Monika McDermott

Monika McDermott is Professor of Political Science at Fordham. She studies voting behavior, political psychology and public opinion. Prof. McDermott has published research on multiple topics within political behavior, including personalities in politics, voting cues, information shortcuts in elections, public opinion of Congress, and vote choice in congressional elections. She is the author of two books, and her work has been published in some of the profession's topjournals, including the American Journal of Political Science, the Journal of Politics, Political Research Quarterly, and Public Opinion Quarterly.

Prof. McDermott's current research focuses on the way that masculine and feminine personality traits affect Americans' political behavior and attitudes. Her recent book Masculinity, Femininity, and American Political Behavior (Oxford University Press 2016) analyzes how these personality profiles affect party affiliation, vote choice, ideology, political participation, and views of sex roles in society and politics. For example, her analysis demonstrates that individuals with high levels of feminine traits are drawn to the Democratic Party while more masculine individuals prefer the GOP.

Prof. McDermott is also a survey research practitioner, having conducted election surveys at The Los Angeles Times Poll and the CBS News Election and Survey Unit. She has been an election night polling analyst for CBS News since 2002 and also works as a campaign and polling consultant for political and non-profit clients in America and abroad.

Education

• University of California, Los Angeles - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Political Science 1992 - 1999
• UC Santa Barbara - Bachelor's degree, Political Science and Government