Projects per year
Personal profile
Research interests
I am Professor of Comparative Austrian Politics at the Department of Political Science and Sociology at the University of Salzburg, which I have chaired since 2009. Previously, I was a faculty member of the University of Pittsburgh (1994-2009) where I have remained an affiliate of the Center of European Studies. I received my PhD from Michigan State University in 1994 and my MA from Virginia Tech in 1987.
My main research interests are centered on comparative populism, Euroscepticism, political parties, the radical right and democracy. My research has appeared in journals such as The Journal of Common Market Studies, Party Politics, West European Politics, and Democratization among many others. Recently, I co-edited a special issue of Comparative European Politics on the territorial dimension in party-based populism. My book publications in English include The People and the Nation: Populism and Ethno-Territorial Politics in Europe (Routledge 2019), Political Populism; A Handbook (Nomos 2017), and Understanding Populist Organization: The West European Radical Right (Palgrave, 2016).
Several grants have supported my research including a Marie Curie grant (2012-2016) and most recently a Horizon 2020 grant by the EU. In this project called Populism and Civic Engagement (PaCE), I serve as the leader of the Salzburg Team. Our goal is to study supply and demand side factors facilitating radical populism and examine effective civic countermeasures by using an array methods ranging from traditional survey research to computer simulation, and survey experiments. An interesting experience was also our collaboration with the Brookings foundation on a project about Islam in Europe.
My work has been recognized by different prizes such as in 2017 the Austrian Science Prize (“Wissenschaftspreis”) by the Lupac Foundation of the Austrian Parliament.
External positions
faculty Affiliate University of Pittsburgh Center of European Studies, European Union Center of Excellence; University Pittsburgh
2001 → …
Fields of Science and Technology Classification 2012 (Level 2, 3-digit codes).
- 506 Political Science
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Push*Back*Lash: Anti-gender Backlash & Democratic Pushback
Lefkofridi, Z., Zwiener-Collins, N., Heinisch, R. K., Mügge, L., Engeli, I., Stöckel, F., Katsanidou, A., Kovacs, M., Hubert, A., Dhawan, N., Serra, C., Szarota, M., McDonnell, A., Koeck, J. & Karabegovic, D.
1/01/23 → 31/12/25
Project: Research
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PopCon: Populism and Conspiracy in the COVID-19 Pandemic: Linking Discourses and Attitudes in Four European Countries
Heinisch, R. K. & Mazzoleni, O.
1/11/22 → 30/04/25
Project: Research
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JDP-OÖ: Jugend Digitalisierung und Partizipation-Oberösterreich (Yough Digitalization and Participation -- Upper Austria
15/12/20 → 30/09/22
Project: Research
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MTLA: Making Tomorrow’s Leaders: Youth Movements of Right Wing Populist Parties/Austria
Heinisch, R. K. & Wegscheider, C.
1/03/20 → 1/07/20
Project: Research
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MLiA: Muslim life in Austria: Explore the multi-faceted lives of Muslims in Austria and thus bringing Islam into the framework of academic analysis
Heinisch, R. K. & Hafez, F.
18/11/19 → 31/10/21
Project: Research
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Sovereignty and Populism
Heinisch, R. K. & Koxha, K., 31 Jul 2023, Populism and Key Concepts in Social and Political Theory . De La Torre, C. & Mazzoleni, O. (eds.). Brill, p. 114-135 (Global Populisms).Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding/Legal commentary › Chapter in Book › Research › peer-review
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How early insights about populism have stood the test of time
Heinisch, R. K., 2023, ECPR's Political Science Blog.Research output: Other contribution › Communication
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Party Change beyond the Classical Model? The Role of Agency, Context, and Democracy.
Heinisch, R. K. & Mazzoleni, O., 2023, The Routledge Handbook of Political Parties. RoutledgeResearch output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding/Legal commentary › Chapter in Book › Research › peer-review
Open Access -
The Case of the Austrian Radical Right and Russia During the War in Ukraine.
Hofmann, D. L. & Heinisch, R. K., 2023, The Impacts of the Russian Invasion of Ukraine on Right-Wing Populism in Europe. . European Center for Populism Studies, p. 33-45Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding/Legal commentary › Chapter in Book › Research › peer-review
Open Access -
Demokratie nach 1945: Perspektiven auf Geschichte, Politik und Recht in Österreich
Kühberger, C., Heinisch, R. K., Klaushofer, R. & Reiter, M., Sept 2022, Böhlau Verlag. 273 p.Research output: Book/Report/Legal commentary › Book › Research
Prizes
Activities
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Verschwörungstheorien. Eine Gefahr für die Demokratie?
Reinhard K. Heinisch (Contributor)
20 May 2023Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Contribution to an event
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European Union Politics (Journal)
Reinhard K. Heinisch (Reviewer)
2023Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work › Publication Peer-review
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Journal of Contemporary European Studies (Journal)
Reinhard K. Heinisch (Reviewer)
2023 → …Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work › Publication Peer-review
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Journal of European Public Policy (Journal)
Reinhard K. Heinisch (Reviewer)
2023Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work › Publication Peer-review
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Journal of European Public Policy (Journal)
Reinhard K. Heinisch (Reviewer)
2023Activity: Publication peer-review and editorial work › Publication Peer-review