Sean Yom Wins GIGA Prize for Comparative Area Studie

Prof. Sean Yom of Temple University in Philadelphia has won the GIGA Comparative Area Studies (CAS) Award for 2016. Today’s awards ceremony, held at the GIGA, honoured his innovative “inductive iteration” approach, which was presented last year in the article “From Methodology to Practice: Inductive Iteration in Comparative Research“ in the journal Comparative Political Studies. This approach makes it possible to repeatedly question, test, and adapt scientific hypotheses and methods over the course of a research process.

“In his article, Sean Yom demonstrates possibilities for avoiding the ‘deductive template’ that shapes a significant portion of American, and increasingly also European, political science,” said the jury in its explanation of its decision. “The article is convincing due to its conceptual strength, its innovative power, and its clear argumentation.”

An international jury made up of Rudra Sil (University of Pennsylvania), Scott Gates (Peace Research Institute Oslo), and Andreas Mehler (Arnold Bergstraesser Institute Freiburg) selected the winning article from approximately 30 submissions.

Through the GIGA CAS Award, the GIGA promotes the development of this young and innovative research field. The EUR 2,500 prize is awarded every two years.

Sean Yom is assistant professor of political science at Temple University in Philadelphia. His primary research interests are authoritarian regimes and international policy, with a focus on the Middle East and the Gulf region.

To the article.