Bio

Dr. Bryan Gervais is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science & Geography and Coordinator of the Digital Politics Studio (DPS) at UTSA. His areas of specialization are: political communication, political psychology, and legislative politics.

He is the author of Reactionary Republicanism: How the Tea Party in the House Paved the Way for Trump’s Victory (Oxford University Press) with Irwin Morris. His journal publications have appeared in Political Communication; PS: Political Science & Politics; Politics, Groups, and Identities; Social Science Quarterly; International Journal of Public Opinion Research; and Journal of Information Technology and Politics.

Dr. Gervais earned his Ph.D. in Government & Politics at the University of Maryland.

Additional Information

• Personal website

Research in Progress

Dr. Gervais' current research focuses on the effects of exposure to political incivility and the connection between uncivil discourse and anti-deliberative attitudes.

Recent Publications

Books:

1. Reactionary Republicanism: How the Tea Party in the House Paved the Way for Trump’s Victory. (with Irwin Morris). Oxford University Press. (In print, August 2018).

Journal articles:

1. “New Media for the New Electorate? U.S. Representatives’ Use of Spanish in Tweets.”  (with Walter Wilson). Politics, Groups, and Identities (In press).
2. “More than Mimicry? The Role of Anger in Uncivil Reactions to Elite Political Incivility.” 2017. International Journal of Public Opinion Research 29(3): 384-405.
3. "Sub-Partisan Cues and Ideological Distinctions: The Effect of the Tea Party Label on Voter Perceptions of Congressional Candidates." (with Jeff Taylor). 2016. Social Science Quarterly 97(5): 1130-1143.
4. "Incivility Online: Affective and Behavioral Reactions to Uncivil Political Posts in a Web-based Experiment.” 2015. Journal of Information Technology and Politics 12(2): 167-185.
5. "Following the News? Reception of Uncivil Partisan Media and the Use of Incivility in Political Expression." 2014. Political Communication 31(4): 564-583.
6. "Reading the Tea Leaves: Understanding Tea Party Caucus Membership in the House of Representatives." (with Irwin Morris). 2012. PS: Political Science and Politics 45(2): 245-250.

Book chapters:

1. “What to Tweet when the Top is Toxic? Gauging References to the 2016 Presidential Candidates in House Members' Social Media Posts.” 2018. In The Roads to Congress 2016: American Elections in a Divided Landscape, eds. Sean Foreman and Marcia Godwin. Palgrave Macmillan.
2. “Political Communication.” 2016. In Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance, ed. Ali Farazmand. Springer.
3. "Tweeting to Victory? Social Media Use and Election 2014." 2015. In The Roads to Congress 2014, eds. Sean Foreman and Robert Dewhirst. Lexington Boooks.

Book reviews and other publications:

1. In-Your-Face Politics: The Consequences of Uncivil Media, by Diana Mutz. 2015. Public Opinion Quarterly 79(4): 1017-1020.
2. “Political Incivility Online.” 2015. ISPP Junior Scholars Blog, The International Society of Political Psychologists.
3. Rude Democracy: Civility and Incivility in American Politics, by Susan Herbst. 2012. Journal of Politics 74(2): 18-19

Works in progress:

1. “Affect, Deliberation, and Elite-based Incivility.” (Under review)
2. "Media Effects Experiments" Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics Project
3. “Does Political Incivility Reduce Productivity in State Legislatures?” (with Irwin Morris). (In progress).
4. “The Attention-grabbing Power of Political Incivility.” (In progress).
5. “Differential Reactions to Pro-Attitudinal Political Incivility,” (In progress).