Eric Lob

Eric Lob is Associate Professor in the Department of Politics and International Relations at Florida International University. His research examines the intersection of development and politics in the Middle East, particularly how state and non-state actors use development as soft power.

Lob's award-winning book Iran's Reconstruction Jihad explores how rural development programs helped consolidate power after the 1979 revolution. His current research analyzes Iran's foreign policy and developmental activities in Africa and Syria, drone industry development, and security-development dynamics in border regions.

He teaches courses on Middle East comparative politics and political violence. Lob conducted fieldwork in Iran from 2009-2011 and studied Persian and Arabic in the region. Before joining FIU, he was a postdoctoral fellow at Brandeis University's Crown Center.