Josh McCrain
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joshmccrain.bsky.social
Josh McCrain
@joshmccrain.bsky.social
2.9K followers 430 following 650 posts
Political scientist at the University of Utah. Public policy, political institutions, media and politics
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joshmccrain.bsky.social
this story is WILD

“Lame duck session” was out, because “lame” was offensive. Even “Americans” should be avoided, the guide said, because it excluded non-U. S. citizens.

www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/u...
The Sierra Club Embraced Social Justice. Then It Tore Itself Apart.
www.nytimes.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:13 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
it's also possible to convince voters of this! www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
November 7, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Reposted by Josh McCrain
prl.bsky.social
PRL welcomes postdoc applications at Dartmouth for 2026-2027. Work with @seanjwestwood.bsky.social & @ylelkes.bsky.social on projects like www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... and elite rhetoric analysis using americaspoliticalpulse.com/elites/
Pls apply by Jan 5 on Interfolio 🙏 apply.interfolio.com/175722
Elected Officials
americaspoliticalpulse.com
November 4, 2025 at 8:52 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
👏👏
October 28, 2025 at 2:58 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
absolutely brutal
October 27, 2025 at 9:25 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
one of the most exhausting things on here is the self righteousness of people complaining about other people still being on twitter
October 23, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Reposted by Josh McCrain
mikecrespin.bsky.social
The Carl Albert Center at the University of Oklahoma is recruiting graduate students who wish to earn PhDs in political science. We want students who are interested in American Politics in a area that can be supervised by one of our three faculty (Rachel Blum, Chuck Finocchiaro and myself).
October 22, 2025 at 3:48 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
i just continue to be amazed at how much i've been able to learn via ChatGPT since it got "smarter". Just an incredible tool for researchers who already have a strong technical background
October 21, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Reposted by Josh McCrain
jongreen.bsky.social
it's actually fine if you don't want to vote for/send money to/post favorably about a guy who accidentally got a Nazi tattoo while drunk and kept it because he thought it looked cool. that doesn't make you unreasonably closed-minded.
convolutedname.bsky.social Guy Trivago @convolutedname.bsky.social · 21d
If people affiliated with the campaign have to fall back on stuff like this in October in the year prior to the election, you're toast, pack it in.
October 21, 2025 at 2:38 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
i feel like you dont' see this talked about enough
October 15, 2025 at 4:27 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
well this is just a deeply upsetting read: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/13/s...
Motherhood Is in a Political Spotlight, but the Moms Are Shaking It Off
www.nytimes.com
October 14, 2025 at 6:07 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
don't protest the Wrong way, protest the Right way
kleinman.bsky.social Bobby Big Wheel @kleinman.bsky.social · 28d
If you're going to a No Kings march instead of a witty sign that might elicit a chuckle maybe you could just carry an American flag
October 14, 2025 at 4:54 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
Exactly what I keep telling my students. I am and should be referred to as a community hero
October 13, 2025 at 2:54 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
if this is what your DAG is looking like i'm not sure you should be using panel data lol
October 2, 2025 at 3:42 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
police 🤝academics
emayfarris.bsky.social Emily Farris @emayfarris.bsky.social · Oct 1
This new column by @tressiemcphd.bsky.social makes me think about when I recently had to talk to the police for yet another safety plan, I tried to “lighten” the mood by saying that we all knew this wasn’t my first rodeo. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/01/o...
For at least the past 15 years, my colleagues in academia have grappled with angry letters to university officials for doing their jobs. They have weathered campaigns for their firing. They have contended with an internet army obsessed with doxxing them, their parents, their kids. I’ve been contacted by the F.B.I. more than once in my career. Not because I hold any important state secrets or know a biker gang but because one of my colleagues has lived with so much sustained harassment from right-wing “activists” that it has become a matter of federal concern. Watch lists (one of which was constructed by Kirk’s organization) do not distinguish between public intellectuals at wealthy enclaves and hoi polloi who teach popular classes at cash-strapped schools. In either case, an army of trained provocateurs stands ready to destroy their lives to prove their bona fides as conservative activists.
October 1, 2025 at 5:27 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
Update on this ad: this position will not be the managing editor of PRQ. You will have no formal editorial responsibilities. You just have to go to a couple meetings every year. Trying to get the ad changed.
joshmccrain.bsky.social Josh McCrain @joshmccrain.bsky.social · Sep 25
The University of Utah Department of Political Science is hiring a department chair at the rank of Full Professor! This job is open to any subfield.

Let me know if you have questions about the search, including (as you likely are wondering) why we are hiring an external chair.
September 30, 2025 at 3:53 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
huge if true
jonbois.bsky.social Jon Bois @jonbois.bsky.social · Sep 29
i don't mean to single out baseball fans here, because you see this in lots of fan communities, but in certain corners people talk as though baseball is real. they think all the players are real people and the stadiums are places you can actually visit. to each their own, but that cannot be healthy
September 29, 2025 at 6:54 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
Deadline extended! Still time to get your submissions into legislative politics section!
joshmccrain.bsky.social Josh McCrain @joshmccrain.bsky.social · Sep 17
The @wpsa.bsky.social 2026 annual meeting submission deadline is soon. Reminder: it's in San Diego! In April!

I'm the section chair for legislative politics, please submit your papers. Also, this is a great conference for graduate students!

www.wpsanet.org/meeting/
September 29, 2025 at 4:17 PM
Reposted by Josh McCrain
joshmccrain.bsky.social
The University of Utah Department of Political Science is hiring a department chair at the rank of Full Professor! This job is open to any subfield.

Let me know if you have questions about the search, including (as you likely are wondering) why we are hiring an external chair.
September 25, 2025 at 4:11 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
i wish AJPS would stop boycotting my papers
reuning.bsky.social Kevin Reuning @reuning.bsky.social · Sep 26
I don't know why but something feels off with calling this a boycott.
NYT headline: Local TV Giant Sinclair Ends Jimmy Kimmel Boycott The company is one of two that has been pre-empting Mr. Kimmel’s show since he returned this week.
September 26, 2025 at 7:45 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
sociologists have discovered the people prefer romantic relationships with people who agree with them (this paper is doing numbers on reddit)

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
September 26, 2025 at 7:44 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
you do not in fact gotta hand it to Sinclair
September 26, 2025 at 6:50 PM
Reposted by Josh McCrain
andrew.heiss.phd
Just posted an updated/revised version of this “Statistical Methods in Public Policy Research” chapter, now under review post-R&R 🤞

I'm kinda partial and unbiased here, but I really really like this piece!

HTML/PDF: stats.andrewheiss.com/snoopy-spring/
SocArXiv: doi.org/10.31235/osf...
Statistical Methods in Public Policy Research Chapter for the Oxford Research Encyclopedia on Public Policy This essay provides an overview of statistical methods in public policy, focused primarily on the United States. The essay traces the historical development of quantitative approaches in policy research, from early ad hoc applications through the 19th and early 20th centuries, to the full institutionalization of statistical analysis in federal, state, local, and nonprofit agencies by the late 20th century. It then outlines three core methodological approaches to policy-centered statistical research across social science disciplines: description, explanation, and prediction. In descriptive work, researchers explore what exists and examine any variable of interest to understand their different distributions and relationships. In explanatory work, researchers ask why does it exist and how can it be influenced. The focus of the analysis is on explanatory variables (X) to either (1) accurately estimate their relationship with an outcome variable (Y), or (2) causally attribute the effect of specific explanatory variables on outcomes. In predictive work, researchers ask what will happen next and focus on the outcome variable (Y) and on generating accurate forecasts, classifications, and predictions from new data. For each approach, the essay examines key techniques, their applications in policy contexts, and important methodological considerations. The discussion then considers critical perspectives on quantitative policy analysis framed around issues related to a three-part “data imperative” where governments are driven to count, gather, and learn from data. Each of these imperatives entail substantial issues related to privacy, accountability, democratic participation, and epistemic inequalities—issues at odds with public sector values of transparency and openness. The conclusion identifies some emerging trends in public sector-focused data science, inclusive ethi… Table of contents Introduction 1 Brief History of Statistics in Public Policy 2 Core Methodological Approaches 2.1 Description 2.2 Explanation 2.2.1 Estimation, Inference, and Hypothesis Testing 2.2.2 Causal Attribution and Causal Inference 2.3 Prediction 3 The Pitfalls of Counting, Gathering, and Learning from Public Data 4 Future Directions Further Reading References
September 26, 2025 at 3:41 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
The University of Utah Department of Political Science is hiring a department chair at the rank of Full Professor! This job is open to any subfield.

Let me know if you have questions about the search, including (as you likely are wondering) why we are hiring an external chair.
September 25, 2025 at 4:11 PM
joshmccrain.bsky.social
qualtiative research boy, idk
September 25, 2025 at 3:16 PM