Section: Staff Profiles

James Kennedy

Name
Dr James Kennedy
Title
Programme Director, MSc Nationalism Studies
Organisation
Sociology, School of Social and Political Science
University of Edinburgh
Address
6.28 Chrystal Macmillan Building 15a George Square Edinburgh UK EH8 9LD
Telephone
+44 (0)131 650 4250
E-Mail
Research Interests
Comparatve/Historical Sociology,Political Sociology,Nationalism and National Identity,Civil Society and Democratization,Scotland,Canada/Quebec
URL
http://www.sociology.ed.ac.uk/staff_profiles/kennedy_james
picture of face

Office Hours

Thursdays 2-4, during term

Qualifications

  • PhD (McGill University)
  • MA (University of Glasgow)

Research Interests

  • comparative/historical sociology
  • political sociology, including civil society and social movements
  • nationalism and national identity
  • comparative politics
  • Scottish and Quebecois politics and society

Teaching 

  • Theories and Theorists in Nationalism Studies (PG course)
  • Comparative Perspectives in Nationalism Studies (PG course) 
  • Nations and Nationalism (PG and UG Honours courses)
  • National Identity and Everyday Nationalism (section in Sociology 1A)

Research Interests    

My research interests lie broadly in comparative/historical sociology and political sociology. I am keen to explore research questions from a comparative and an historical perspective. In addition I place an emphasis on identifying the key role that the modern state has played and continues to play in shaping societal relations. The themes of classical sociological theory influence this broad, macro-orientated approach.

My more particular interests lie in the sociology of nationalism. Here, I have been concerned with identifying the sociological underpinnings affecting the character of nationalism. Scotland and Quebec have been the focus of this and on ongoing research. More recently I have undertaken research, funded by the Leverhulme Trust, with Liliana Riga exploring the influence of American understandings of race and ethnicity on postwar settlements in East Central Europe through the 20th century.

I am currently supervising Ph.D.s on:

  • National Identity and Multiculturalism in the Netherlands
  • Everyday Nationalism in Turkey
  • Multiculturalism and National Identity in Scotland
  • Education and National Identity in Taiwan
  • Natalism and Nationalism in Quebec
  • The Origins of the Iona Community

I have supervised completed Ph.D.s on:

  • The Return of the State to Development: the State, Donors, and NGOs in post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan
  • Pathways to Genocide: the Process of Ideological Radicalisation
  • Situating Strangers: Understanding Hindu Community Life in Lusaka, Zambia
  • Regional and National Identity Mobilization in Canada and Britain: Nova Scotia and North East England Compared
  • Imperial Nationalism: Nationalism and the Empire in late 19th century Scotland and Canada
  • The Development of a Discourse Community: the Scottish Constitutional Debate, 1967-1979

Publications

Recent publications include:

(2011) 'Tolerant Majorities, loyal minorities and 'ethnic reversals': constructing minority rights at Versailles 1919' (with L. Riga) in T. Harrison and S. Drakulic (eds.) Against Orthodoxy: Studies in Nationalism, Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press

(2009) 'Tolerant Majorities, loyal minorities and 'ethnic reversals': constructing minority rights at Versailles 1919' (with L. Riga) Nations and Nationalism 15(3)

(2008) '1867 and all that: Federalism and Union in Britain and Canada', Journal of Irish and Scottish Studies 1(2)

(2008) 'Quebec' in G.H. Herb and D. Kaplan (eds) Nations and Nationalism: A Global Historical Overview, Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO

(2007) 'The International Relations of the Transition: Ernest Gellner's Social Philosophy and Political Sociology' (with R. Dannreuther), International Political Sociology 1(4)

(2007) 'Historical Sociology in Sociology: British Decline and US Hegemony with Lessons for International Relations' (with R. Dannreuther), International Politics 44(4)

(2007) 'Contrasting Liberal Nationalists: the Young Scots Society and the Ligue nationaliste canadienne', Nationalism and Ethnic Politics 13(1)

(2007) 'Where is the British national press?' (with J. MacInnes, M. Rosie, P. Petersoo and S. Condor), British Journal of Sociology 58(2)

(2006) 'Mitteleuropa as Middle America? The Inquiry and the Mapping of East Central Europe in 1919' (with L. Riga), Ab Imperio 2006(4)

(2006) 'Responding to Empire: Liberal Nationalism and Imperial Decline in Scotland and Quebec', Journal of Historical Sociology 19(3)

(2006) 'Mediating Which Nation? Citizenship and National Identities in the British Press' (with M. Rosie, P. Petersoo, J. MacInnes and S. Condor), Social Semiotics 16(2)

(2004) 'A Switzerland of the North? The Nationalistes and a Bi-national Canada', Nations and Nationalism 10(4)

(2004) 'Nation speaking unto nation? Newspapers and national identity in the devolved UK' (with M. Rosie, J. MacInnes, P. Petersoo and S. Condor), Sociological Review 52(4)

Topics interested in supervising

I am keen to supervise research from either a comparative/historical or political sociological perspective. I particularly welcome research proposals on questions of nationalism, civil society or democratization. To date, my supervision has focused around examinations of civil society and nationalism in a range of contexts.

If you are interested in being supervised by James Kennedy, please see the links below for more information:

PhD in Sociology

This page was published on 7 October 2011


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