| Jenna Bednar | |
| Workplaces: | University of Michigan |
| Alma Mater: | Stanford University University of Michigan |
| Thesis Title: | The federal problem : the political economy of federal stability |
| Thesis Url: | https://worldcat.org/en/title/43357835 |
| Thesis Year: | 1998 |
Jenna Bednar is an American political scientist currently serving as Professor of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. In 2019, her book The Robust Federation: Principles of Design received the American Political Science Association's Martha Derthick Book Award.
Bednar was an undergraduate at the University of Michigan.[1] She moved to Stanford University as a doctoral researcher, where she earned a PhD in 1998.[2] Her doctorate investigated the political economy of federal stability.[3] After graduating, she worked at the University of Iowa.
Bender studies the political mechanisms that give rise to stabilities in federal states.[4] She has studied how institutions maintain and distribute authority. Her research showed that the distribution of authority by a constitution can be meaningless if governments do not abide by them. With a focus on the United States, she has examined how the federal government takes advantage of state governments.
In 2009, Bednar published The Robust Federation, Principles of Design, a book which examines how federal constitution can produce resilient governments.[5] The book is mainly theoretical, and was inspired by the writings of the Founding Fathers of the United States. In 2019, The Robust Federation: Principles of Design was awarded the American Political Science Association Martha Derthick Book Award.[6]