Economic History, Business History, Topics in Contemporary Business Economics (e.g. Brexit, Regions and Devolution), Applied Institutional Economics, Economic Organisation of Violence, Communicating Economics (e.g. pedagogy and public understanding).

PhD    Queen's University of Belfast, Economics                                    December 2002

Dissertation: 'Institutional Change and the Two Irelands 1945-1990: an application of North's institutional economics External Examiner: Professor Nick Crafts, FBA (University of Sussex and Warwick University, then LSE)

BA      University of York, Economics and Economic and Social History           July 1994

            Graduated with First Class Honours

Plenary Lecturer Economic History Society Annual Conference, April 2019 (Lecture entitled: "Back to the Failure(s)? Delorean and Northern Ireland's Other Troubles". (The EHS is probably the world's largest annual conference in economic and social history).

Editor, Irish Economic and Social History (since 2012). Under my editorship, with Dr Catherine Cox, the journal has gone from strength to strength in the most recent Scimago Institutions Ranking (2017) the journal was on the History list within quartile 2 (SJR 0.139) with an H index of 6.   

Elected Member, Royal Irish Academy Social Sciences Committee (2018-22). Elected member in order to contribute on an all-island basis for guiding the RIA's engagement in the areas of social science research. Membership also involves a policy formulation role as it relates to national, European and international levels.     

Research Associate, Queen's University Centre for Economic History (since 2012). QUCEH is one of the UK's leading research centres in economic history. Most of the world's leading economic historians have presented papers at QUCEH. 

Member, Urban and Regional Economics Seminar Group (URESG) (since 2016). The URESG for more than 40 years has been one of the leading forums for presenting research in the area of regional economics. I have presented invited papers to URESG.

External Examiner, Undergraduate Economics Programmes, University College Cork (2013 -2016). Offered advice on undergraduate economic progarmmes at UCC. Asked to stay on for an additional year when my term ended (2015). 

Member, Nevin Economic Research Institute Research Review Panel (since 2013). NERI is an all-Ireland research organisation supported by unions affilated to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU). I've presented invited papers to NERI as well as offered research advice.

Remote Evaluator, Irish Research Council (since 2018). Provided assessment on PhD research proposals and associated grant requests. 

Current Teaching

ECO 3013 Economics of Corporate Strategy (semester 2 2016/17-)

PAI 2045 Politics and Economics of UK Devolution (semester 2 2010/11-)

Doctoral Examination

External examiner: Geoffrey Brooke “Three Essays on Economic History” University of Auckland (2012).

External Examiner:  Frank Conlon “Industrial Finance in Independent Ireland: The Trade Loans (Guarantee) Acts, 1924-1939”, National University of Ireland, Galway (2017).

Internal Examiner: Thomas Agbonkpolor (May 2009), Wen Wen Zhen (October 2009) and Clive Walker (June 2012).

Chair of PhD differentiation committee: Gareth Campbell (June 2007), Wen Wen Zen (June 2007) and Victoria Maier (May 2012).

Office Hours:  Monday 11AM-12noon and Tuesday 2PM-3PM and by arrangement.

My research interests cover both historical and contemporary topics within applied institutional economics. So my research interests can be summarised into the five overlapping areas of Economic and Business History; Contemporary Business Economics; Applied Insitutional Economics; Economic Organization of Violence and Communicating Economics. 

My research interests are overlapping so my research statement reflects that overlapping set of interests. My core interest covers both economic and business history. In addition, institutional approaches to such topics interest me.  So we can think about my research programme as involving both general and specific elements. The specific aspect of my research programme involves creating an institutionally-rich interpretation of Irish economic and business history. In more general terms I am concerned with issues of methodology and application in producing economic history. So topics surrounding archives and counterfactuals are also areas in which I have written. For example, I have produced a widely read paper in the Journal of Economic Methodology on the evolution of Douglass North's thinking and have a forthcoming book chapter that extends the analysis. 

The second area is contemporary business economics. I'm concerned with how real world businesses use economics and react to economic conditions. So my research in this area covers topics such as Brexit, devolution and regional economics. My work with Dr Budd on supply chains and Brexit is an example of this part of my research programme.  Likewise, the recent and forthcoming work on industrial policy links with this emphasis on business economics. Increasingly, my interest in strategic management can also be placed in this category also. 

The third area is applied institutional economics. This interest overlaps with business economics. I have for instance with Dr Esmond Birnie worked on the comparative institutional economics of the Nordics and the lessons they provide for Northern Irish competitiveness. Likewise, the paper within Regional Studies on tax devolution, again with Dr Birnie, examines when devolution of tax setting powers to devolved assemblies are more or less appropriate. Such an examination ultimately takes us back to institutions and history.   

The fourth area is the economic organization of violence. The paper published in the Journal of Institutional Economics with Professor Dnes on the evolution of violent Irish Republicanism reflects this part of my research programme. Likewise, my work on counterterrorism economics, as exemplified by my 2012 paper in Terrorism and Political Violence, considers that resources need not only be allocated by voluntary exchange and that policymakers will trade-off between economic, political and militrary objectives.     

Communicating Economics is my last research interest. I'm interested in the way economists persuade each other, teach students and talk to the public. So to this interest the emergence of a literature since the economic crisis of 2008 of the way economic education can be improved are important issues for society as well as economic education. Pedagogy and the more general public understanding of economics are thus of profound interest to me. My ongoing work with Dr Colvin and Blum reflects this part of my research agenda.    

Plenary Lecturer Economic History Society Annual Conference, April 2019 (Lecture entitled: "Back to the Failure(s)? Delorean and Northern Ireland's Other Troubles". (The EHS is probably the world's largest annual conference in economic and social history).

Editor, Irish Economic and Social History (since 2012). nder my editorship, with Dr Catherine Cox, the journal has gone from strength to strength in the most recent Scimago Institutions Ranking (2017) the journal was on the History list within quartile 2 (SJR 0.139) with an H index of 6. 

Elected Member, Royal Irish Academy Social Sciences Committee (2018-22). Elected member in order to contribute on an all-island basis for guiding the RIA's engagement in the areas of social science research. Membership also involves a policy formulation role as it relates to national, European and international levels.     

Research Associate, Queen's University Centre for Economic History (since 2012). QUCEH is one of the UK's leading research centres in economic history. Most of the world's leading economic historians have presented papers at QUCEH. 

Member, Urban and Regional Economics Seminar Group (URESG) (since 2016). The URESG for more than 40 years has been one of the leading forums for presenting research in the area of regional economics. I have presented invited papers to URESG.

External Examiner, Undergraduate Economics Programmes, University College Cork (2013 -2016). Offered advice on undergraduate economic progarmmes at UCC. Asked to stay on for an additional year when my term ended (2015). 

Member, Nevin Economic Research Institute Research Review Panel (since 2013). NERI is an all-Ireland research organisation supported by unions affilated to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU). I've presented invited papers to NERI as well as offered research advice.

Remote Evaluator, Irish Research Council (since 2018). Provided assessment on PhD research proposals and associated grant requests.

Associate Director of International Communication, QMS, (July 2018 -). This post involves contributing towards EQUIS accrediation application and is concerned with raising the international media profile of the research developed at Queen's Management School.

Erasmus Coordinator for QMS, QMS, 2012-16

• Administration of existing relationships and creation of new exchange relationships eg University of Konstanz (Germany)

Programme Director BSc Economics, QMS, 2009-12

Programme Director BSc Business Economics, QMS, 2009-12

• 2009-10 worked on review of undergraduate economics pathways and completed paperwork for syllabus review

Elected Member of School Management Board, QMS, 2010-15

• Elected to represent non-professorial academic staff in decision-making with QMS

Economics member of Undergraduate Education Committee, QMS, 2007-15

• Represented economics group within teaching group

Doctoral level (passed already)

Supervisor for Owen Sims with dissertation entitled "Entrepreneurship and Wealth Generation in Socially Structured Economies” (passed in November 2016). Now working a Senior Policy Advisor for Confederation of British Industry.

Supervisor for Eimear Smyth with dissertation entitled “The economics of waiting list’ (passed making minor revisions after viva in January 2017). Now an Economic Advisor (Grade 7) at HM Treasury.

Supervisor for Gary Chapman with dissertation entitled “Examining the Attitudinal and Intention Additionality of Innovation Vouchers: A Conceptualisation and Empirical Examination” (Passed after minor corrections after viva in November 2018). Now working as a Lecturer in Business and Management at De Montfort University.

Supervisor for Andrew Godden PhD student since September 2015 “A Critical Analysis of the Rights-Based Approach to Development”. Viva passed March 2019.  

First Supervisor for David Jordan PhD student since September 2015 “The economics of devolution: evidence from Northern Ireland, 1920-1972”. Viva Passed December 2019.

Peer-Reviewed Articles for:

Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Australasian Journal of Economics Education, British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Business History, Economic History Review, Enterprise and Society, Financial History Review, Irish Economic and Social History, Irish Historical Studies, Journal of Institutional Economics, Journal of the Statistical and Social Inquiry Society of Ireland, Managerial and Decision Economics, Public Choice, Regional Studies, Terrorism and Political Violence.

Other refereeing

Cambridge University Press, New Zealand Association of Economists Conference 2006 and 2009, Oxford University Press, Palgrave Macmillan, Pearson (FT Prentice Hall). Irish Research Council (Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences) 2018 and 2020.