Bio
Daniel Nielson is a Professor of Political Science at Brigham Young University. He is the co-founder, former Chief Social Scientist, and a principal investigator of AidData. He received his PhD in international affairs from University of California – San Diego in 1997. His scholarship focuses on international development, foreign aid, international organizations, and international field experiments. He is co-author of Global Shell Games: Experiments in Transnational Relations, Crime and Terrorism and co-editor of Delegation and Agency in International Organizations, both published by Cambridge University Press. He has also authored articles in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Journal of Political Science, International Organization, Journal of Politics, World Development, Comparative Political Studies, and International Studies Quarterly, among other journals.
Research Interests
International Development, Foreign Aid, International Organizations, and International Field Experiments
Awards
- Best Paper Award from Experimental Research Section, American Political Science Association, 2013
- Fiona McGillivray Prize for Best Paper from Political Economy Section, American Political Science Association, 2013
- Yale H. Ferguson Best Book Award from International Studies Association Northeast, 2016
Professional Affiliations
- Experiments in Governance & Politics Network
- American Political Science Association
- Midwest Political Science Association
- International Political Economy Society
Publications
- Brandon de la Cuesta,* Lucy Martin, Helen Milner, and Daniel Nielson. “Owning It: Accountability and Citizens’ Ownership over Oil, Aid, and Taxes.” Journal of Politics, forthcoming.
- Michael G. Findley, Nathan Jensen, and Daniel Nielson. “Electoral Institutions and Electoral Cycles in Foreign Direct Investment: A Field Experiment on Over 3,000 U.S. Municipalities.” American Journal of Political Science, forthcoming.
- Mark T. Buntaine, Jacob T. Skaggs, and Daniel L. Nielson. “Escaping the Disengagement Dilemma: Two Field Experiments on Motivating Citizens to Report on Public Services.” British Journal of Political Science, forthcoming.
- Brandon de la Cuesta,* Helen V. Milner, Daniel L. Nielson, and Stephen F. Knack. 2019. “Oil and Aid Revenue Produce Equal Demands for Accountability as Taxes in Ghana and Uganda.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 116, 36 (September 3):17717-17722.
- Thad Dunning, Guy Grossman, Macartan Humphreys, Susan Hyde, Craig McIntosh, Gareth Nellis, Claire L. Adida, Eric Arias, Clara Bicalho, Taylor C. Boas, Mark T. Buntaine, Simon Chauchard, Anirvan Chowdhury, Jessica Gottlieb, F. Daniel Hidalgo, Marcus Holmlund, Ryan Jablonski, Eric Kramon, Horacio Larreguy, Malte Lierl, John Marshall, Gwyneth McClendon, Marcus A. Melo, Daniel L. Nielson, Paula M. Pickering, Melina R. Platas, Pablo Querubín, Pia Raffler, and Neelanjan Sircar. 2019. “Voter Information Campaigns and Political Accountability: Cumulative Findings from a Preregistered Meta-Analysis of Coordinated Trials.” Science Advances 5, 7: eaaw2612.
- Daniel L. Nielson, Susan D. Hyde, and Judith Kelley. 2019. “The Elusive Sources of Legitimacy Beliefs: Civil Society Views of International Election Observers.” Review of International Organizations 14, 4 (December): 685-715.
- Mark T. Buntaine, Ryan Jablonski, Daniel L. Nielson, and Paula Pickering. 2018. “SMS Texts Help Ugandan Voters Hold Elected Councillors Accountable at the Polls.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 115, 26 (26 June): 6668-6673.
- Adam S. Harris,* Michael G. Findley, Daniel L. Nielson, and Kennard L. Noyes.* 2017. “The Economic Roots of Anti-Immigrant Prejudice in the Global South: Evidence from South Africa.” Political Research Quarterly 71, 1 (November): 228–241.
- Michael Findley, Adam Harris,* Helen Milner, and Daniel Nielson. 2017. “Who Controls Foreign Aid? Elite versus Public Perceptions of Donor Influence in Aid-Dependent Uganda.” International Organization 71, 4 (November): 633-663.
- Brent Allred, Michael Findley, Daniel Nielson, and J.C. Sharman. 2017. “Anonymous Shell Companies: A Global Audit Study and Field Experiment in 176 Countries.” Journal of International Business Studies 48, 5 (July): 596-619.
- Findley, Michael, Brock Laney,* Daniel Nielson, and J.C. Sharman. 2017. “External Validity in Parallel Global Field and Survey Experiments on Anonymous Incorporation.” Journal of Politics 79, 3 (July): 856-872.
- Michael G. Findley, Helen Milner, and Daniel L. Nielson. 2017. “The Choice among Aid Donors: The Effects of Multilateral vs. Bilateral Aid on Recipient Behavioral Support.” Review of International Organizations 12, 2 (June): 307-334.
- Daniel L. Nielson, Bradley Parks, and Michael J. Tierney. 2017. “International Organizations and Development Finance: Introduction to the Special Issue.” Review of International Organizations 12, 2 (June): 157-169.
- Helen Milner, Daniel Nielson, and Michael Findley. 2016. “Citizen Preferences and Public Goods: Comparing Preferences for Foreign Aid and Government Programs in Uganda.” Review of International Organizations 11, 2 (June): 219-245.
- Edwin Muchapondwa, Daniel L. Nielson, Bradley Parks, Austin M. Strange,* and Michael J. Tierney. 2016. “‘Ground-Truthing’ Chinese Development Finance in Africa: Field Evidence from South Africa and Uganda.” Journal of Development Studies 52, 6: 780-96.
- Aaron Chatterji, Michael Findley, Nathan Jensen, Stephan Meier, and Daniel Nielson. 2016. “Field Experiments in Strategy Research.” Strategic Management Journal 37, 1 (January): 116-132.
- Nielson, D. (2015). Causes of Non-Compliance with International Law: Evidence from a Field Experiment on Financial Transparency. American Journal of Political Science, 59(1), 146-161.
- Baradaran, S., Findley, M. G., Nielson, D., & Sharman, J. C. (2014). Funding Terror. , 162(3), 477-536.
- Findley, M. G., Nielson, D., & Sharman, J. C. (forthcoming). Orchestrating the Fight against Anonymous Incorporation: A Field Experiment. International Organizations as Orchestrators.
- Goodliffe, J., Hawkins, D., & Nielson, D. (2012). Dependence Networks and the International Criminal Court. International Studies Quarterly, 56(1), 131-147.
- Nielson, D. (2011). Dodging Adverse Selection: How Donor Type and Governance Condition Aid's Effects on School Enrollment. World Development, 39(11), 2044-2053.
- Nielson, D., & Hawkins, D. (2011). More Dollars than Sense: Refining Our Knowledge of Development Finance Using AidData. World Development, 39(11), 1891-1906.
- Nielson, D. (2011). Foreign Aid Shocks as a Cause of Violent Armed Conflict. American Journal of Political Science, 55(2), 219-232.
- Nielson, D. (2009). Controlling Coalitions: Social Lending at the Multilateral Development Banks. Review of International Organizations, 4, 407-433.
- Cooper, S., Hawkins, D., Jacoby, W., & Nielson, D. (2008). Yielding Sovereignty to International Institutions: Bringing System Structure Back In. International Studies Review, 10, 501-524.