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Builders make something original out of familiar raw materials, creating handiwork with a vision, a structure, and a logic to hold it all together. David A. Lake is a quintessential builder in all senses of the word. When Lake provides an answer, all of the intellectual buildings blocks are visible, the logic clear. He thinks big, but starts with the microfoundations of political phenomena to assemble the pieces in innovative ways.
2016-2017 APSA President
David A. Lake
Jerri-Ann and Gary E. Jacobs Professor of Social Sciences and Distinguished Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego
Intellectually, Lake is and always has been motivated by big questions about how international order is constructed. Since his early days, he has worked to make sense of often complicated literatures in international relations to understand relations between states in the system, and the reasons for their decisions. In his research, he has rigorously parsed what it means for states to build order, arguing order is actively constructed. Most significantly, Lake has pioneered the use of relational contracting in political science to explore phenomena as diverse as trade (e.g., "Open Economy Politics"), security and insecurity (Entangling Relations), international hierarchy (Hierarchy in International Relations), conflict, NGOs, and most recently, statebuilding (The Statebuilder's Dilemma).
Institutionally, he has been a leader in the discipline, providing public goods for many different communities. Lake has served as president of the International Studies Association and now the American Political Science Association, coedited the flagship international relations journal International Organization, and held major senior administrative positions at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). Lake also shepherded the founding of the influential International Political Economy Society (IPES), whose meetings are enthusiastically attended and create opportunities for junior and senior scholars to mingle in a tight-knit community.
Collegially, Lake is generous with his time and open-minded in his knowledge and curiosity, taking the time to build up and build on nascent ideas. He has mentored scores of students and colleagues, including many whose work does not align completely--or at all--with his own research agenda; yet, he never passes up the chance to help make arguments better on the author's own terms. He reads widely and deeply, and...