Ryan Thombs' research focuses on the political economy of the climate crisis, its impacts on health and well-being, and how social inequality affects population health outcomes using advanced statistical methods (mostly using panel, time series, and/or spatial modeling). Currently, he is working on three projects. The first explores the effects of fossil fuel sector decline on a range of environmental and population health measures such as emissions, air pollution, life expectancy, and economic well-being sub-nationally in the U.S. The second analyzes the anthropogenic drivers of greenhouse gas emissions focusing on the relationship between militarization and emissions and evaluating the mitigation effectiveness of current climate policies. The last project is focused on developing new approaches and software packages for panel, time series, and spatial modeling.
In the News
Recent Publications
Guns versus Climate: How Militarization Amplifies the Effect of Economic Growth on Carbon Emissions
Jorgenson, A. K., Clark, B., Thombs, R. P., Kentor, J., Givens, J. E., Huang, X., El Tinay, H., Auerbach, D. & Mahutga, M. C., Jun 2023, In: American sociological review. 88, 3, p. 418-453 36 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Review of Environmental Econometrics Using Stata, by Christopher F. Baum and Stan Hurn
Thombs, R. P., Sep 2023, In: Stata Journal. 23, 3, p. 897-900 4 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
A Guide to Analyzing Large N, Large T Panel Data
Thombs, R. P., 2022, In: Socius. 8Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
The asymmetric effects of fossil fuel dependency on the carbon intensity of well-being: A U.S. state-level analysis, 1999–2017
Thombs, R. P., Nov 2022, In: Global Environmental Change. 77, 102605.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
What Goes Up Might Not Come Down: Modeling Directional Asymmetry with Large-N, Large-T Data
Thombs, R. P., Huang, X. & Fitzgerald, J. B., Feb 2022, In: Sociological methodology. 52, 1, p. 1-29 29 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Inequality amplifies the negative association between life expectancy and air pollution: A cross-national longitudinal study
Jorgenson, A. K., Thombs, R. P., Clark, B., Givens, J. E., Hill, T. D., Huang, X., Kelly, O. M. & Fitzgerald, J. B., Mar 1 2021, In: Science of the Total Environment. 758, 143705.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
The Unsustainable State: Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Inequality, and Human Well-Being in the United States, 1913 to 2017
Kelly, O., Thombs, R. P. & Jorgenson, A., 2021, In: Socius. 7Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
In-and-Beyond State Power: How Political Equality Moderates the Economic Growth-CO2 Emissions Relationship, 1990-2014
Thombs, R. P., 2021, In: Sociological Quarterly. 62, 3, p. 528-547 20 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
It's about time: How recent advances in time series analysis techniques can enhance energy and climate research
Thombs, R. P., Huang, X. & Jorgenson, A. K., Feb 2021, In: Energy Research and Social Science. 72, 101882.Research output: Contribution to journal › Short survey › peer-review
Trade and health: A cross-national study of global economic integration, smoking prevalence, and gender, 2000 to 2015
Thombs, R. P., Thombs, D. L. & Mahoney, C. A., Mar 1 2021, In: Sociology of Development. 7, 1, p. 98-116 19 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review
Power, proximity, and physiology: Does income inequality and racial composition amplify the impacts of air pollution on life expectancy in the United States?
Jorgenson, A. K., Hill, T. D., Clark, B., Thombs, R. P., Ore, P., Balistreri, K. S. & Givens, J. E., Feb 7 2020, In: Environmental Research Letters. 15, 2, 024013.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
The multiplicative impacts of working hours and fine particulate matter concentration on life expectancy: A longitudinal analysis of US States
Jorgenson, A. K., Fitzgerald, J. B., Thombs, R. P., Hill, T. D., Givens, J. E., Clark, B., Schor, J. B., Huang, X., Kelly, O. M. & Ore, P., Dec 2020, In: Environmental Research. 191, 110117.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
The political economy of renewable portfolio standards in the United States
Thombs, R. P. & Jorgenson, A. K., Apr 2020, In: Energy Research and Social Science. 62, 101379.Research output: Contribution to journal › Short survey › peer-review
What Is Driving the Drug Overdose Epidemic in the United States?
Thombs, R. P., Thombs, D. L., Jorgenson, A. K. & Braswell, T. H., Sep 2020, In: Journal of health and social behavior. 61, 3, p. 274 1 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review
What Is Driving the Drug Overdose Epidemic in the United States?
Thombs, R. P., Thombs, D. L., Jorgenson, A. K. & Harris Braswell, T., Sep 1 2020, In: Journal of health and social behavior. 61, 3, p. 275-289 15 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review