the Snapp lab

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principal investigator

Jaime Settle is an assistant professor in the Government Department. She received her B.A. in Political Science from the University of Richmond and her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California at San Diego. She teaches courses on various aspects of American politics, focusing primarily on topics related to political behavior and psychology. Professor Settle incorporates data and methods from the natural sciences into her research to help explain fundamental aspects of political behavior. Her dissertation examined how innate differences between people—genetic, psychological, and personality—moderate the effect of exposure to political contention on voter turnout. She is also interested in the potential of large-scale datasets derived from online social networks (such as Facebook) to refine an understanding of the effects of our social network on how we think, feel and behave politically. Her website can be found here. 

Joanna is a junior at William & Mary. She is majoring in Government and plans to double major in English as well.  This is her first year doing research with Professor Settle, but she spent the last semester working as a PIPS (Project on International Peace and Security) intern.  She will be working on the Obamacare project and is very excited to better understand how social media shaped public discourse on the bill.  On campus, Joanna is a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority and the Student Assembly Public Affairs team.  In her free time, she enjoys running and volunteering at the Heritage Humane Society. 

Will is a sophomore at William & Mary. He plans to pursue a degree in either Government or Public Policy. This is his first year doing research. He is currently working with Professor Settle on a project concerning newspaper and online discourse regarding the Affordable Care Act. Will is primarily interested in how the general public forms political opinion and how these opinions shape the actions of voters. Outside of the lab, Will plays on the William & Mary Men's Ultimate Team, tutors local elementary school students through College Partnership for Kids, and is actively involved in William & Mary's Intervarsity chapter.

Edward Hernandez is a freshman at the College of William & Mary. He intends to major in Philosophy, and is additionally involved with the Meridian and the College Radio. He is is excited to begin his college research experience as a volunteer on SNaPP Lab project concerning social anxiety and political participation. He is primarily interested in the causal origin of political behavior, and the biological limitations of free will, and plans to continue researching throughout his years at the College.

Kristin Hopkins
Kristin Hopkins is a junior at the College of William & Mary from Virginia Beach, VA. She is a Government and Theatre double major. She is very excited to be a member of the SNaPP Lab as a Lab Volunteer.  Kristin is a William and Mary Scholar, works in Residence Life as a Resident Assistant, is a member of the Nu Chi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and is the Casting Associate for the Virginia Shakespeare Festival.  Kristin plans to continue doing research, especially for her honors thesis, examining how American political policies have affected various theatre styles and audience perceptions throughout the 20th and 21st century.

Michael is a junior at the College of William & Mary majoring in Government. He first began research with Professor Settle his sophomore year. His work was primarily focused on opinion leadership and how that concept maps onto political discourse online. Michael is continuing that research this year and is leading a research group which hopes to develop a more coherent theory of how opinion leadership works on social media sites. Michael’s other research interests include political institutions and how institutional arrangements may structure and restrict political discourse. Michael is also involved with the William & Mary Young Democrats and various environmental groups on campus.  

Drew Engelhardt
Drew graduated from the College in 2013 and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in political science at Vanderbilt University. Drew began working for Professor Settle in fall 2012, contributing primarily to the lab protocols for projects related to political contention. During his senior year he also wrote a honors thesis with Professor Ron Rapoport as his adviser and Professors Settle and Hanley serving on his committee. His current research interests include group identity, public opinion, and economic inequality.

Taylor Feenstra
Taylor graduated from the College in 2014 with a degree in Public Policy and Psychology. Her senior honors thesis involved a lab experiment designed to better understand how individuals respond to political interactions. In the SNaPP Lab, Taylor has worked on a variety of projects, including aggregating polling data on Obamacare, designing lab experiments collecting physiological data, and co-authoring an NSF grant proposal with Dr. Settle. Broadly, her research focuses on understanding how individuals respond to political contention. Taylor is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Political Science at the University of California at San Diego. She continues to collaborate with Dr. Settle and current SNaPP Lab members, despite the 2,693 miles between the two institutions.

Jake Lewitz
Jake Lewitz graduated from William & Mary in May 2013 with a degree in public policy and American studies. As a research assistant for the SNaPP lab, Jake studied reactions to the Affordable Care Act in op/ed pieces across the U.S. He also co-developed a coding scheme to categorize survey data assessing political stressors. He now works at Deloitte Consulting in Washington, DC as a federal analyst for various government agencies.

Gabe graduated from the College in 2014 with a degree in Public Policy. As team leader for the Obamacare project, Gabe worked with his team to complete several group data collection efforts as well as charter a broader vision for the project. His individual work in the lab focused on measuring political ideology at the state level using data collected as part of the Obamacare project. In addition to his SNaPP lab research, Gabe completed two independent research projects as a member of the Monroe Scholars program on health policy, issue framing, and political polarization. Gabe is now working as a Federal Analyst for Deloitte Consulting in their Washington D.C. office.