Eric Oliver

Eric Oliver is a political scientist whose interests include contemporary American politics, suburban and racial politics, political psychology, and the politics of science. Eric is currently working on papers about public support for conspiracy theories, whether liberals and conservatives name their children differently, and conducting research on the biological foundations of political cognition.

He has also authored numerous articles in journals such as the American Political Science ReviewAmerican Journal of Political SciencePerspectives in Biology and MedicineInternational Journal of Epidemiology, Public Opinion Quarterly, and Urban Affairs Review on topics ranging from absentee voting to happiness in suburbs.

His books include Democracy in Suburbia; Fat Politics: The Real Story Behind America's Obesity Epidemic; The Paradoxes of Integration: Race, Neighborhood, and Civic Life in Multi-ethnic America and Local Elections and the Politics of Small Scale Democracy

Oliver Stories

Summer 2020 reading recommendations from UChicago faculty

Teaching award winners suggest old favorites, new finds to turn to in 2020

Donald Trump is full of conspiracies—and many believe him

Prof. Eric Oliver examines the relationship between populism and conspiracy theories


Boston Globe

Why are we so eager to embrace conspiracy theories?

In op-ed, Prof. Eric Oliver says that in responding to unsubstantiated conspiracy theories, ‘the first step should be to empathise’


New Scientist

You won’t believe how many Americans accept medical conspiracy theories

Article cites research by Prof. J. Eric Oliver, who finds that about half of Americans believe in a medical conspiracy in an attempt to deal with uncertainty


Salon