Paul Testa

Paul Testa is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Brown University, specializing in applying designed-based inference to study the politics of race and criminal justice. He examines how criminal justice interactions shape political behavior and public perceptions of justice. His work appears in top journals like the American Journal of Political Science and Journal of Politics. He teaches quantitative methods at both undergraduate and graduate levels.

Education: PhD in Political Science (2016, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) and BA in Government and Economics (2007, Cornell University).

Research focuses on racial disparities in criminal justice, public opinion formation, and the efficacy of social movement messaging. Recent projects include analyzing pandemic responses in Brazil, Mexico, and the U.S., and studying gender equity advocacy through male allyship.

Awards include the Catt Prize (2015) and George T. Yu Travel Award (2016). He is a Policy Lab fellow at Brown, integrating behavioral insights into public policy, and an affiliate at the Taubman Center for American Politics. His teaching includes courses on quantitative research methods and the politics of race in criminal justice.