FAsSS
Chair in Education
- About
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- Email Address
- p.abbott@abdn.ac.uk
- School/Department
- School of Education
Biography
I am a professor in the School of Education at the University of Aberdeen and Director of the Centre for Global Development. I am also a member of the Centre for Civil Society, the Rule of Law, and the New Europe Centre.
My main research interests are gender, wellbeing, quality of life and social quality, and social, economic and political transformations. I have researched the UK, the European Union, the former Soviet Union, East Africa, the Middle East, and North Africa. I am an author (with Claire Wallace and Melissa Taylor) of the best-selling text An Introduction to Sociology: Feminist Perspectives (3rd edition 2005), Routledge. My most recent books are Democratisation Against Democracy: How the EU Fails the Middle East (with Andrea Teti, Valeria Talbot and Paolo Maggiolini). Palgrave Macmillian, published in January 2020 and (with Andrea Teti and Francesco Cavatorta) The Arab Uprisings in Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia: Social, Economic and Political Transformations in the Arab World. Palgrave Macmillian, published in January 2018. I have published more than 50 articles in peer-reviewed journals. My work has been published in English, French, Italian, Swedish, Farsi, Polish, Korean and Chinese.
I am directing two funded research projects. The National Institute for Health and Care Global Health Research Group on Promoting Children's and Adolescents' Mental Wellbeing in sub-Saharan Africa (£2.8m, 2022 -2026). The Fostering a Social Practice Approach to Adult Literacies for Improving People’s Quality of Life in Western Rwanda project funded under the Scottish Government's Scotland Rwanda Programme (£1.6m, 2017-24).
Qualifications
- PhD Sociology/Social Policy1982 - Council for National Awards
- BSc Sociology1970 - University of London (externnal)
- MSc Sociology with Politics1975 - Birkbeck College, University of London
Memberships and Affiliations
- Internal Memberships
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Director of the Centre for Global Development
- External Memberships
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UKRI International Strategic Advisory Board
British Sociological Association
Funding Board, National Institute for Health Research, Research for Innovation and Global Health Transformation (RIGHT) funding.
Latest Publications
A Crisis of Accountability and Corporate Immunity for Unfair Purchasing Practices: A Survey of Global Fashion Retailers’ Production Factories in a Global South Country
34th International Congress on Social and Environmental Accounting ResearchContributions to Conferences: AbstractsShadow Accounts on Corporate Social Impacts and Exploitation of Workers on the Ground: Evidence from Bangladeshi Factories for Global Fashion Retailers during Covid-19
Contributions to Conferences: PapersA protocol for a critical realist systematic synthesis of ~interventions to~ promote pupils’ wellbeing by improving the school climate in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
PloS ONE, vol. 19, no. 5, e0286489Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHow prices and income influence global patterns in saturated fat intake by age, sex and world region: a cross-sectional analysis of 160 countries
BMJ Open, vol. 14, no. 1, e074562Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA protocol for a critical realist synthesis of school mindfulness interventions designed to promote pupils' mental wellbeing
Frontiers in public health, vol. 11, 1309649Contributions to Journals: Articles
Prizes and Awards
Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences
Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- Research
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Research Overview
I am the Director of the Centre for Global Development and a member of the Centre for Civil Society and the Rule of Law.
My main research interests are gender and social quality and quality of life, and social, economic and political transformations. I have expertise in both qualitative and quantitative social research methods. I have researched in the UK and Europe, the former Soviet Union, East Africa and the Middle East and North Africa.
Research Areas
Accepting PhDs
I am currently accepting PhDs in Applied Health Sciences, Politics and International Relations, Sociology.
Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your research ideas further.
Research Specialisms
- International Relations
- Gender Studies
- Political Sociology
- Health Policy
- Development in Africa
Our research specialisms are based on the Higher Education Classification of Subjects (HECoS) which is HESA open data, published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
Current Research
I am joint-lead on the National Institute for Health-funded project, NIHR Global Health Research Group on Promoting Children's and Adolescents' Mental Wellbeing in Sub-Saharan Africa (£2.9m, 2022-2026). I am directing the Fostering a Social Practice Approach to Adult Literacies for Improving People's Quality of Life in Western Rwanda project. The project is funded under the Scottish Government's Scotland Rwanda Programme (£1.5m, 2017-23). I am: a co-I on a project funded by the International Development Research Centre, Canada, Providing Timely Evidence to Facilitate the Socio-Economic Recovery from the Covid-19 Pandemic in Rwanda (2020-2023); on a UK R&I funded project on federalism in the Horn of Africa (2020-2023); on an AHRC funded project Toward the Development of Post Covid-19 Gender Policy Measures to End Modern Slavery and Exploitation in the Bangladeshi Garment Sector; on a project funded by the International Development Research Centre (2021-24) to investigate ways of reducing women's unpaid care work in rural Rwanda; and on a project on democratisation in Tunisia.
Knowledge Exchange
I am a member of UK R & I Global Challenges Research Fund Strategic Advisory Group
I am a member of the National Institute for Health Research Community Engagement Advisory Group.
I publish articles in the Conversation and Open Democracy and regularly give presentations at the Festival of Social Sciences and May Fest.
Collaborations
University of Addis Ababa
University of Global Health Equity
Institute of Policy Analysis and Research-Rwanda
Supervision
My current supervision areas are: Applied Health Sciences, Politics and International Relations, Sociology.
I am currently supervising five PhD students.
Nouf Rasheed Perceptions of Patient Safety Culture Amongst Doctors and Nurses in Saudi Arabia Hospitals
Kaeeba Bakali Ali. A Qualitative Study of the Development and Implementation of a Social Practice Approach to Adult literacies teaching in the Western Province of Rwanda
Nyirahabimana Astérie. The Contribution of Adult Literacies to Childhood Development: A Case Study of Karongi District, Western Province, Rwanda.
Elise Boyle. Education in the Islamic State.
David McCusker. Prison Education: Learning How to Start Your Business on Release from Prison in Scotland.
Funding and Grants
Director of the NIHR Global Health Research Group in Promoting children's and Adolescents' Mental Wellbeing in sub-Saharan Africa. Funded by the National Institute for Health and Social Care 2021-2026
Principal Investigator: Fostering a Social Practice Approach to Adult Literacies for Improving People’s Quality of Life in Western Rwanda project. Funded by the Scottish Government 2017-2023.
Co-Investigator: Providing Timely Evidence to Facilitate the Socio-Economic Recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic in Rwanda project. Funded by the International Development Research Centre (Canadian Government) 2020-2023.
Co-Investigator: Toward the Development of post-Covid-19 Gender Policy Measures to End Modern Slavery and Exploitation in the Bangladeshi Garment Sector. Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council 2020-21.
Co-Investigator: Partnership Programme for Capacity Building Centre of Excellence in Good Governance. Funded by UK Research and Innovation 2020-23.
Principal Investigator: In Their Own Words: The Democracy Tunisians Want. Funded by the Scottish Funding Council 2021.
Co-Investigator: Assess the Impact and Scalability of Participatory Programs on Reducing and Redistributing Unpaid Care work among Women in Rwanda”: A Case Study of Reseaux des Femmes Unpaid Care work Project in Rwanda (GRoW Project). Funded by the International Development Research Centre (Canadian Government) 2021-2024.
- Teaching
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Teaching Responsibilities
I currently teach on the 6th Century Course: Africa: Sustainable Development for All. I also surpervise PhD students.
- Publications
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Rwanda's potential to achieve the millennium development goals for education
International Journal of Educational Development , vol. 40, pp. 117-125Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2014.12.007
Access to improved sanitation facilities in low-income informal settlements of East African cities
Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 89-99Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.2166/washdev.2014.029
Overcoming poverty and inequality: Rwanda's progress towards the MDGs
Development in Practice , vol. 25, no. 7, pp. 921-934Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09614524.2015.1073691
Trust in Post-Soviet Countries, Ten Years On
European Politics and Society, vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 523-539Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/23745118.2015.1039286
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
What is a Decent Society?
Measuring and Reporting on Europeans' Wellbeing: Findings from the European Social Survey. ESS, ERIC, pp. 10-11, 2 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersRising Economic Prosperity and Social Quality the Case of New Member States of the European Union
Social Indicators Research, vol. 115, no. 1, pp. 419-439Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-012-9992-0
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/4942/1/SOCI14991revised2.rtf
Challenges to Achieving Sustainable Sanitation in Informal Settlements of Kigali, Rwanda
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 10, no. 12, pp. 6939-6954Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph10126939
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/10032/1/ijerph_10_06939.pdf
Changing patterns of fruit and vegetable intake in countries of the former Soviet Union
Public Health Nutrition, vol. 16, no. 11, pp. 1924-1932Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980013001316
Loneliness: Its Correlates and Association with Health Behaviours and Outcomes in Nine Countries of the Former Soviet Union
PloS ONE, vol. 8, no. 7, pp. 1-9Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHealth problems and the transition from Communism in the former Soviet Union: towards an explanation
Perspectives on European Politics and Society, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 460-479Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15705854.2013.772751
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Quality of life in Europe: Quality of society and public services. Third European Quality of Life Survey
Commissioned by EUROPEAN FOUNDATION FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF LIVING AND WORKING CONDITIONS. Luxembourg: European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions. 109 pagesBooks and Reports: Commissioned ReportsSocial Quality, the Quality of Life and Parents with Young Children in Europe
Family Wellbeing: European Perspectives. Mínguez, A. M. (ed.). Springer, pp. 27-51, 25 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4354-0_3
Social quality: A way to measure the quality of society
Social Indicators Research, vol. 108, no. 1, pp. 153-167Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-011-9871-0
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/2524/1/fulltext_2_.pdf
Changes in the Levels of Psychological Distress in Eight Countries of the former Soviet Union
Journal of Public Health Medicine, vol. 11, no. 3, pp. 141-152Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHappines in a Post-Conflict Society: Rwanda
Happiness Across Cultures: Views of Happiness and Quality of Life in Non-Western Cultures. Selin, H., Davey, G. (eds.). Springer, pp. 361-376, 16 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2700-7
Happiness in Post-Conflict Society: Rwanda
Happiness across Cultures: Views of Happiness and Quality of Life in Non-Western Cultures. Selin, H., Davey, G. (eds.). Springer, pp. 361-377, 16 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] http://www.springer.com/series/6504
Satisfaction and Societal Quality in Kazakhstan
Happiness Across Cultures: Views of Happiness and Quality of Life in Non-Western Cultures. Selin, H., Davey, G. (eds.). Springer, pp. 107-120, 14 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters- [ONLINE] http://www.springer.com/series/6504
- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2700-7
Surviving the Transformation: Social Quality in Central Asia and the Caucuses
Journal of Happiness Studies, vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 199-223Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-010-9187-9
Survivors of the Transformation in the Causes and Central Asia
Journal of Happiness Studies, vol. 12, pp. 199-223Contributions to Journals: ArticlesExplaining economic and social transformations in post-Soviet Russia, Ukraine and Belarus: The social quality approach
European Societies, vol. 12, no. 5, pp. 653-674Contributions to Journals: ArticlesConcepts of citizenship, social and system integration among young people in post-Soviet Moldova
Journal of Youth Studies, vol. 13, no. 5, pp. 581-596Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2010.489605
Politique familiale et égalité des sexes: politiques socials et familiales en Grand-Bretagne
Informations Sociales, vol. 159, pp. 46-56Contributions to Journals: ArticlesExplaining Economic and Social Transitions in Post-Soviet Russia, Ukraine and Belarus: The social Quality Approach
European Societies, vol. 12, pp. 653-74Contributions to Journals: ArticlesLevels and Determinants of Psychological Distress in Eight Countries of the Former Soviet Union
Journal of Public Health Medicine, vol. 9, pp. 17-26Contributions to Journals: ArticlesYoung People's Strategies for Survival in post-Soviet Moldova
Journal of Youth Studies, vol. 13, pp. 581-Contributions to Journals: ArticlesThe specter of post-communism: Women and alcohol in eight post-Soviet states
Social Science & Medicine, vol. 68, no. 7, pp. 1254-1262Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.01.019
Patterns of participation in the formal and informal economies in the Commonwealth of Independent States
International Journal of Sociology, vol. 39, no. 2, pp. 12-38Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.2753/IJS0020-7659390201
Post-Communism and Female Tobacco Consumption in the Former Soviet States
Europe-Asia Studies, vol. 61, no. 9, pp. 1543-1555Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09668130903209129
Psychological Stress and dietary Patterns in Eight Post-Soviet Republics
Appetite, vol. 53, pp. 24-33Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2009.04.004
Talking about Health and Well-Being in Post Soviet Ukraine and Russia
Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 181-202Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13523270701317455
Cultural Trauma and Social Quality in Post-Soviet Moldavia and Belarus
East European Politics and Societies, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 219-258Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0888325407299774
From Quality of Life to Social Quality: Relevance for work and care in Europe
Calitatea Vietii Revista de Politici Sociale, vol. 18, no. 1-2, pp. 109-123Contributions to Journals: ArticlesAn introduction to sociology: Feminist perspectives
Taylor and Francis. 430 pagesBooks and Reports: Books- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203489949
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Chernobyl: Living with risk and uncertainty
Health, Risk & Society, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 105-121Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13698570600677167
Health Lifestyles, and Political Ideology
Social Science & Medicine, vol. 62, pp. 1799-1809Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHealth world views of post-soviet citizens
Social Science & Medicine, vol. 62, no. 1, pp. 228-238Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2005.05.019
Life Satisfaction in Post-Soviet Russia and Ukraine
Journal of Happiness Studies, vol. 7, pp. 251-287Contributions to Journals: ArticlesPsychological Distress, Gender and Health Lifestyles in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine
Social Science & Medicine, vol. 63, pp. 2381-2394Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTrust, Confidence and Social Environment in Post-Communist Societies
Communist and Post-Communist Studies, vol. 39, pp. 59-71Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHealth Lifestyles in Ukraine
Sozial- und Präventivmedizin, vol. 50, no. 2, pp. 264-271Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-005-3171-x
An Introduction to Sociology: Feminist Perspectives (3rd ed.)
Routledge, LondonBooks and Reports: BooksLiving on the Margins: Older People, Place and Social Exclusion
Policy Studies, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 29-66Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHealth Lifestyles in in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan
Social Science & Medicine, vol. 59, pp. 1409-1421Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] ScienceDirect Article
Women and Health Checks: Making Sense of Differential Uptake
Critical Public Health, vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 233-250Contributions to Journals: ArticlesWomen, Health and domestic Violence
Journal of Gender Studies, pp. 83-102Contributions to Journals: ArticlesHealth Visiting, Social Work, Nursing and Midwifery: a History
The Sociology of the Caring Professions. Abbott, P., Meerabeau, L. (eds.). 2nd edition. UCL Press, pp. 20-53Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersChocs Away: Flight Attendants and Weight Control
Sociology, vol. 32, no. 3Contributions to Journals: ArticlesResearch Methods for Nurses and the Caring Professions (2nd ed.)
Open University PressBooks and Reports: BooksSocial Policy for Nurses and the Caring Professions
Open University PressBooks and Reports: BooksVarying Citizenship: women, familial discourse and the New Right in Britain
Quale Cittadinanza per le Donne?: La crisi dello stato sociale e della rappresentanza politica in Europa. Del Re, A., Heinen, J. (eds.). Franco AngeliChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Chapters