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McCloskey

Katherine McCloskey

BA (2009) QUB, MLegSci (2011) QUB

Project Title: ‘Enhancing the quality of democratic governance under consociationalism- the Northern Ireland case.’

My thesis focuses on consociationalism specifically in Northern Ireland. Initially interested in reform of the current devolved institutions, my research has led me to investigate the transitional nature of the Good Friday Agreement, focusing on the development of the devolved institutions to date, and investigating the scope for progression in the future.

Another emphasis of my research involves defining democracy in terms of the institutional design of government systems, assessing how democratic the consociational arrangements in Northern Ireland are, with a view to looking at other consociational systems on a comparative basis with Northern Ireland.

Research Interest Areas:

  • Consociationalism
  • Devolution in Northern Ireland
  • Notions of democracy in post-conflict states
  • Governmental  and institutional reform

General Interest Areas:  

  • The government and politics of Northern Ireland
  • British & Irish politics
  • Gender politics
  • Politics and public policy in the UK


Supervisors: Dr John Garry & Dr Lee McGowan

Published Work:

‘The Impact of Devolution on Public Appointments in Northern Ireland: The Role of OCPANI, a Comparative Study.’  CPA NI Annual Report 2008/2009.