Martha Wilfahrt

I study African Politics and Political Economy of Development. My research is guided by two intersecting themes:  first, I situate macro-level debates in the field of political economy of development within their grassroots political dynamics.  Of particular interest is the ways in which the past conditions state and donor action to shape local political and developmental outcomes as well as how field research practices in the Global South intersects with the social worlds of field staff and participants. My research secondly relies on multi-method research designs that combine original qualitative and quantitative data collection, with particular attention to the spatial dynamics of macro-political processes.

My research has appeared in numerous outlets, including the American Political Science Review, Comparative Political Studies, Perspectives on Politics, Political Behavior, World Development and World Politics. My book, Precolonial Legacies in Postcolonial Politics, was published with Cambridge in 2021.