Dissertation

The Causes and Consequences of Anti-Asian Racism in the United States

My dissertation examines the causes and consequences of contemporary anti-Asian racism in the United States. Building on theories of American racial hierarchy, I first propose a new scientific measure of anti-Asian sentiments, the Asian American Resentment (AAR) scale. Utilizing public opinion surveys, survey experiments, and text analyses, I then probe the long-term underlying factors behind the rise of anti-Asian sentiments across the United States, focusing on demographic changes, the China trade shock, and anti-China political rhetoric. I then shift my focus to the role anti-Asian sentiments played in the election of Donald Trump in 2016 and the relationship between the racial attitude and the American public’s foreign policy preferences on China. My dissertation contributes to advancing scholarly discussions on the increasingly salient yet overlooked dimension of American racial relations.

Peer-Reviewed Articles

“The Chinese Virus?: The Politicization of COVID-19 and the Rise of Anti-Asian Racism in the United States,” Journal of Experimental Political Science. Conditionally Accepted.

Working Papers

“Race in International Relations: Beyond the ‘Norm Against Noticing’,” with Bianca Freeman and David A. Lake. Commissioned for Annual Review of Political Science.

“Yellow Peril Revived? Anti-Asian Racial Resentment and American Public Opinion on China.”

“China’s rise and Foreign Policy Revisionism in the Era of Pandemic Politics.” with Joshua Byun and Sichen Li.