Her research interests are comparative political economy and public policy, with a focus on the politics of state formation, public service provision, and citizenship in Africa and the U.S.
MacLean has also conducted fieldwork for a project on the politics of tribal consultation analyzing participatory health policymaking across the 34 states with federally-recognized tribes in the U.S.
Most recently, MacLean is investigating the politics of public service provision in the electricity sector in Africa.
MacLean is also known nationally and internationally for her work on the topic of field research methodology.
MacLean regularly teaches courses on African politics, comparative politics, politics of governance and corruption, politics of inequality and identity, politics of international development, indigenous and ethnic politics, and qualitative research methods at the undergraduate and graduate level.
Interests: Political economy of development
Research + Teaching Interests
- comparative political economy and public policy, with focus on the politics of state formation, public goods provision, and citizenship in Africa and the U.S.
Regional Expertise
- Ghana; Côte d’Ivoire; Kenya; Uganda
