Henry Thomson

Henry Thomson is an Associate Professor in the School of Politics and Global Studies at Arizona State University. In 2025-26, he also serves as Acting Director of the Melikian Center for Russian, Eurasian and East European Studies. His research focuses on authoritarian regimes and transitions to democracy. His most recent book, Watching the Watchers: Communist Elites, the Secret Police and Social Order in Cold War Europe won Harvard's Davis Center prize in 2025. Originally from New Zealand, Thomson studied political science, economics and German literature at Minnesota, Berlin and Wellington. This broad training across the social sciences and humanities is reflected in his similarly broad interests in higher education. Currently, he is most actively engaged in promoting civil discourse and debate among undergraduates on campus via discussion-based courses and public events. He is also part of a broad coalition in Phoenix and at ASU fostering interest in international affairs and foreign languages and cultures.