Jana Morgan is associate professor of political science and chair of the Latin American and Caribbean Interdisciplinary Program at UT. Professor Morgan teaches undergraduate and graduate courses on Latin American politics, political parties, comparative politics, and political science research methods. Her research considers issues of inequality, exclusion, and political representation in Latin America. She is particularly interested in exploring how gaps in the representation and participation of economically and socially marginalized groups undermine democratic institutions and outcomes.
Professor Morgan is the recipient of the Van Cott Outstanding Book award given by the Latin American Studies Association for her book Bankrupt Representation and Party System Collapse (Penn State, 2011), which shows how the inability of party systems to provide adequate linkages between society and the state precipitate system collapse. The book provides in-depth analysis of Venezuela’s party system collapse as well as seven other country cases from Latin America, Europe and Asia. Her work regarding political parties, representation, and exclusion has also been published in numerous journals including the American Political Science Review, Comparative Political Studies, Journal of Politics, Politics & Gender, Latin American Research Review, and Latin American Politics and Society and has appeared in blogs published by the Washington Post and the London School of Economics.
Professor Morgan’s research has been supported by grants from the Fulbright-Hays program and the Russell Sage Foundation, among others. She has conducted extensive field research throughout Latin America, with extended stays in Venezuela, Chile, Ecuador, and Peru, and she is currently the co-director of the Americas Barometer in the Dominican Republic, a project that is part of a region-wide effort to collect high quality survey data regarding politics and policy across the Americas.
Professor Morgan completed the bachelor’s degree at Wheaton College and the master’s and doctoral degrees at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
