Contact
Biography
I have been at Nottingham since 2000, having previously held positions at Brunel University and Brown University.
Expertise Summary
I am interested in a variety of questions within the broad field of normative political philosophy/theory. In particular, this includes questions about social justice, certain aspects of rational choice theory, and other areas of applied ethics (such as education, information technology, and environmentalism). An overarching theme of my work has been the proper place of religion within politics and society.
I welcome doctoral research applications in the following areas; the foundations of liberalism; Rawlsian political philosophy; social justice; political liberalism; anti-perfectionism; just war theory; the philosophy of education; rational choice and religion.
Teaching Summary
I teach within the fields of ethics and contemporary political theory/philosophy.
My main teaching contributions are within the areas of:
1. Social and global justice
2. Normative political theory
3. The ethics of killing and saving lives
Research Summary
My research is within the field of moral and political philosophy, in particular I am interested in the proper relationship between conceptions of the good (such as religious and ethical conceptions)… read more
I am interested in supervising PhD dissertations in the areas of:
- Liberal egalitarian political theory
- Rawlsian political philosophy
- The overlap of normative political philosophy and the philosophy of education.
I have supervised a number of successful PhD projects in these areas.
Current Research
My research is within the field of moral and political philosophy, in particular I am interested in the proper relationship between conceptions of the good (such as religious and ethical conceptions) and the role of the liberal democratic state, though my interests extend to questions of social justice more generally. My research can be broken down into three main areas:
- What position the state should take with regards to religious and other comprehensive claims. Particularly, Rawlsian political liberalism, anti-perfectionism, children's education, religious disobedience.
- Understanding how the marketplace of religious ideas works. Particularly, explanations of religious group membership, radicalization and extremism, rational choice explanations, and how the new information technologies change and mitigate these dynamics.
- Social justice. Particularly, questions of socioeconomic distribution, Rawlsian justice as fairness, equality of opportunity and education, environmental justice.
I am also interested in (though publish less frequently on) ethical and moral questions, such as killing and harming, just war theory, nationality and the structure of moral obligations.
Future Research
I continue to work on questions of religion and its place within modern democratic societies, as well as other questions on social justice and ethics, as well as within the field of the philosophy of eduction.