Daniel De Kadt

Daniel De Kadt serves as Assistant Professor of Quantitative Research Methods in the Department of Methodology at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where he is also an affiliate of the LSE Data Science Institute and holds a Senior Visiting Fellowship in Government.

His academic journey includes:

• BA(Hons) from University of KwaZulu-Natal (Durban, South Africa)
• MPhil from Oxford University
• PhD from Massachusetts Institute of Technology

De Kadt specializes in causal inference within ambiguous political contexts, with core research focusing on decision-making processes, democratic institutions, and South African political dynamics. His methodological expertise bridges quantitative social science and data science, particularly examining how complex real-world conditions affect political behavior and accountability mechanisms. Substantive interests span behavioral political economy, inequality effects on policy preferences, and institutional legacies in African democracies.

His publication record reveals consistent thematic focus on political accountability in African contexts, particularly South Africa. Key patterns include the interplay between inequality exposure and redistributive preferences, voter responses to service delivery failures, and the enduring influence of traditional authorities on electoral behavior. Recent work examines how state violence shapes long-term political trajectories, demonstrating methodological innovation in causal identification within observational settings.

Professional affiliations highlight his interdisciplinary approach through the LSE Data Science Institute, where he contributes to advancing computational social science methodologies while maintaining strong connections to African political studies.