Matthew Burbank is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science where he serves as the department’s director of undergraduate studies and the honors advisor for political science. Professor Burbank teaches undergraduate courses on American government, voting, elections, public opinion, political parties and political analysis as well as graduate courses on political behavior, quantitative methods and research design. Professor Burbank’s research focuses on how citizens understand and participate in politics as well as urban politics and public policy.

Professor Burbank has co-authored two books, “Parties, Interest Groups, and Political Campaigns” (2nd ed., Oxford University Press, 2012) and “Olympic Dreams: The Impact of Mega-events on Local Politics” (Lynne Rienner, 2001), as well as a number of journal articles and book chapters. His most recent works have been on such topics as public opinion on complex policy issues, how community attachment influences voting on public school vouchers and electoral support for the Conservative Party in Britain.

Professor Burbank earned his B.A. in political science from the University of Montana, his M.S. in political science from the University of Utah and his Ph.D. in political science from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. In addition to research and teaching, Professor Burbank serves as the University of Utah’s official representative for the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) and has served as a reviewer for the Fulbright Award program, the National Science Foundation and the Economic and Social Research Council in the United Kingdom.