Neil Matthews
Biographic Data
| ID | 4097840 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Neil Matthews |
| GIVEN NAMES | Neil |
| FAMILY NAME | Matthews |
| SIGNATURE | MATTHEWS N |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Bristol |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3367-1356 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 16 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 63 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 16 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2012 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
The security of politicians: Towards a Research Agenda
Members of Parliament (MPs) are increasingly experimenting with a variety of measures to protect their personal security. This trend is particularly evident at the local level, with MPs adjusting their constituency service on security grounds in ways that likely affect how they interact with constituents. Despite potentially significant representative implications, these enhanced security measures have yet to be problematized in detail. This arti…
New Labour and political myth
By their friends shall ye know them: Donald Trump and the Democratic Unionist Party’s populist revival
The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was home to some of the most vocal and steadfast supporters of the Presidency of Donald J. Trump. Drawing on a diverse range of sources, including interviews with those supporters, this paper accounts for the good relations between the DUP and Trump. That account highlights several commonalities, including their 'Orangeism', their stance on Brexit, their illiberalism, and their populism. As well as its nature, …
To the surprise of absolutely no one: Gendered political leadership change in Northern Ireland
The office of political party leader remains one that women rarely occupy. In the largest comparative study of party leadership to date, only 10.8% were women. One region which has made significant advances in this area is Northern Ireland. Since 2015, the two largest parties, Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party, have experienced a rapid feminisation of their leadership. Such a development is particularly remarkable given Northern Ireland…
The Evolution of Party Policy and Cleavage Voting under Power-Sharing in Northern Ireland
This article argues that post-conflict consociational arrangements in ethnically divided societies incentivize moderation by political parties, but not policy differentiation outside the main conflict. This results in little policy-driven voting. Analysing party manifestos and voter survey data, we examine the evolution of party policy and cleavage voting under power-sharing in Northern Ireland 1998–2016. We find a reduction in ethno-national pol…
Does receiving advice from Voter Advice Applications (VAAs) affect public opinion in deeply divided societies? Evidence from a field experiment in Northern Ireland
Despite the global growth in the use of Voter Advice Applications (VAAs), which advise users on how similar their own policy views are to the policy positions of the political parties, there have been few field experiments that isolate the causal effects of VAA use on party support. Nor has there been much investigation of how VAAs may help to ameliorate ethnically based voting divisions by refocusing voter attention on other issues. This article…
Party images in Northern Ireland: Evidence From a New Dataset
The literature on belief systems in mass publics shows that survey respondents typically have difficulty in describing their images of political parties; only about half offer a meaningful description of how they see individual parties. This paper investigates what people in Northern Ireland think that parties stand for in their home jurisdiction, in Great Britain and in the Republic of Ireland, using open-ended questions in a survey of 1,008 Nor…
The changing face of party policy selection in post-devolution Northern Ireland
Dimensionality of Policy Space in Consociational Northern Ireland
A criticism of consociational power sharing as an institutional response to violent conflict is that it buttresses rather than ameliorates the underlying (linguistic, religious or ethno-national) divide, hence prohibiting the emergence of new dimensions of political competition (such as economic left-right or moral liberal-conservative dimensions) that are characteristic of ‘normal’ societies. We test this argument in the context of the illustrat…
A fresh start? The Northern Ireland Assembly election 2016
As voters across Northern Ireland went to the polls on 5 May 2016, it was by no means obvious that they were participating in a landmark election. The preceding campaign was largely lacklustre, voters were left uninspired, and competition for votes was primarily conducted along predictable ethno-national lines. The Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin retained their positions as the dominant unionist and nationalist parties respectively, while…
The Selection of Party Leaders in Northern Ireland
This article provides an analysis of the leadership selection methods adopted by Northern Ireland's five main parties. Drawing on data from interviews with party elites and internal party documents, it sheds light on an important element of intra-party organisation in the region and constitutes a rare case-study of leadership selection in a consociational democracy. By accounting for instances of organisational reform, this article also reveals t…
Plus Ça Change: The 2014 Local Elections in Northern Ireland
The local government elections of 22 May 2014 in Northern Ireland were the first to be held under revised district boundaries, with 11 'super councils' replacing the 26-council model used since 1973. Despite the structural reform, little changed in terms of political party support. Although they suffered some losses, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin remained firmly entrenched as the two dominant players at local government level in Nor…
Northern Ireland 2013
Northern Ireland 2012
Northern Ireland 2011
The Northern Ireland Assembly Election 2011
Following the first full term of regional government in the province since 1972, the Northern Ireland Assembly election held on 5 May 2011 saw the continuation of several trends. Foremost, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin bolstered further their positions as leaders of their respective communities, with the Social Democratic and Labour Party and Ulster Unionist Party losing yet more ground. Building on their decision to enter power-sha…
The Evolution of Party Policy and Cleavage Voting under Power-Sharing in Northern Ireland
This article argues that post-conflict consociational arrangements in ethnically divided societies incentivize moderation by political parties, but not policy differentiation outside the main conflict. This results in little policy-driven voting. Analysing party manifestos and voter survey data, we examine the evolution of party policy and cleavage voting under power-sharing in Northern Ireland 1998–2016. We find a reduction in ethno-national pol…
Dimensionality of Policy Space in Consociational Northern Ireland
A criticism of consociational power sharing as an institutional response to violent conflict is that it buttresses rather than ameliorates the underlying (linguistic, religious or ethno-national) divide, hence prohibiting the emergence of new dimensions of political competition (such as economic left-right or moral liberal-conservative dimensions) that are characteristic of ‘normal’ societies. We test this argument in the context of the illustrat…
Does receiving advice from Voter Advice Applications (VAAs) affect public opinion in deeply divided societies? Evidence from a field experiment in Northern Ireland
Despite the global growth in the use of Voter Advice Applications (VAAs), which advise users on how similar their own policy views are to the policy positions of the political parties, there have been few field experiments that isolate the causal effects of VAA use on party support. Nor has there been much investigation of how VAAs may help to ameliorate ethnically based voting divisions by refocusing voter attention on other issues. This article…
The Northern Ireland Assembly Election 2011
Following the first full term of regional government in the province since 1972, the Northern Ireland Assembly election held on 5 May 2011 saw the continuation of several trends. Foremost, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin bolstered further their positions as leaders of their respective communities, with the Social Democratic and Labour Party and Ulster Unionist Party losing yet more ground. Building on their decision to enter power-sha…
To the surprise of absolutely no one: Gendered political leadership change in Northern Ireland
The office of political party leader remains one that women rarely occupy. In the largest comparative study of party leadership to date, only 10.8% were women. One region which has made significant advances in this area is Northern Ireland. Since 2015, the two largest parties, Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party, have experienced a rapid feminisation of their leadership. Such a development is particularly remarkable given Northern Ireland…
The Selection of Party Leaders in Northern Ireland
This article provides an analysis of the leadership selection methods adopted by Northern Ireland's five main parties. Drawing on data from interviews with party elites and internal party documents, it sheds light on an important element of intra-party organisation in the region and constitutes a rare case-study of leadership selection in a consociational democracy. By accounting for instances of organisational reform, this article also reveals t…
A fresh start? The Northern Ireland Assembly election 2016
As voters across Northern Ireland went to the polls on 5 May 2016, it was by no means obvious that they were participating in a landmark election. The preceding campaign was largely lacklustre, voters were left uninspired, and competition for votes was primarily conducted along predictable ethno-national lines. The Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin retained their positions as the dominant unionist and nationalist parties respectively, while…
The security of politicians: Towards a Research Agenda
Members of Parliament (MPs) are increasingly experimenting with a variety of measures to protect their personal security. This trend is particularly evident at the local level, with MPs adjusting their constituency service on security grounds in ways that likely affect how they interact with constituents. Despite potentially significant representative implications, these enhanced security measures have yet to be problematized in detail. This arti…
Plus Ça Change: The 2014 Local Elections in Northern Ireland
The local government elections of 22 May 2014 in Northern Ireland were the first to be held under revised district boundaries, with 11 'super councils' replacing the 26-council model used since 1973. Despite the structural reform, little changed in terms of political party support. Although they suffered some losses, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin remained firmly entrenched as the two dominant players at local government level in Nor…
By their friends shall ye know them: Donald Trump and the Democratic Unionist Party’s populist revival
The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was home to some of the most vocal and steadfast supporters of the Presidency of Donald J. Trump. Drawing on a diverse range of sources, including interviews with those supporters, this paper accounts for the good relations between the DUP and Trump. That account highlights several commonalities, including their 'Orangeism', their stance on Brexit, their illiberalism, and their populism. As well as its nature, …
Northern Ireland 2011
The Northern Ireland Assembly Election 2011
Following the first full term of regional government in the province since 1972, the Northern Ireland Assembly election held on 5 May 2011 saw the continuation of several trends. Foremost, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin bolstered further their positions as leaders of their respective communities, with the Social Democratic and Labour Party and Ulster Unionist Party losing yet more ground. Building on their decision to enter power-sha…
Northern Ireland 2012
Northern Ireland 2013
Plus Ça Change: The 2014 Local Elections in Northern Ireland
The local government elections of 22 May 2014 in Northern Ireland were the first to be held under revised district boundaries, with 11 'super councils' replacing the 26-council model used since 1973. Despite the structural reform, little changed in terms of political party support. Although they suffered some losses, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin remained firmly entrenched as the two dominant players at local government level in Nor…
The Selection of Party Leaders in Northern Ireland
This article provides an analysis of the leadership selection methods adopted by Northern Ireland's five main parties. Drawing on data from interviews with party elites and internal party documents, it sheds light on an important element of intra-party organisation in the region and constitutes a rare case-study of leadership selection in a consociational democracy. By accounting for instances of organisational reform, this article also reveals t…
The changing face of party policy selection in post-devolution Northern Ireland
Dimensionality of Policy Space in Consociational Northern Ireland
A criticism of consociational power sharing as an institutional response to violent conflict is that it buttresses rather than ameliorates the underlying (linguistic, religious or ethno-national) divide, hence prohibiting the emergence of new dimensions of political competition (such as economic left-right or moral liberal-conservative dimensions) that are characteristic of ‘normal’ societies. We test this argument in the context of the illustrat…
A fresh start? The Northern Ireland Assembly election 2016
As voters across Northern Ireland went to the polls on 5 May 2016, it was by no means obvious that they were participating in a landmark election. The preceding campaign was largely lacklustre, voters were left uninspired, and competition for votes was primarily conducted along predictable ethno-national lines. The Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin retained their positions as the dominant unionist and nationalist parties respectively, while…
Does receiving advice from Voter Advice Applications (VAAs) affect public opinion in deeply divided societies? Evidence from a field experiment in Northern Ireland
Despite the global growth in the use of Voter Advice Applications (VAAs), which advise users on how similar their own policy views are to the policy positions of the political parties, there have been few field experiments that isolate the causal effects of VAA use on party support. Nor has there been much investigation of how VAAs may help to ameliorate ethnically based voting divisions by refocusing voter attention on other issues. This article…
Party images in Northern Ireland: Evidence From a New Dataset
The literature on belief systems in mass publics shows that survey respondents typically have difficulty in describing their images of political parties; only about half offer a meaningful description of how they see individual parties. This paper investigates what people in Northern Ireland think that parties stand for in their home jurisdiction, in Great Britain and in the Republic of Ireland, using open-ended questions in a survey of 1,008 Nor…
To the surprise of absolutely no one: Gendered political leadership change in Northern Ireland
The office of political party leader remains one that women rarely occupy. In the largest comparative study of party leadership to date, only 10.8% were women. One region which has made significant advances in this area is Northern Ireland. Since 2015, the two largest parties, Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party, have experienced a rapid feminisation of their leadership. Such a development is particularly remarkable given Northern Ireland…
The Evolution of Party Policy and Cleavage Voting under Power-Sharing in Northern Ireland
This article argues that post-conflict consociational arrangements in ethnically divided societies incentivize moderation by political parties, but not policy differentiation outside the main conflict. This results in little policy-driven voting. Analysing party manifestos and voter survey data, we examine the evolution of party policy and cleavage voting under power-sharing in Northern Ireland 1998–2016. We find a reduction in ethno-national pol…
New Labour and political myth
By their friends shall ye know them: Donald Trump and the Democratic Unionist Party’s populist revival
The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) was home to some of the most vocal and steadfast supporters of the Presidency of Donald J. Trump. Drawing on a diverse range of sources, including interviews with those supporters, this paper accounts for the good relations between the DUP and Trump. That account highlights several commonalities, including their 'Orangeism', their stance on Brexit, their illiberalism, and their populism. As well as its nature, …
The security of politicians: Towards a Research Agenda
Members of Parliament (MPs) are increasingly experimenting with a variety of measures to protect their personal security. This trend is particularly evident at the local level, with MPs adjusting their constituency service on security grounds in ways that likely affect how they interact with constituents. Despite potentially significant representative implications, these enhanced security measures have yet to be problematized in detail. This arti…
Political science (16 works) · Politics (12 works) · Political economy (11 works) · Sociology (11 works) · Law (10 works) · Law (10 works) · Irish and British Studies (9 works) · Northern ireland (7 works) · Public Administration (7 works) · Democracy (6 works)