comparative politics in the developing world, with an emphasis on the Middle East and questions of domestically-driven regime change; the impact of ruling parties in maintaining authoritarianism and preventing democratization; regime change and regime durability; political institutions; domestic democratization movements and international democracy promotion
His book, Authoritarianism in an Age of Democratization, examines the historical sources of electoral contestation and regime change during the last thirty years. Professor Brownlee is currently researching the worldview of American nation-building since the late nineteenth century.