I am Director of the Institute of Governance a key hub for research on identities, nationalism and political sociology.
Principal interests are: Scottish society and politics; religious identity in secularised societies; nationalism, national and localised identities; media and nationalism; the politics of prejudice and 'sectarianism'.
Work in progress includes: National identities and Political Attitudes in Post-Devolution Britain; The Crisis of 'Loyalist' Politics in Scotland; religiosity, irreligion and ‘family values'; protests and protest policing.
Recent and ongoing activities and research includes the the study of Public Order, Protest & Policing, focussing on the policing of 'crowd events', and in particular the inter-relation between political protest and protest policing.