Political Science
international relations
JACLYN JOHNSON-AVALOS
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Welcome!

​I am currently a Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Kentucky.  I received my PhD in International Relations from the University of Kentucky in 2018. My dissertation explored military mutinies and coded the first quantitative, global sample of mutinies. This data feature has been accepted at The Journal of Peace Research.

In my free time, I enjoy horses, gambling, and gambling on horses. As it turns out, my training in political science and quantitative methods has actually been extremely useful for handicapping horses. Here's to hoping I get the Derby winner this year!

Curriculum Vitae
Research

My major field of study is International Relations with a minor in Comparative Politics. I am broadly interested in civil conflict, civil military relations, and domestic unrest. My most recent research explores military mutinies. 
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Military mutinies are an understudied topic of civil military relations. I have collected new longitudinal data that will allow scholars to analyze the determinants and effects of military mutinies across cases, regions, and time. Why do military mutinies matter? Military mutinies are shaping civil conflict in the 21st century by redefining civil military relations and emboldening non-state actors. Mutinies play a major but understudied role in determining the onset of civil wars, the strength of non-state actors (e.g. terrorist networks or rebel groups) and the likelihood of military coups that inevitably reverse democratization.


My research and teaching interests include:
Military Mutinies
Civil Military Relations
Civil Conflict
Pro-Democracy Protest Events
Protest Diffusion
African Politics 

Quantitative Methods 


Teaching

During my time as an instructor, I have sought to accomplish two very simple, yet imperative pedagogical goals. First, I teach my students why politics matter. Regardless of what field students end up in, there is no
doubt that policy will have an impact on their subsequent profession. As such, my courses spend a significant amount of time focusing on the impact of politics, be it in an international or domestic setting.

My second pedagogical goal is to have studen
t challenge conventional ways of thinking. There are a number of research findings in Political Science that turn conventional wisdom on its head. I always make an effort to present these bits of knowledge because not only do they draw students’ interest, but they encourage students to think outside of the
metaphorical box. It is my belief that non-traditional ways of thinking help
move individual careers along and advance society more broadly. Interacting with students who are able to push the boundaries of traditional thinking makes me realize that in the next few decades, some of our greatest challenges might be overcome by students in our classrooms now. Thus, it is imperative to keep pushing them towards the boundaries of our discipline.

Courses Taught: 
Intro to Political Science 
International Relations 
Comparative Politics 
Special Topics: Refugee Crisis 
African Politics 
Political Violence 
Intro to Political Analysis and Inference 
Law and Legal Education 
​American Politics 



Contact Information: jaclyn.johnson@uky.edu
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