Hillel David Soifer is Associate Professor of Political Science, specializing in Comparative Politics and research methods.
His empirical work has mainly been centered in Latin America, where he works on state building and other elements of political development. Work in this area includes his 2015 book State Building in Latin America (Cambridge University Press), a series of related articles on the historical development of the Latin American state, and various articles on the conceptualization and measurement of state capacity. He continues to work in this area, investigating both historical trajectories of state development and related issues in the contemporary Latin American context. An edited volume on the legacies of the Shining Path conflict in Peru Politics After Violence was published by University of Texas Press in 2019.
Professor Soifer's research also explores issues in research design and qualitative methodology. He has published on critical junctures, the use of shadow cases in empirical research, and subnational comparison. He is currently working on a book manuscript on the challenges entailed in studying spatial aggregate units, focusing on the modifiable areal unit problem and its implications for political science scholarship.
He receieved his PhD in 2006 from Harvard University, and degrees from Georgetown University and Haverford College. Before coming to Berkeley he held tenure-track positions at Bates College and Temple University.
