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Megan Odell-Scott is an advanced PhD candidate in the Department of Political Science whose research will contribute a more nuanced understanding to the dynamic relationship between identity and political behavior. Megan's dissertation, “The Politics of Fear and Identity: How Fear and Anxiety Mediate the Relationship Between Identity and Political Attitudes and Behaviors,” will use survey data from ANES 1980-2016, as well as on-campus and online experiments to explore this unstudied dynamic. While Megan's work is primarily seated within the political behavior literature, it draws from related work in political psychology and scholarship on identity. 

Megan also has expertise in religion and politics, and has been recognized for her work in this field. Both her MA and BA theses addressed questions related to religion and politics in the United States. In 2019, Megan was invited to the “Convening on the Case Method” Conference at the Pluralism Project at Harvard University. In 2012, she was invited to attend and represent John Caroll University at a conference hosted by the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives. And in 2011, Megan was recognized by the Pluralism Project at Harvard University with a research grant. She also developed and teaches the "Introduction to World Religions" course at �������� State.