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PhD Candidates

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Salsabil Abdalbaki

Complex Systems and Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Data science, social network analysis, text mining, water resources management, Egypt, MENA region
Thesis Title: Computational approaches to the detection of media frames, with an application to the Nile dispute

Supervisor: Professor Johan A Dornschneider-Elkink

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Abdulkadir Adan

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Climate-related disasters, resistance, and violent conflict, with a particular focus on the application of a combination of quantitative, geographic, and qualitative methodologies.
Thesis Title: Understanding Resistance Against Al Shabaab: The Effect of Climate-related Disasters and Clan Militias

Supervisor: Dr Caitriona Dowd

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Justin Allen

Global Human Development

Research Interests: Stakeholder engagement, citizen participation, community-based participatory research, and co-production across the public policy cycle, how public service skilling programs impact realization of co-created SDG outcomes.
Thesis Title: Civil Servant Upskilling in Bhutan to Identify and Implement Co-produced Sustainable Citizen Solutions

Supervisor: Prof Patrick Paul Walsh (SPIRe)
Co-Supervisor: Prof Ciara Whelan (Economics)

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Heba Elsahn

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: power dynamics, international development, humanitarian aid, food security, MENA region
Thesis Title: Securitization Theory and Food Assistance: Understanding Humanitarian Actors Response

Primary Supervisor: Dr Vincent Durac
Co-Supervisor: Dr Caitriona Dowd

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Jeanette Garcia Kola

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Foreign Aid, Development Studies, Climate Politics, Mixed Methods Research, Political Economy, Sustainable Finance
Thesis Title: Evaluating the Impact of Irish Climate Aid within the EU Context: Effectiveness, Accountability, and Resilience Outcomes in Developing Countries

Supervisor: Dr Krishna Vadlamannati

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Sarah King

Quantitative and Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Quantitative text analysis, research methods, public policy, higher education policy, representation, responsiveness, legislative behaviour
Thesis Title: The Price of Knowledge: Representation and Responsivenes in Higher Education Policy

Supervisor: Dr Stefan Müller

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Shannon Kobran

Global Human Development

Research Interests: Education for sustainable development, tertiary education, public policy, interdisciplinary and intersectoral approaches
Thesis Title: From Disclosure to Development: Linking Policy, Corporate Sustainability, and SDG Progress in the Global Economy

Supervisor: Dr Yoo Sun Jung

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Linette Lim

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Authoritarian politics, media governance, propaganda and censorship in Asia, Chinese nationalism, mixed methods, quantitative text analysis
Thesis Title: Invoking the Foreign Enemy: How China's Media Governance Entrenches Authoritarian Resilience

Supervisor: Dr Alexander Dukalskis

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James MacCarthy Morrogh

Politics and International Relations

Thesis title: Foreign policy, fundamentalism and American public opinion: the impact of evangelicals and Christian belief

Supervisor: Dr James Cross

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Lorcan McLaren

Quantitative and Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Quantitative text analysis, political communication, climate politics, environmental psychology, EU politics, network analysis
Thesis Title: Why rhetorical style matters for political communication on climate change: measuring, mapping, and assessing the impact of style

Supervisor: Dr James Cross

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Lucas de Melo Prado

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Political theory, political discourse, discourse analysis, social justice, equality studies, democracy.
Thesis Title: The Worst-Off and the Legitimation of Social Inequalities: Contemporary Electoral Discourses Across Varieties of Capitalism

Supervisor: Dr Joseph Lacey

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Lakshmi Menon

Quantitative and Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Multinational enterprises, International economics, NLP, Data science, Statistical modelling, Political economics, Public policy, Economic Inequality and Democracy, Tax policy
Thesis Title: Democracy Challenged - How Corporate Tax Avoidance Fuels the Wealth
Inequalities that Undermine Democracy.

Supervisor: Prof Aidan Regan

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Mohamed Moheeb

Quantitative and Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Refugees and migration, political violence, political behavior, quantitative text analysis, large language models (LLMs), and text mining.
Thesis Title: Exposure to Violence and Political Attitudes of Refugees from War-Affected Countries

Primary Supervisor: Dr Stephanie Dornschneider-Elkink
Co-Supervisor: Professor Johan A Dornschneider-Elkink

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Louise Monger

Global Human Development

Research Interests: Human Resource Management, Sustainability Studies, Talent Management, Leadership Development, Performance Management
Thesis Title: Professionalization of the Field of Sustainability in South East Asia

Supervisor: Prof Patrick Paul Walsh (SPIRe)
Co-Supervisor: Prof Ciara Whelan (Economics)

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Paula Montano

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: EU politics, political communication, political rhetoric, public opinion, quantitative text analysis
Thesis Title: Strategic Crisis Communication: Evidence from the Council of the European Union and National Parliament Negotiations

Supervisor: Dr James Cross

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Anh Nguyen Quoc

Global Human Development

Research Interests: Entrepreneurship Education, Sustainability, University-Industry Collaboration, Entrepreneurship, Innovations in Education
Thesis Title: Theorising Entrepreneurial Education for Educators in Higher Education: A Realist Evaluation of the Vietnam Ireland Bilateral Education Exchange (VIBE) Programme
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7156-5832

Primary Supervisor: Prof Suzi Jarvis (Innovation Academy)
Co-Supervisor: Prof Patrick Paul Walsh (SPIRe)

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Ciarán Ó Brian

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Political theory, political ecology, Marxism, critical theory, normative political theory (theories of rights & justice), anarchism, anticolonial and decolonial theory, green political theory
Thesis Title: Climate Borders - Climate Induced Displacement, the Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment, and Fortress Europe

Supervisor: Dr Alexa Zellentin

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Neha Parikh

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Universal Health Coverage, health system reform, health equity, global health policy, mixed methods research, program evaluation and implementation research, political economy & governance of health.
Thesis title: Plugging the Gap: How can India ensure equitable health coverage for its ‘Missing Middle’?

Supervisor: Dr Krishna Vadlamannati

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Mafalda Patacão Zúquete

Quantitative and Computational Social Sciences

Research Interests: political communication, televised debates, mixed computational methods, Portuguese politics
Thesis title: Does political communication during campaigns answer the questions of voters?

Primary Supervisor: Dr Stefan Müller
Co-Supervisor: Dr Joseph Lacey

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Sofia Quaglia

Quantitative & Computational Social Sciences

Research Interests: Quantitative Social Sciences, Computational Ethics, Machine Learning, International Conflict, Muslim Resistance Movements, Conflict Analysis
Thesis title: Developing Tools for Cognitive Mapping Analysis of Arabic Interviews with Actors in Muslim Resistance Movements

Supervisor: Dr Stephanie Dornschneider-Elkink

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Jambo Ramadhani

Global Human Development

Research Interests: Climate Change, Natural Resources, Social Inclusion, Public Policy, Leadership, Diplomacy, and Sustainable Development
Thesis Title: A Framework for Decentralised Climate Financing in Tanzania

Supervisor: Dr. Krishna Vadlamannati

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Ada Ruohonen

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Gender and development studies, global governance, global political economy, and quantitative text analysis
Thesis Title: Assessing the World Bank’s Gender Indicators – One Step Forward, Two Steps Back?

Supervisor: Dr Samuel Brazys

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Smrutimayee Sarangi

Quantitative & Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Public policy; gender, public health, inequality, maternal health, quantitative research methods, mixed methods, health economics
Thesis Title: Effect of Socio-demographic factors and husband’s knowledge of pregnancy care in the utilisation of maternal health care among tribal women of Odisha

Supervisor: Prof Supriya Garikipati

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Carl Smith

Politics & International Relations

Thesis title: China’s Belt and Road: Causes and Consequences

Supervisor: Dr Krishna Vadlamannati

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Kasidech (Jimmy) Somboonkittichai

Quantitative and Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Civil wars and political violence, peace processes, power-sharing, democratisation, mixed methods and network analysis
Thesis Title: Seats at the negotiation table: Diffusion of inclusive practices and non-warring actor inclusion in peace processes

Primary Supervisor: Professor Johan A Dornschneider-Elkink
Co-Supervisor: Dr Stephanie Dornschneider-Elkink

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Conor Twomey

Politics & International Relations

Research Interests: comparative political economy of growth models, wealth and income inequality, and political communication.
Thesis Title: The political and electoral consequences of FDI-led growth models

Supervisor: Prof Aidan Regan

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Eva West

Politics and International Relations

Research Interests: Normative political theory, environmental political theory, climate change, global justice, intergenerational justice, ethics of technology
Thesis Title: Technology and the Environment: Normative Principles for Global and Intergenerational Justice

Supervisor: Dr Alexa Zellentin

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Linus Zechlin

Quantitative & Computational Social Science

Research Interests: Corporate Tax Avoidance, International Political Economy, Inequality Economics, Complex System Economics
Thesis Title: Democracy challenged - how corporate tax avoidance fuels the wealth inequalities that undermine democracy.

Supervisor: Prof Aidan Regan

UCD School of Politics and International Relations (SPIRe)

School Office: G301, Newman Building, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.