About

I am an Associate Professor of Political Science at University of South Carolina Aiken and Director of the USCA Social Sciences and Business Research Lab. My areas of research interest broadly include American political behavior and public opinion work, although I have also published in areas of neuroscience as a separate line of research.

Before coming to South Carolina, I had lived my whole life in the DC and Baltimore area. I was born and grew up in Mount Airy MD, about 35 miles north of DC and west of Baltimore as the exurbs of both cities reached the town. I graduated from South Carroll High School in 2001 and attended Johns Hopkins University. I graduated from Hopkins in 2006 with a BA in behavioral biology and worked briefly as a research assistant in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry.

I am a second generation immigrant from Taiwan and my personal experiences translate into a professional interest in the politics of multiracial individuals.

I received my PhD from George Mason University in Fairfax VA in 2013. My dissertation advisor was Michael P. McDonald (now at University of Florida) and my dissertation focused on party registration. I taught at George Mason University and Frederick Community College before coming to USCA.

I currently live in Martinez GA with my wife (also a native of central MD) and daughter. My hobbies include geocaching (username: mthornburg) and tabletop roleplaying games. My wife and I run an RPG meetup for the Augusta area.