Dissertation Research

My dissertation examines local policies designed to further immigrant political integration in the United States. I ask two broad questions: why have cities across the country passed policies and implemented programs to help immigrants politically integrate, and how have these programs affected the political behaviors of immigrants themselves? To answer these questions, I draw on theories of policy adoption and policy feedback effects. I am particularly interested in how the social construction of immigrants as policy recipients in each city affects the policies a city adopts. I am also interested in how immigrant-serving organizations and advocacy groups work to influence the way immigrants are perceived within a city, and push for policy change.

My dissertation uses a multi-method approach to answer my questions. I have tracked how policies have changed in cities across the U.S. over time, to gain an understanding what city-level factors are associated with different types of policies. I have also conducted fieldwork and roughly 100 interviews in four different case cities - Austin, TX, Charlotte, NC, Columbus, OH, and Indianapolis, IN. These case studies provide insight into why different cities have pursued different policy agendas in regards to immigrants, and how local immigrant-service organizations and advocacy groups have affected that.

Refereed Publications

Dias, Megan, Epp, Derek, Roman, Marcel, & Walker, Hannah. 2023. Consent Searches: Evaluating the Usefulness of a Common and Highly Discretionary Police Practice. Journal of Empirical Legal Studies. 1–57.

Buchanan, Ross, Dias, Megan, & Wlezien, Christopher. 2022. “On Collective Representation.” In Thomas Rudolph (ed.) Handbook of Politics and Public Opinion. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing.

Cameron, Maxwell, Dias, Megan, & Ejeckam, Chuka. The 2018 B.C. Referendum on Electoral Reform: The Challenges of Citizen Consultations. 2019. Journal of Parliamentary and Political Law. Vol13, Special Issue, 75-86.

Working Papers

Dias, Megan. “Examining Immigrant Political Integration through Local Policy Adoption and Feedback Effects.”

Dias, Megan, Hayduk, Ron, & Marti, Olivia. The Causes and Consequences of Expanding the Right to Vote to Non-Citizens in San Francisco.

Williamson, Abigail, & Dias, Megan. Presidential Immigration Policy Approaches and City-Level Immigrant-Serving Practices Over Time.

Dias, Megan. “‘Immigrant’ is a dirty word; ‘New American’ is not”: The Social Construction of Immigrants in Red States.