Enrico Antonio B. La Viña, PhD
Assistant Professor of Political Science
Bulwagang Silangang Palma
Africa Street
University of Philippines Diliman, Quezon City
eblavina@up.edu.ph
Enrico Antonio B. La Viña is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of the Philippines Diliman. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California, Davis, where he specialized in Comparative Politics and International Relations, an M.A. in International Political Economy and Development from Fordham University (New York), and an A.B. in Philosophy from the Ateneo de Manila University. He teaches courses on comparative politics and quantitative methods.
Rico’s research interests include democratization, political violence, the political economy of development, and international political economy. His work examines how economic conditions, political institutions, bureaucratic incentives, and electoral dynamics shape democratic politics and political violence. His doctoral research examined the causes, consequences, and political dynamics of the “war on drugs” in the Philippines. Rico uses mixed methods in his research, combining quantitative approaches—including econometric analysis, survey research, and experimental methods—with qualitative methods such as process tracing. His broader research agenda connects questions of democratic governance and political violence with changes in the economy.
Rico’s research has received support from several organizations and universities. He received a Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowship from the U.S. Institute of Peace and a Herb York Dissertation Fellow of the University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation, and has received several other university-based research grants, fellowships, and awards. He has also worked as a consultant and researcher for organizations including the United Nations Development Programme, the Open Society Foundations, and the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, where his policy research has covered governance, political economy, conflict, and political violence.
Education
- PhD in Political Science, University of California, Davis (2026)
- Master of Arts in International Political Economy and Development, Fordham University (2017)
- Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, Ateneo de Manila University (2014)
Research Interests
Democratization, Political Violence, Political Economy of Development, International Political Economy
Courses Taught
- Social Science 103: Statistics for the Social Sciences
- Political Science 130: Introduction to Comparative Politics
- Political Science 270: Theories of Comparative Politics
Recent Publications
Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles
- Ordoñez, M. D., Juliano, H., & La Viña, E. A. (2019). Dealing with diversity: State strategies on ethnic minority management in Southeast Asia. Asia Review, 32(1), 85–108.
- Ordoñez, M. D., Juliano, H., & La Viña, E. A. (2016). The (re)emergence of state racism on the eve of regional integration in Southeast Asia: A survey of five countries. Budhi: A Journal of Ideas and Culture, 20(1).
Book Chapters
- La Viña, E. A. B., & Long, L. A. N. (2026). Cities against populism in the US. In M. Lackowska, L. A. N. Long, W. Aksztejn, & I. Tosics (Eds.), Cities against democratic backsliding. Bristol University Press.
- La Viña, E. A. B., & Young, L. E. (2024). Experiments in and on political institutions. In A. Vatter & R. Freiburghaus (Eds.), Handbook of comparative political institutions. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Policy and Applied Research
- Cruz, J., & La Viña, E. A. (2022). From dependency to autonomy: Local governance, fiscal capacity, and the outlook for Philippine local governments in the post-COVID era. In Decentralization, digitalisation, and development: Strengthening local governance for crisis response, recovery, and the SDGs. United Nations Development Programme Philippines.
- Kishi, R., Pavlik, M., Matfess, H., Carboni, A., Hart, T., Bynum, E., Watson, D., Vannice, C., Al Abdullah, M., Anderson, S., Nsaibia, H., Jones, S., & La Viña, E. A. (2019). 10 conflicts to worry about in 2019. Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.
- Kishi, R., Pavlik, M., Constantino, M., & La Viña, E. A. (2018). Duterte’s war: Drug-related violence in the Philippines. Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.