky.social conference this year.

We're recruiting discussants for 3 great sessions:

Critical Theory - Fri, 4/4
Democracy & Contesting Power - Fri, 4/4
Politics of Development/Development Politics - Sat, 4/5

Let me know if you're interested!
January 16, 2025 at 2:27 PM