Kathryn L. Pearson

Introduction

Kathryn Pearson is an associate professor in the College of Liberal Arts specializing in American politics. Her research focuses on the United States Congress, congressional elections, political parties, and women and politics. 

Pearson’s book titled Party Discipline in the House of Representatives combines quantitative data analysis and interviews with key elites to examine party leaders' strategic use of their legislative prerogatives to reward loyal party members and punish defectors. It is an extension of her dissertation, which won the APSA Legislative Studies Section's Carl Albert Award for the best doctoral dissertation in the area of legislative studies. She is working on a new book project, Gendered Partisanship in the House of Representatives, analyzing congresswomen's pursuit of power in a partisan era. 

Pearson is a recipient of the Morse Alumni Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education. In 2002-2003, Pearson was a research fellow at the Brookings Institution, and from 1993 to 1998, she worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative assistant for two members of Congress.