Prior to joining CAU, he worked as an assistant professor at Boise State University and a visiting assistant professor at Cornell University. His academic interests include political sociology, social movements, human rights, and social networks. He mainly uses quantitative methods to study (1) the state-civil society dynamics and (2) the diffusion of attitudes/behaviors. His research has appeared or is forthcoming in the American Journal of Sociology, Social Forces, Mobilization, Social Science Research, International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Sociological Forum, Network Science, Small Business Economics, and others.