Social and Political Sciences, School of
Established in 2001, the School brings together core social scientific disciplines to promote the critical understanding of social and political processes and the development of effective policy and practice through a wide range of teaching and research programmes. The School was formed from the departments (now subject groups) of Politics, Social Anthropology, Social Policy and Sociology; the Graduate School of Social and Political Studies; the Centres of African, Canadian and South Asian Studies; the Science Studies Unit, the Research Centre in Social Sciences and the Institute of Governance. It has recently been joined by Social Work, and now forms part of the College of Humanities and Social Science.
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Recent Submissions
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Looking after grandchildren: the motivation, pattern, and the impact of intergenerational engagements on grandparents in rural China
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-11-22)Across the world, grandparents are increasingly becoming the primary caregivers of their grandchildren. China is no exception. The rapid growth of an ageing population, large scale rural–urban internal labour migration, ... -
Pro Deo et Patria: unfolding the hybrid governance and political participation of religious institutions in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-11-22)The nexus between Religion and Politics has shifted in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since 2016—a year that marked the end of Joseph Kabila’s constitutional two-term limit. This interdisciplinary thesis unfolds ... -
New adaptation or the same old script? Political elites' national role conceptions and domestic role contestation in the UK and Germany during the European 'migrant crisis'
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-11-17)The European ‘migration crisis’ in 2015-16 highlighted the stark variation in national policy responses to forced migration among European Union (EU) member states and engagement in responsibility-sharing arrangements. ... -
Topping up the tank: enhancing the emotional resilience of social workers in local authority adult services
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-11-17)The emotional resilience of social workers has increasingly been a focus of research, particularly in response to high levels of stress in the profession. Most of this research has been carried out in relation to social ... -
Tweeting 'truths': rumour and grammars of power in Kenya
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-11-17)This study examines rumour as a mediator of public discourses in Kenya. It focuses on rumours that followed the killing of Chris Msando – a senior election official with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission ... -
Securitizing isolationism: Nixon and the construction of US history and identity during the Vietnam War
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-10-11)In 1969 Richard Nixon became President of the United States having campaigned on a promise to end the war in Vietnam. Amidst increasing domestic pressure to end US military involvement in Vietnam – which had escalated ... -
Tolerance in the City of Peace: history and belonging in Harar (Gêy), Ethiopia
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-10-04)[No Deposit Agreement] -
Governance of primary care quasi-markets: a case study of the Stockholm region in Sweden
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-09-26)BACKGROUND: In the latter part of the 20th century, several European countries introduced quasi-markets in their public healthcare systems. The introduction of quasi-markets is designed to give patients a choice of the ... -
Symbolic struggle for the Arab Spring: political fields and foreign policy in the Middle East
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-09-21)In the past decades, the Middle East has attracted the attention of media and researchers all over the world. The balance of power is fluid, state borders are fragile, and national identities are being contested. Thus, ... -
Forest governance, forest dwelling people and construction of environmental subjects: case of REDD+ and Khasis in Meghalaya, India
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-08-31)Drawing on data collected from ethnographic fieldwork, participant observation and semi-structured interviews (from December 2017-January 2019), this thesis explores the complex relationship between: Meghalaya’s recent ... -
Beyond policy accountability: responses to police abuse by people at Kenya's urban margins
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-08-31)Police abuse of power has been a persistent problem in Kenya from the colonial era to the present day, and disproportionately impacts people belonging to marginalised groups. Over the decades, there have been calls for ... -
Emancipatory imperative: a critical theory of social transformation
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-08-30)In this thesis, I argue for the importance of an emancipatory imperative in political theory. While early 20th century critical theory offered promising resources for thinking about the liberation from social and economic ... -
Intergenerational transmission of the effects of maternal childhood adversities via poor infant outcomes
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-08-16)BACKGROUND: The effects of maternal exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) may be transmitted to the subsequent generation through various biopsychosocial mechanisms. Previous studies have found an association ... -
Divided waters: a hydropolitical analysis of development, space, and labour in N'Djamena, Chad
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-07-25)This thesis analyses the everyday politics of water in N’Djamena, Chad and its implications for various realms in the urbanscape. Water workers and end-users coexist and punctually collaborate with numerous other ... -
Bittersweet: living with sugar and kin in contemporary Scotland
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-08-08)This thesis explores sugar consumption and kin-making in a north Edinburgh neighbourhood, and shows that sugar is central to processes of social relatedness. I argue that sugar reveals the meaning of kinship in Scotland, ... -
What role does family play? The relationship between living arrangements and the well-being of women aged 60 and over in China
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-07-29)In traditional Chinese family life, intergenerational households provided support for older people. Social and cultural changes in the past decades have seen a growing trend towards smaller families and new family ... -
Developing Sustainable Local Childcare Solutions: Summary of Highland Research and Co-production Workshops
(2022)The Covid-pandemic and the public health measures aimed at containing the virus such as lockdowns, physical distancing and self-isolating, radically changed family life and daily routines, and had particularly dramatic ... -
Villages, politics and the everyday statemaking of post independent Zimbabwe
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-06-30)In this thesis I retrieve a stubbornly enduring polity, villages, from the margins of society, and propose that the everyday moments of their inhabitants have been at the core of some of the very important post independent ... -
Institutional performance, public appraisals, and electoral governance in Kenya (2002-2017)
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-07-16)After Kenya adopted a new constitution in 2010, the country embarked on extensive citizen-oriented reforms targeted at improving the performance of key public institutions and Kenyans’ opinions of it. Much scholarly ... -
To GDP or not to GDP? Identifying the factors promoting and inhibiting the use and impact of well-being metrics in Scotland and Italy
(The University of Edinburgh, 2022-06-24)Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is frequently used as a proxy for well-being. Such use of GDP is problematic for many reasons, for GDP excludes activities that contribute to well-being and includes others that have a negative ...
