Historical Information and Beliefs about Racial Inequality

Understand the people, policies, institutions and organizations that shape public life. As a student of political science, you will gain essential analytical and organizational skills that can be applied to exciting careers in government, law, business, international organizations, nonprofit organizations, survey research, journalism and teaching.

The Political Science Department is devoted to the study of politics and government; this includes the study of:

political institutions that exercise government authority, including legislatures, courts and administrative agencies;
political organizations through which individuals and groups seek to reshape the political landscape, including parties, interest groups and social movements;
public policies that reflect governmental efforts to regulate the actions of individuals and corporations, including civil rights, immigration and environmental policy;
the interactions between and among nation-states and;
transnational organizations that shape patterns of trade and development, conflict and cooperation, war, and peace.

full-time faculty teaching and conducting research in political science

66%

of Maxwell faculty conduct research focused outside of the U.S.

graduate students in residence; fewer than 12 admitted each year

Undergraduate Studies

Studying political science will help you understand the workings of political life at the local, national and international levels and will prepare you for a lifetime of active and informed citizenship. The Department of Political Science at Syracuse University has more than thirty full-time faculty that teach a wide variety of courses in multiple subject areas. We will guide you as you explore the world of politics and hone your skills as a researcher, analyst and writer.

Graduate Studies

Master’s and doctoral students receive broad training in quantitative and qualitative methods of social science research, while also concentrating in two of the following substantive fields: American politics, comparative politics, international relations, political theory, public administration and policy, law and courts, or security studies.

I am Maxwell.

Civic engagement is a core value for me. I have always aspired to help the communities I’m from.” Mazaher Kaila, a Maxwell alumna and third-year student at Syracuse University's College of Law, moved with her family from Sudan to Central New York when she was four years old. “I realized that to make meaningful change in society, I needed to understand the systems that power it—government and politics—and that’s insight I would gain by studying political science.”

Mazaher Kaila ’19, L’22

political science, law

Read Kaila's story, “A Powerful Voice for Justice”

Historical Information and Beliefs about Racial Inequality

Steven White, Albert H. Fang

Politics, Groups, and Identities, August 2022

Steven White

Political Science Department

Campbell Public Affairs Institute

Civil Rights

Education

Race & Ethnicity

Politics, Groups, and Identities

Steven White

Does exposure to historical information cause systemic policy thinking? Despite the importance of this question across multiple research traditions, there is a dearth of empirical research assessing it. We evaluate this question by studying the case of how arguments about the historical and structural roots of racial inequality affect beliefs about racial inequality.

Analyzing data from a novel survey experiment fielded on two national, census-balanced samples of American adults, we find compelling evidence that such arguments can increase beliefs in the existence of Black-white racial inequality and increase beliefs in structural causes of racial inequality, particularly among white Republicans and Independents. In addition, we find evidence that historical information can reduce racial resentment among these groups.

Overall, our study provides evidence that exposure to historical information can induce greater systemic and historical thinking about contemporary racial inequalities in the United States.

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Thomas Keck Named a 2024 Guggenheim Fellow

Awards & Honors , Civil Rights , Grant Awards , Law

BaoBao Zhang Joins First Cohort of AI2050 Early Career Fellows

One of only 15 scholars chosen from across the U.S., Zhang will receive up to $200,000 in research funding over the next two years. Zhang will use the funding to partner with the nonprofit, non-partisan Center for New Democratic Processes to test whether public participation in AI governance is increased through the creation of public assemblies, known as “deliberative democracy workshops.”

Baobao Zhang

Assistant Professor, Political Science Department

Read More

Historical Information and Beliefs about Racial Inequality

Steven White, Albert H. Fang

Politics, Groups, and Identities, August 2022

Steven White

Political Science Department

Campbell Public Affairs Institute

Civil Rights

Education

Race & Ethnicity

Politics, Groups, and Identities

Steven White

Overall, our study provides evidence that exposure to historical information can induce greater systemic and historical thinking about contemporary racial inequalities in the United States.