I am an associate professor at Penn State University. I received my BA from Boston College and my MA and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor). I have been a visiting scholar at the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), Peace Research Institute of Oslo (Norway), California Institute of Technology, University of Washington (Seattle), and the Institute of Philippine Culture (Manila, Philippines). My empirical research focuses on the comparative study of democratization and civil conflict. I utilize a range of approaches, including large-N, cross-regional medium-N, and case studies. In addition, I have addressed methodological issues related to measures of democracy commonly used in large-N research. My current work concerns how elites learn to reinforce democracy during national crises. I have published articles in Political Analysis, Political Science Research and Methods, Democratization, Armed Forces and Society, and Pilipinas. My books include Negotiating Democracy: Transitions from Authoritarian Rule (with Michelle M. Taylor, 1996) and Fragile Democracies: Legacies of Authoritarian Rule (1995).