Rate My Professor Elizabeth Shanahan

Elizabeth Shanahan is a professor of political science at Montana State University, where she joined the Department of Political Science in 2005 as an assistant professor, was promoted to associate professor in 2011, and to full professor in 2020. She has also served as Associate Vice President for Research Development since 2021. Her academic background includes a B.A. in comparative literature from Dartmouth College in 1986, a Master of Counseling in community counseling from Idaho State University in 1994, an M.P.A. in public policy in 2004, and a Doctor of Arts in political science in 2005 from Idaho State University. Shanahan's research focuses on policy processes and analysis, the Narrative Policy Framework—which she co-developed—coupled natural and human systems, social-ecological systems, opinion surveys, narrative risk communication, One Health approaches to infectious disease, and hazards and disasters. She has secured funding from the National Science Foundation for projects on flood hazard preparation, pathogen spillover risk communication, and human-wildlife conflict. Her teaching interests encompass public policy processes and analysis, research methods and applied statistics, and foundations of public administration.

Shanahan has made significant contributions to her field through extensive publications, with over 6,700 citations on Google Scholar. Key works include the highly cited article 'Policy Narratives and Policy Processes' in Policy Studies Journal (2011, 735 citations), 'The Narrative Policy Framework' chapter in Theories of the Policy Process (2018 and 2014 editions), 'How to Conduct a Narrative Policy Framework Study' in The Social Science Journal (2018, 510 citations), and the edited volume 'The Science of Stories: Applications of the Narrative Policy Framework' (Palgrave Macmillan, 2014). She received the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award for research in Australia in 2025, was named a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration in 2023, and honored with Montana State University's Presidential Medallion for Achievement in 2023. Additional recognitions include the College of Letters and Science Meritorious Research Award in 2018.