University of Kent

Research

General Research Interests
My central research interest is the social and political organisation of the capitalist classes (messily defined).  I study concrete examples of capitalist political action such as political donations and pressure group affiliation.  I am especially interested in the relation between capitalists’ organisational and personal interests.  I also have an interest, and have published on, the delivery and organisation of health care services.  Finally I have a closet interest in old-fashioned sociological theory (the type that gives predictions about events in the world) and an interest in social network analysis. 

Current Research Projects

Most of my research time is spent writing up the results of a study on directors of large British corporations that I completed with Siana Glouharova and Nicholas Harrigan.  The project was funded by the ESRC.  I am also writing a grant to replicate the research at a cross-national level.

Research Supervision

I would welcome research students interested in capitalist social classes, elites, health policy, sociological theory and social network analysis.

Past Research Projects

2004 £35,000 ESRC Effects of Intercorporate Networks on Corporate Social and Political Behaviour

Others on health policy.

Teaching

My main teaching is on the postgraduate Masters in Social Research.  I have taught intro to sociology, sociological theory, political sociology, health services research, research methods and lots else.

Recent Publications

2007 ‘Elite Social Relations and Corporate Political Donations in Britain’ Political Studies
2006 ‘Health’ (with Geoff and Judy Payne) in Social Divisions (edited by Geoff Payne)
2004 ‘Social Influences on Corporate Political Donations in Britain’ British Journal of Sociology
2004 ‘Primary Care Organizations and the Modernization of the NHS’ (with Julian Le Grand) in The New Primary (edited by Bernard Dowling and Caroline Glendinning)