Michael Heaney examines the organizational dimensions of American politics. His research focuses on the role of intermediary institutions--especially interest groups, political parties, and social movements--in shaping the political process and policy outcomes. How do these institutions build support, grow over time, and co-evolve with one another? Michael pays particular attention to social network structures in providing answers to these questions. He is engaged in a variety of projects along these lines, including studies of health care lobbying, the contemporary American antiwar movement, the behavior of national convention delegates, and the emergence of the Chicago School of Political Science.

Prior to joining the faculty of the University of Michigan, Michael received a Ph.D. in Political Science and Public Policy from the University of Chicago in 2004. He held a postdoctoral fellowship at Yale University in 2004-2005. From 2005 to 2009 he was Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Florida. In 2007-2008, Michael was the William A. Steiger Congressional Fellow of the American Political Science Association, during which time he worked on the staff of the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee

on Energy and Commerce under Chairman John D. Dingell.