Darin Christensen

Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Political Science

UCLA, Luskin School

I study political economy, focusing on institutions and policies that promote investment and mitigate violence in developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. I have consulted on projects for The Asia Foundation, USAID, and The World Bank.

Affiliations

Education

PhD in Political Science, 2016

Stanford University
MA in Economics, 2016

Stanford University
BA in Political Science, 2008

Duke University

Working Papers

Do Commodity Price Shocks Cause Armed Conflict? A Meta-Analysis of Natural Experiments

Darin Christensen, Graeme Blair, Aaron Rudkin

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Building Resilient Health Systems: Experimental Evidence from Sierra Leone and the 2014 Ebola Outbreak

Darin Christensen, Oeindrila Dube, Johannes Haushofer, Bilal Siddiqi, Maarten Voors

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The Politics of Property Taxation: Fiscal Infrastructure and Electoral Incentives in Brazil

Darin Christensen, Francisco Garfias

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How Does Armed Conflict Shape Investment? Evidence from the Mining Sector

Darin Christensen, Graeme Blair, Valerie Wirtschafter

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Legibility and External Investment: An Institutional Natural Experiment in Liberia

Darin Christensen, Alexandra Hartman, Cyrus Samii

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How Budgets Shape Autocrats' Survival Strategies

Darin Christensen, Michael Gibilisco

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Articles

Darin Christensen, Oeindrila Dube, Johannes Haushofer, Bilal Siddiqi, Maarten Voors. Community-based Crisis Response: Evidence from Sierra Leone's Ebola Outbreak. AEA Papers and Proceedings, 2020.

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Darin Christensen. Concession Stands: How Mining Investments Incite Protest in Africa. International Organization, 2019.

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Darin Christensen, Mai Nguyen, Renard Sexton. Strategic Violence during Democratization: Evidence from Myanmar. World Politics, 2019.

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Darin Christensen, Francisco Garfias. Can You Hear Me Now? How Communication Technology Affects Protest and Repression. Quarterly Journal of Political Science, 2018.

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Darin Christensen. The Geography of Repression in Africa. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 2018.

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Darin Christensen, Simon Ejdemyr. Do Elections Improve Constituency Responsiveness? Evidence from U.S. Cities. Political Science Research and Methods, 2016.

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Darin Christensen, David Hausman. Measuring the Economic Effect of Alien Tort Statute Liability. Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, 2016.

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Darin Christensen, Jeremy Weinstein. Defunding Dissent: Restrictions on Aid to NGOs. Journal of Democracy, 2013.

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Darin Christensen, Erik Wibbels. Labor Standards, Labor Endowments, and the Evolution of Inequality. International Studies Quarterly, 2013.

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Books

Darin Christensen, David D Laitin. African States Since Independence: Order, Development & Democracy. Yale University Press, 2019.

Project

Resources

Tracking Concessions in Sierra Leone

Nationwide census to catalog mining and agricultural concessions.

Darin Christensen, Bilal Siddiqi, Maarten Voors

Jan 18, 2019

Correction to Conley Standard Errors

Updated and corrected code for Conley standard errors.

Darin Christensen, Thiemo Fetzer

Aug 21, 2017

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Ongoing Projects

Project on Resources and Governance

Non-profit research initiative that applies insights from the social and behavioral sciences to find effective solutions to governance problems in resource-rich countries.

Managing Forest Resources in Liberia

RCT to provide information and training that enables communities to make decisions about forest use that satisfy their conservation and development goals.