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ALEXANDRIA J. NYLEN

Ph.D. Political Science

Dissertation (Sept. 2021):

Targeting Drones: Framing and Connectivity in Transnational Issue Networks

Biography

I earned my Ph.D. in political science from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in Summer 2021. I am trained in international relations, specializing in the area of international security. My research examines the legal and normative implications of remote warfare, such as the use of armed drones in counterterrorism operations, as well as civil society’s response to post-9/11 national security policies.

 

My dissertation, Targeting Drones: Framing and Connectivity in Transnational Issue Networks uses a bottom-up approach to explore how actors with differing levels of geopolitical power navigate a transnational advocacy network. Using the armed drone advocacy issue as a case study, this dissertation draws on interviews with key informants, fieldwork in Islamabad, and an original text and picture dataset of over 100 advocacy documents. My research is published in the European Journal of International Relations, the European Journal of International Security and Perspectives on Politics.

 

I am trained in rigorous qualitative analysis and can teach a variety of methods courses. I have taught introductory level international relations and comparative politics classes, as well as special topic courses like American Foreign Policy and Globalization, Governance and World Order. I was nominated for the campus-wide Distinguished Teaching Award in Fall 2018, and co-founded the department’s Conflict, Violence and Security Working Group. I also hold an MA in Peace and Justice Studies from the University of San Diego.

Currently, I am the Civil-Military Program Coordinator in the Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Studies in Brown University's Watson Institute.

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