Elaine Yao

CV · Google Scholar · Email: eyao (at) wustl.edu

I am an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis. My research lies broadly in formal theory and comparative politics. I earned my Ph.D. from Princeton University in 2025.

Teaching and advising

Portrait of Elaine Yao

Research

Tactical Choice in Repeated Protests

Working paper. Latest draft (October 2026) Recent presentations: SITE '26, LSE, Warwick, Yale ISPS conference; Perry World House (scheduled for January 2027)

Authoritarian Responsiveness and Political Attitudes During COVID-19: Evidence from Weibo and a Survey Experiment

With Lai Wei and Han Zhang. Chinese Sociological Review, 2021.

Published article