Anil Varughese’s research interests span comparative politics, political economy, international development and program evaluation. Broadly, his research seeks to understand how public policy can be harnessed to create equity-enhancing outcomes in the developing world. One facet of his research examines the ways in which the distribution of political and economic power in poor democracies impedes or facilitates egalitarian social policy. The other facet explores critical governance challenges under globalization and their impact on deepening democracy in the global South, particularly in South Asia.
Anil Varughese
Associate Professor
Political Communication and Political Behavior, Governance and Democratic Deepening in Global South, Social Policy, South Asia
BA in Philosophy (University of Madras, India)
MA in Politics (Jawaharlal Nehru University, India)
PhD in Political Science (University of Toronto, Canada)
Professor Varughese’s research agenda spans three broad thematic areas, with special reference to the global south: 1) political communication and political behavior, 2) governance and democratic deepening, and 3) social policy. Broadly, his research seeks to understand how public policy can be harnessed to create equity-enhancing outcomes in the developing world. One facet of his research examines political communications in electoral and non-electoral contexts and its impact on political behavior of various political actors (voters, candidates, political parties, media) in India. Another examines the ways in which the distribution of political and economic power in poor democracies impedes or facilitates egalitarian social policy. A third facet explores governance challenges in the digital era and their impact on democratic practice in the global South, particularly South Asia.
Honours
SPPA Teaching Excellence Award, 2010-11
American Political Science Association, Labour Project – Best Paper Award 2010
International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Doctoral Research Award, 2005-06
Thesis Award, University of Toronto, 2004-06
Sir Val Duncan Grant, Centre for International Studies, University of Toronto, 2004-05
Varughese, A., “Globalization and Culture Wars: The Case of India” in Ali Burak Guven and Richard Sandbrook (ed.) Civilizing Globalization: A Survival Guide. revised and expanded edition. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2014. 93-105.
Varughese, A., “Globalization vs. Cultural Authenticity: Valentine’s Day and Hindu Values” in Richard Sandbrook (ed.) Civilizing Globalization: A Survival Guide. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2003. 53-58.
Co-Applicant. SSHRC Partnership Grant: “Participedia Phase Two: Strengthening Democracy by Mobilizing Knowledge of Democratic Innovations.”
Participedia Mission: “Participedia is a global network and crowdsourcing platform for researchers, educators, practitioners, policymakers, activists, and anyone interested in democratic innovations. By democratic, we mean practices or institutions that potentially advance ideals of self-government—individually, collectively, and across time, space, and geography. By innovations we mean practices or institutions that are relatively new to a context or place. Our mission is to mobilize knowledge about democracy-enhancing practices and institutions that people are inventing, remolding, protecting, and transferring from other contexts.”
