Stephen E. Bronner Dissertation Award
For an outstanding Political Science dissertation finished within the previous year of the APSA Meeting which exemplifies the commitment to use scholarship in the struggle to making the study of political science relevant to building a more democratic and egalitarian economic, social, and political order.
2023 Recipient:
Candice Travis, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
2023 Committee:
Lahoma Thomas (chair), Peter Wagner, Benjamin Abrams, Stephen E. Bronner (honorary)
The dissertation embodies the award’s criteria by intertwining several critical dimensions of contemporary political discourse, demonstrating Dr. Travis’s rigorous research and insightful analysis. The work effectively highlights the connections between nationalism, nostalgia, mythology, and conspiracy theories, all of which shape political ideologies and actions. Additionally, the dissertation uncovers the underlying narratives that fuel the resurgence of conspiracy-driven white nationalism, providing a comprehensive understanding of its origins and motivations. Finally, the study examines the growing popular support for racially charged animosity across the United States, explaining how these sentiments coalesce around the aspiration to restore a perceived ‘lost great America.
The dissertation’s theoretical framework, which is grounded in John Dewey’s pragmatism, presents a novel perspective from which to evaluate how individuals and groups participate in political activity in response to advancing technologies and cultural transformations. In this work, Dr. Travis not only develops a taxonomy of right-wing American political organizations, such as the Proud Boys, Patriot Prayer, and QAnon supporters, but also demonstrates how each group endeavors to restore perceived traditional values by employing language and behavior that reflect these beliefs.
Of particular note is Dr. Travis’ insightful examination of the implications of these political narratives. By demonstrating how group affiliates engage in street fighting and violence to restore their perceived vision of America, the dissertation highlights how these narratives serve as catalysts for radicalization and the shifting of moral justifications for violence. It also underscores how the combination of nationalist nostalgia and conspiracy theories in political rhetoric has intensified white nationalist sentiments, resulting in events such as the January 6th Capitol Insurrection. The dissertation emphasizes the urgency of addressing the growing concern
and implications of these groups.
Dr. Travis’ dissertation exemplifies exceptional scholarly rigor as well as a steadfast commitment to advancing the understanding of the interplay between political discourse and action in shaping society. The dissertation’s examination of the intersection of political language and action, along with its detection of the catalytic role played by nationalist nostalgia and conspiracy theories, offers an innovative and profound contribution to the field of Political Science. We wholeheartedly endorse this dissertation for the award, as it embodies the ideals of using scholarship to foster a more democratic and equitable political order.
Past Recipients
2022: Lahoma Thomas, Toronto Metropolitan University
2021: Matt York, University College Cork
2020: Lucas Pinheiro, University of Chicago
“Factories of Modernity: Labor, Aesthetics, and the Racial Politics of Historical Capitalism,” University of Chicago, 2019
2019: Igor Shoikhedbrod, University of Toronto
“Rights Discourse and Economic Domination: Thinking Beyond the Narrow Horizon of Liberal Justice,” University of Toronto, 2018
2018: Rafael Khachaturian, Indiana University
“Discipline, Knowledge, and Critique: Marxist Theory and the Revival of the State in American Political Science, 1968-1989.” Indiana University, 2017
2017: Kevin Funk, Spring Hill College
“Between National Attachments, Rooted Transnationalism, and Borderless Utopias: Searching for Imagined Communities in Latin America’s Booming Economic Relations with the Arab World.” University of Florida, 2016
2016: Dean Snyder, Antioch College
“Commercial Capital and the Political Economy of Agricultural Overproduction.” Syracuse University, 2015
Deadline for nominations: April 1, 2024
Nomination Instructions: Nominations must be made in writing to the Committee Chair by a member of the dissertation committee or a scholar with relevant knowledge of the dissertation, and all three committee members must receive a copy by April 1st in order to be eligible for consideration.
Award Committee
| Candice K. Travis (Chair) | Quinnipiac University | Candice.Travis@quinnipiac.edu |
| William Sokoloff | University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | william.sokoloff@utrgv.edu |
| Lucrecia Garcia Iommi | Fairfield University | lgarciaiommi@fairfield.edu |
| Judith Grant | Ohio University | grantj1@ohio.edu |