Robert Lieberman

About

Robert Lieberman is the Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Political Science at Johns Hopkins University. He studies American political development, race and American politics, and public policy. He has written extensively about the development of American democracy and the links between American and comparative politics. His most recent book is Four Threats: The Recurring Crises of American Democracy, co-authored with Suzanne Mettler. His first book, Shifting the Color Line: Race and the American Welfare State, received several awards including the Social Science History Association Presidential Book Award, the Thomas J. Wilson Prize of Harvard University Press, and Columbia University’s Lionel Trilling Award. Another notable work, Shaping Race Policy: The United States in Comparative Perspective, was awarded the Best Book Prize by the Race, Ethnicity, and Politics Section of the American Political Science Association. He is also the co-editor of several publications, including Democratization in America: A Comparative-Historical Analysis, Beyond Discrimination: Racial Inequality in a Postracist Era, and The Oxford Handbook of American Political Development. Lieberman has served as a fellow of the Russell Sage Foundation and the American Philosophical Society, and in 2021, he was the John G. Winant Visiting Professor of Government at the University of Oxford. He previously served as provost and senior vice president of academic affairs at Johns Hopkins University, overseeing…

Research topics

• Political Science
• Law
• Computer Science
• Sociology
• Computer Security
• Medicine
• Law and economics
• History
• Optometry
• Public administration

Selected publications

• The Trump Presidency and American Democracy: A Historical and Comparative Analysis

  Perspectives on Politics · 2018-10-24 · 138 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  To many observers across the political spectrum, American democracy appears under threat. What does the Trump presidency portend for American politics? How much confidence should we have in the capacity of American institutions to withstand this threat? We argue that understanding what is uniquely threatening to democracy requires looking beyond the particulars of Trump and his presidency. Instead, it demands a historical and comparative perspective on American politics. Drawing on insights from…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• President Obama, The Senate, and The Polarized Politics of Treaty Making

  The SHAFR Guide Online · 2017-10-02 · 18 citations

  dataset1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Democratic Vulnerabilities and Pathways for Reform

  The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science · 2022 · 9 citations

  democracy; backsliding; political development; institutions; reform

  PublisherDOI

• Preface

  PS Political Science & Politics · 2021-08-06 · 8 citations

  article

  An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content.

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• How Democracies Endure

  Cambridge University Press eBooks · 2021-11-20 · 8 citations

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding

  Politics in the United States has become more polarized in recent decades as both political elites and everyday citizens have been divided into rival and mutually antagonistic partisan camps. Increasingly, these rival camps question the political legitimacy and democratic commitments of the other side. Such polarization or “teamsmanship” can have a number of important political consequences: it can drive actors further apart, intensify political conflict, impede negotiation and compromise, and b…

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Stephen P. Wernet

  49 shared

• Jill Littrell

  Georgia State University

  49 shared

• Florida Quadagno

  Louisiana State University

  49 shared

• Laura Canty-Swapp

  Western Michigan University

  49 shared

• Darlene Pi ja

  Louisiana State University

  49 shared

• Dana Vannoy

  Louisiana State University

  49 shared

• Gunnar Almgren

  49 shared

• Jill Reviewed

  Saint Louis University

  49 shared

Education

• PhD, Government

  Harvard University

  1994

• MA, Government

  Harvard University

  1994

• BA

  Yale University

  1986

Awards & honors

• Social Science History Association Presidential Book Award
• Thomas J. Wilson Prize of Harvard University Press
• Columbia University’s Lionel Trilling Award
• Best Book Prize by the Race, Ethnicity, and Politics Section…
• fellowship from the Russell Sage Foundation

Similar researchers at Johns Hopkins University

• Richard S. Katzh-44
• Daniel Deudneyh-27
• T Smithh-26