Nominations for “Best Paper” awards in each of the categories shown below may come from Section Chairs, Panel Chairs, paper authors, or any member of the Association. To be eligible, the papers must have been presented by one or more authors during the annual meeting. Nominations should be forwarded (along with a copy of each paper) to the Chair of the “Best Paper” Awards Committee within one month of the end of the conference. Decisions will be announced by the Association within three months of the end of the conference. The authors of the best undergraduate student paper and the best graduate student paper are each awarded a certificate and a $50.00 check (shared by co-authors). The author of the best faculty paper is awarded a certificate and a $100.00 check (shared by the co-authors).
2023 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, University of Central Arkansas, Conway, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Undergraduate Paper — Kiera Boop (Hendrix College), “What Factors Impact the Speed of Crisis Response? Insights from COVID-19”
- Best Graduate Paper — Kennedy Hill (University of Arkansas-Fayetteville), “Representative Government: An Evaluation of Single-Party Dominance in Arkansas”
- Best Faculty Paper — Clay Arnold (University of Central Arkansas), “Machiavelli’s Deceptions”
2022 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Southern Arkansas University, Magnolia, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Undergraduate Paper — Logan Hubberd (Lyon College), “Civic Engagement and Academic Success”
- Best Graduate Paper — Adil Yildiz (University of Mississippi), “Explaining the Intensity of Nonviolent Resistance”
- Best Faculty Paper — Michael Rogers (Arkansas Tech University), “Appointed in a Very Odd Manner’: Anti-Federalist Critiques of Presidential Selection During the Ratification Debates”
2021 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, University of Arkansas-Fort Smith – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Undergraduate Paper — Taylor Fitterling (Lyon College), “Vote-Switching: Independent Voter Volatility in U.S. Presidential Elections”
- Best Graduate Paper — Murat Abus (Arkansas State), “Election Administration and UOCAVA Voting: The State and New Metrics”
- Best Faculty Paper — Kimberly Maslin (Hendrix College), “Why Rahel Matters? Hannah Arendt and German Romanticism”
2020 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Henderson State University, Arkadelphia, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Undergraduate Paper — Bailey Brya (Hendrix College), “NGO-Driven Environmental Awareness and Citizen Participation: The Case of the Yangtze River Watchers in China”
- Best Graduate Paper: Murat Abus (Arkansas State University), ” Reflections in the Mirror: Authoritarian Values and Political Identities in Turkey”
2019 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Undergraduate Paper — Hannah Burdette (Senior, Hendrix College), “Her Rights, Everyone’s Benefit: An Examination of Women’s Rights in the Global Economy”.
- Best Graduate Paper — Alexandra Johnson (MA Candidate, Political Science, University of Arkansas Fayetteville), ” Sex, Stress, and the Supreme Court: Verbal and Nonverbal Analysis of Supreme Court Nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh During his Senate Confirmation Hearings”.
- Best Faculty Paper — Kisha Hardwick (Assistant Professor, Political Science, University of Central Arkansas), “Bureaucratic Information Environments and Institutional Arrangements: The Influence of Power, Professionalism, and Polarization on State Agency Head Interactions”.
2018 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Undergraduate Paper — C. Taylor Summerville, Arkansas Tech University, “Pakistan-India Territorial Disputes: Why do the tensions persist?; Regan Williams, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, Elitism in Feminist Scholarship: A stronghold for sexism in American society
- Best Graduate Paper — Eric D. Button, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville,Trends in Voting Behavior of Active Duty Military Spouses: A Study of Sophistication, Access, and Participation, with Anne B. Diallo.
- Best Faculty Paper — Patrick Stewart, Elaine Terrell, Alex M. Kareev, Blake Tylar Ellison, and Charini I. Urteaga, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, “gamifying” online American National Government: Lessons learned from developing “Citizenship Quest”
2017 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Arkansas Tech University, Russellville, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper — Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm (University of Arkansas at Little Rock), “The Syrian Civil War and Diaspora Transnational Justice Mobilization”
- Best Graduate Student Paper — Eric Button (University of Arkansas-Fayetteville), “The Diffusion of Veterans Treatment Courts: A Prediction of Future Adoption for the Late Majority and Laggard States”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper — Brian Gregory (University of Arkansas at Little Rock), “Faith in Action: A Look into Little Rock’s Religious Mobilization”
2016 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, University of Arkansas-Monticello, Monticello, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – Paul A Crutcher (UALR) and Gregory Shufeldt (UALR), “The ‘Nativ’ Citizen: Political Attitudes, Outcomes, and State Pride”
- Best Graduate Student Paper – Mark Nabor (University of Arkansas-Fayetteville), “Most Other People and Me: A Case Study of Opinions about Same-Sex Marriage Among United Methodist Parishioners in Washington County”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Caylin Craig (University of Arkansas-Fayetteville), “Investing in an Imprisoned America: Private Prison PAC Campaign Contributions in the U.S. House and Senate Elections”
2015 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Hendrix College, Conway, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – None.
- Best Graduate Student Paper – John C. Davis (University of Missouri), “The Nature and Effects of Political Party Culture on Political Careers”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Austin Nelson (Hendrix College), “Race and Redistricting: How Racial Gerrymandering Benefits Black Voters and Republicans”
2014 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Harding University, Searcy, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – Mike Yawn (Sam Houston State University), “Teaching Local: Civic Engagement & Local Government”
- Best Graduate Student Paper – John C. Davis (University of Missouri), “The Natural State in a Time of Change: A Survey-Based Analysis of State Party Organizations in Arkansas, 1999-2013”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Erika Bowsher (UALR), “Twenty Years of International Justice: An Evaluation of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia”
2013 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Ouachita Baptist University, Arkadelphia, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – None
- Best Graduate Student Paper – John C. Davis (University of Missouri), “A Study of U.S. Senators with Presidential Aspirations”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Jacob Porter (Hendrix College), “Fiscal Decentralization and Economic Innovation in Spain’s Autonomous Communities”
2012 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, University of Central Arkansas, Conway, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – Rebecca Anne Glazier (University of Arkansas at Little Rock) and William J. Miller (Southeast Missouri State University), “Whose ‘Clash’? Comparing Anti-Americanism and Anti-Muslim Attitudes”
- Best Graduate Student Paper – Daniel Chand, Renee Deshommes, Kuatbay Bektemirov, and Leland McQueen (University of Arkansas at Fayetteville), “Local Enforcement of Federal Immigration Policies: An Analysis of the 287(g) and Secure Communities Programs in Arkansas”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Kelly Reed (University of Arkansas at Monticello), “The Rise of the Opposition: A Theoretical Appraisal of the Recent Arab Spring”
2011 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Little Rock, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – Richard Hartwig (Texas A&M University at Kingsville) and Jesus Trevino (Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon, Mexico), “Understanding and Coping with Mexican Drug Violence”
- Best Graduate Student Paper – None
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Elizabeth Whittington (Hendrix College), “Policy Challenges and Recommendations for the Implementation of Health Exchanges in Arkansas”
2010 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – None
- Best Graduate Student Paper – Wade Derden, Kalynn Heald, et al. (University of Arkansas-Fayetteville), “An Implementation Analysis of the Arkansas System of Care Network”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Carol Verbeek (Centenary College), “The Ties That Bind Are Fraying? An Examination of the New Transatlantic Relations”
2009 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, Arkansas Tech University, Russellville, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – Michael Rogers (Arkansas Tech University), “Elected Monarchy and Aristocratic Junto: Criticisms of the Election of the President During Ratification of the Constitution”
- Best Graduate Student Paper – Cameron C. Wimpy (Arkansas State University), “Unconventional Political Behavior in the Middle East”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Hunter Gillium (University of Arkansas at Monticello), “Al-Qaeda: A New Generation of Terror”
2008 Arkansas Political Science Association (ArkPSA) Annual Meeting, University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, Fayetteville, AR – “Best Paper” Awards
- Best Faculty Paper – Michael Rogers (Arkansas Tech University), “Thomas Hobbes and Who Should Rule”
- Best Graduate Student Paper – Angela Wolfe (University of Delaware), “Subnational Actors and the Impact of Human Rights Norms”
- Best Undergraduate Student Paper – Chris McNeal (Harding University), “State Legislative Professionalism: An Examination of Its Effects on Spending and Taxation”