Political scientist working on democracy, elections, representation, voters, participation, and political trust.
Segaard’s research areas include elections, voter behavior, representation and political trust, democracy and internet voting, as well as volunteering in the cultural sector. She is frequently featured in the media as a commentator on Danish and Norwegian politics and is currently a regular columnist for Altinget Løvebakken.
She is and has been a project leader and researcher on numerous research projects. Currently, she leads the projects Trust and Attitudes Toward Research: Causes and Changes Over Time, Local Election Surveys 2019 and 2023 (together with Jo Saglie), the Election Diary Project, Cultural Institutions and Volunteering IV and participates in the Parliamentary Election Surveys 2025 and 2029.
Segaard has previously led research evaluations of the trials with internet voting in Norway, Local Election Day – Women in Local Politics, Democracy and Trust and Political Inequality, and has participated in projects such as Research on Local Parties, Local Referendums, Evaluation of the Democracy Reform in the Church of Norway, Conditions and Impacts of Welfare Mix, the Voluntary Effort Project and the EU-funded Third Sector Impact project.
She serves on the ESS ERIC Methods Advisory Board and the ESS ERIC Research Ethics Board.
Beyond research, Segaard is a member of the Election Committee for the Nordic Association for Local Government Research, a deputy member of the Independent Appeals Board for complaints regarding decisions made by the Norwegian Media Authority under the Election Act, a deputy board member at ISF, and sits on the reference group for the collaboration between the Church of Norway and the Institute for Church, Religion, and Worldview Research (KIFO).
Previously, she has been a member of the Party Law Committee, the Research Committee at KIFO, the Election Council in the Oslo Diocese, the Democracy and Elected Representatives Committee appointed by the Church Council and a local chapter leader in the Norwegian Association of Researchers at ISF.
Segaard has also served on the jury for the Volunteering Award (Frivillighet Norge), been a board representative at ISF, and a member of the PhD program board at the Faculty of Social Sciences (University of Oslo).
She has worked at ISF since 2009 and holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Oslo (2009).