Welcome.
I am the Leo Marx Career Development Assistant Professor in the History and Culture of Science and Technology in the Department of Political Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where I am a member of the MIT Security Studies Program. For the 2022-2023 academic year, I am the Niehaus Fellow in U.S. Foreign Policy and International Security at Dartmouth’s Dickey Center for International Understanding.
My research examines how emerging military technology affects conflict dynamics and the use of force. In my book project, I study how remote warfighting technologies – like drones – shape crisis escalation. The book manuscript draws from my dissertation, which received the 2020 Merze Tate Award from the American Political Science Association for the best dissertation in international relations, law, and politics.
In other ongoing projects, I explore how technology and public opinion influence decisions on the use of force and alliance politics. I am also interested in the role of food in international politics.
My work has appeared or is forthcoming in academic and policy outlets including Journal of Politics, European Journal of International Relations, International Studies Quarterly, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Security Studies, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, and The Washington Post. My research has been supported by the Eisenhower Institute, the Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy, the Smith Richardson Foundation, and the Tobin Project. I was previously a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perry World House and a Carnegie Predoctoral Fellow at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation. I am an adjunct fellow with the Center for a New American Security Defense Program.
I completed my PhD in Political Science at Columbia University and an M.S. and B.S. in Political Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Before entering academia, I was an active duty officer in the United States Air Force and continue to serve on the Joint Staff as a member of the Air Force Reserve.
You can reach me at eriklg (at) mit (dot) edu. I am currently on leave and will be checking my email less frequently than usual. Thank you in advance for your patience.