Doctoral Dissertation Research in Political Science: Comparing Campaign Strategies for Latinos and non-Latinos in the U.S.

在美国大选中，选民依靠竞选活动来提供有关候选人及其议题立场的信息。在候选人可用的各种广告策略中，电视广告是最常用的。我的研究考察了政治精英是否对拉丁裔选民和非拉丁裔选民采用不同的竞选策略。作为美国增长最快、规模最大的少数族裔，确定精英们对待拉美裔人的策略是否与对待盎格鲁人的策略不同，以及如果是这样，其政治影响是什么，是很重要的。我认为政治精英对拉丁裔和非拉丁裔所采用的竞选策略是不同的。造成这种差异的原因源于盎格鲁人和拉丁美洲人之间的社会经济差异，其中拉丁美洲人在社会经济上比盎格鲁人处于更不利的地位。因此，政治精英会设计容易理解的竞选信息，不需要多少政治知识，比如关注候选人说西班牙语的能力或进行文化参考。相比之下，研究表明，英语广告主要关注候选人的政策立场。几种方法技术被用来检验这个假设。首先，我创建了一个正式的理论模型来解释候选人如何向选民做广告。然后，我将测试从模型中得出的预测。接下来，我使用统计分析来确定与英语广告相比，西班牙语广告是否更有可能包含非政策信息。我继续使用实证方法来确定这些广告是否对拉丁裔投票行为有影响。这个研究项目有助于促进对美国竞选和选举领域的认识和理解，因为这种比较分析尚未得到分析。但是，由于使这项研究成为可能的数据于2001年发布，现在可以进行这种分析。考虑到到2050年拉美裔将占美国人口的24.5%，确定政治精英对待他们的方式与非拉美裔相比是否存在系统性差异至关重要。这项研究的影响对拉丁美洲人产生了严重的政治和政策后果。充分参与政治体系的能力。我们相信我们有能力执行这个项目，因为共同的主要研究者已经对西班牙语种族中使用的广告进行了相同的编码过程。此外，联合首席研究员将在整个项目中监督本科生，并随时为可能出现的任何问题或问题提供帮助。此外，由于这项研究将在纽约大学政治系进行，因此可以随时获得办公用品、电脑、软件和行政支持。该研究在促进学习和代表少数民族方面具有几个重要意义。首先，它通过让本科生接触各种有价值的研究技能来鼓励培训和学习。由于这个项目将进行为期12个月的时间，学生将对研究过程有一个深入的了解。该研究项目还通过在论文完成后将完成的数据提供给公众使用来增强研究的基础设施。它还将对代表性不足的少数族裔群体产生影响，因为本研究的重点是美国最大的少数族裔群体拉美裔人。本研究的发现可能有助于识别精英阶层对拉丁裔和非拉丁裔的政治行为存在的差异，这可能会激励精英阶层改变行为，从而提高拉丁裔参与美国政治体系的能力。

In U.S. elections, voters rely on campaigns to provide information on candidates and their issue positions. Of the various advertisement strategies available to candidates, television advertisements are the most frequently used. My research examines whether political elites employ different campaign strategies for Latino voters and non-Latino voters. As the fastest- growing and largest minority group in the United States, it is important to determine whether elites are using different strategies towards Latinos, relative to Anglos, and if so, what the political repercussions are. I contend that the campaign strategies used by political elites towards Latinos and non- Latinos differ. The reason for this difference stems from the socioeconomic distinctions between Anglos and Latinos, where Latinos are more socio-economically disadvantaged than Anglos. Thus, political elites will design campaign messages that are easily understood and require little political knowledge, such as focusing on a candidate's ability to speak Spanish or making cultural references. In contrast, research indicates that English-language advertisements primarily focus on candidate's policy positions. Several methodological techniques are used to test the hypothesis. First, I create a formal theoretical model to explain how candidates advertise to voters. I will then test the predictions derived from the model. Next, I use statistical analysis to determine whether Spanish-language advertisements are more likely to include non-policy messages, relative to English-language advertisements. I continue using empirical methods to determine whether these advertisements have an impact on Latino voting behavior. Intellectual Merit This research project helps to advance the knowledge and understanding in the field of American campaigns and elections because this comparative analysis has yet to be analyzed. But since the data that makes this research possible was released in 2001, this analysis can now be conducted. Given that Latinos by 2050 will comprise 24.5% of the U.S. population, determining whether there are systematic differences in the way political elites behave towards them, when compared to non-Latinos, is critical. The implications from this research carry serious political and policy consequences for Latinos. ability to become fully involved in the political system. We are confident in our ability to carry out this proposed project, since the co-principle investigator has conducted the same coding process for advertisements used in Spanish-language races. In addition, the co-principle investigator will monitor the undergraduate students throughout the entire project and will be available for any questions or problems that may arise. Also, since the research will be carried out in the Politics department at NYU, access to office supplies, computers, software, and administrative support will be readily available. Broader Impact The research carries several important implications in the realms of promoting learning and representing ethnic minorities. First, it encourages training and learning by exposing undergraduates to a variety of valuable research skills. And since this project will be carried out for a 12 month period of time, students will gain a deep understanding of the research process. This research project also enhances the infrastructure for research by making the completed data available for public use after the completion of the dissertation. It will also have an impact on underrepresented minority groups since this research focuses on the largest ethnic minority group in the United States, Latinos. The findings from this research may help to identify any discrepancies that exist in elite political behavior towards Latino and non-Latinos, which may motivate change in elite behavior, and therefore increase the ability of Latinos to participate in the U.S. political system.