Alejandro Tirado Castro

Welcome! My name is Alejandro Tirado Castro and I am Postdoctoral Researcher in the TwiceAsGood Project - ERC Advance Grant. My main tasks in this research project include designing and conducting surveys targeting both citizens and political candidates, focusing on several topics on public opinion and gender discrimination. Additionally, I conduct ethnographic studies and interviews with the candidates throughout the election campaign. Currently, I am analyzing the results of this research and preparing research articles for future publication. Collaborating with Marta Fraile from CSIC, I share the responsibility for executing these tasks in Spain, actively contributing to both CSIC and the University of Exeter. 

I hold a Ph.D. in Political Science from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, which was awarded the Outstading Thesis Award in Social Sciences. My dissertation primarily centered on citizens' evaluation of democratic performance after the Great Recession in Europe. As part of this research, I focused on analyzing the trends in satisfaction with democracy after the 2008 economic crisis. The research also delved into identifying the main factors associated with the stability and fluctuation of this phenomenon. Moreover, my dissertation examines the relationship between ideological and affective polarization and its impact on the recognized winner-loser gap.

I have recently joined another research group focused on gender and political inequality called the GenderedPsyche . Previously, I participated as a research assistant in various research projects, including The Global Legislator Database, led by Dr. Miriam Golden, Dr. Noam Lupu, and Dr. Nicholas Carnes; and the project "Parlamentarios y Sociedad" led by Dr. Xavier Coller, funded by the Spanish Ministerio de Economa y Competitividad.  Furthermore, I hold a M.A. in Social Sciences at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and two B.A. in Sociology and in Political Sciences and Public Administration from Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville.

Main interest and research:

For any suggestion or inquiries, feel completely free to contact me through my email:

a.t.castro@exeter.ac.uk or alejandro.tirado@cchs.csic.es