School of Politics and International Studies

Dr Stuart McAnulla

Lecturer in British Politics and Political Science Methodology; Programme Director BA Politics

Photo of Dr Stuart McAnulla

I currently teach modules in British Politics and Political Science Methodology. Before coming to Leeds, I completed a PhD and taught at the University of Birmingham.

I also worked for a year as a researcher at the University of Central England, where I also taught a public policy course. My particular interests are in contemporary British politics and the role of philosophy, and social theory in political studies.

Research Interests

I am interested in contemporary British politics, including: ideational and institutional change under the Cameron, Blair and Brown Governments; leadership failure; 'third way' politics under Blair and Cameron; and the role of tradition in the context of 'modernisation'. I also have interest in: critical realist social theory; power and the 'structure-agency' debate; and, the politics of Anglo-American new atheism.

Teaching

I teach on a number of undergraduate and postgraduate modules focussed on postwar and contemporary British politics. These include the specialist third year module 'The End of British Politics?' I also teach political science methodology modules, including the core second year module for politics programmes 'Approaches to Political Science'.

PhD Supervision

I am interested in supervising doctoral research in the following areas.

  • Political, ideological and institutional change under the Brown, Blair, Thatcher and Major Governments.
  • Applied theory: using interpretive, critical realist or alternative meta-theoretical frameworks to studies of political change.

Key Publications

Books 
Chapters in Books
  • McAnulla, S.D. (2002) "Structure and Agency". In: David Marsh and Gerry Stoker (eds.) Theory and methods in political science, Palgrave Macmillan, pp.271-291.
Journals 
  • McAnulla, S.D. (2011) ‘Stephen Lukes, Power: A Radical View’ in Theakston, K.  Volumes of Influence, Manchester: Manchester University Press
  • McAnulla, S.D .(2010) ‘Forced Exits: Accounting for the Removal of Contemporary Party Leaders’, Political Quarterly, 81 (4), 593-601
  • McAnulla, S.D. (2010) ‘Heirs to Blair’s Third Way? David Cameron’s Triangulating Conservatism’, British Politics, 5 (3), 286-314
  • McAnulla, S.D. (2009) ‘Explaining the Forced Exit of Charles Kennedy: Pushing the Public-Private Boundary’, Politics, 29 (1) 37-44
  • McAnulla, S.D. (2007) "New Labour, Old Epistemology? Reflections on Political Science, New Institutionalism and The Blair Government." Parliamentary Affairs, 60(2), pp.313-331.
  • McAnulla, S.D. (2006) "Challenging the New Interpretivist Approach: Towards a Critical Realist Alternative." British Politics, 1(1), pp.113-138.
  • McAnulla, S.D. (2005) "Making Hay with Actualism: The Need For a Realist Concept of Structure". Politics, 25(1), pp.31-38.

Media Contact Areas

  • Changes in contemporary British political ideology 
  • Contemporary British political policy
  • Contemporary British political institutions
  • Contemporary British political leadership
  • Contemporary British political democratic reform
  • Contemporary British political party direction

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