Kristin Goss

Kristin A. Goss (http://kristingoss.com) is the Kevin D. Gorter Professor of Public Policy and Political Science at Duke University; director of Duke’s semester-in-Washington program; and a founding director of the Scholars Strategy Network of the Research Triangle. Goss’s research focuses on civic engagement and interest groups in American politics. She is the author of three books: The Paradox of Gender Equality: How American Women’s Groups Gained and Lost Their Public Voice (University of Michigan Press, 2013); Disarmed: The Missing Movement for Gun Control in America (Princeton University Press, 2006); and, with Philip Cook, The Gun Debate: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oxford University Press, 2014; 2nd edition forthcoming). Goss also has published articles on puzzling trends in volunteering, on the role of philanthropic foundations in the women’s movement, and on the ways that public policy shapes political participation, among other topics. She worked for four years on the research team for Robert Putnam’s seminal work, Bowling Alone (2000), which charts seismic shifts in American civic engagement. Before entering academe, Goss was a Washington-based journalist for six years covering non-profit organizations and foundations for The Chronicle of Philanthropy. She received a B.A. degree with high honors from Harvard; a master’s degree in public policy from Duke; and a Ph.D. in political science from Harvard.