Dr. Jennifer C. Boylan graduated with a PhD in Political Science from UF in December 2016. A democratization scholar, Boylan’s research analyses development and identity politics in Ghana through an institutional theoretical framework. She conducted field research in Ghana in June-July 2012, December 2012, and January-December 2013, including a 3-month long survey project which collected 1,932 responses across 6 districts in Ghana.
Her dissertation, “The Democratic Benefits of Centralized Institutions in Ghana”, explores the contradiction of Ghana’s famed democratic success despite its highly centralized political system. The findings show that Ghana’s majoritarian electoral rules encourages turnover of power while its centralized system of local government introduces political competition at the sub-national level. Both institutional dynamics encourages more responsive behavior on the part of politicians and offers citizens the opportunity to consider information outside of ethnic identities and dominant party traditions when voting.
A former Akan-Twi FLAS fellow, Boylan’s doctoral research and graduate studies were funded by a David L. Boren Fellowship, a UF Graduate School Dissertation Fellowship, the Center for African Studies, the Department of Political Science, and a FLAS fellowship awarded through Michigan State University. She currently works as the Programs & Communications Officer for the Center for African Studies.