Dr James Pattison

Dr James Pattison's Photo

Senior Lecturer in International Relations

B.A., M.A., PhD (Newcastle)

Address: Department of Politics, Philosophy, and International Relations, University of the West of England, Frenchay Campus, Coldharbour Lane, Bristol, BS16 1QY
Tel: 0117 328 2315
Email: james.pattison@uwe.ac.uk

Also see James Pattison's personal web site

Winner of the 2006/7 Sir Ernest Barker Prize for best PhD in Political Theory

Dr James Pattison is a Senior Lecturer in International Relations at the University of the West of England, U.K. He recently completed his PhD on humanitarian intervention, for which he was awarded the Sir Ernest Barker Prize for Best Dissertation in Political Theory by the Political Studies Association. He has also spent time as a Research Affiliate at New York University and, prior to joining UWE, he was a temporary lecturer in the School of Geography, Politics, and Sociology at Newcastle University.

His research interests concern the moral issues raised when using military force abroad, including the ethical challenges posed by the increased use of private military companies and the duties of humanitarian intervention. He has published various articles on these topics, including for the Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, Ethics and International Affairs, the Journal of International Political Theory, the International Journal of Human Rights, the Journal of Military Ethics, and the Journal of Social Philosophy. He is currently working on a book on humanitarian intervention and the responsibility to protect for Oxford University Press.

Research Interests
  • Areas of specialisation: international political theory, particularly the ethics of war and humanitarian intervention
  • Areas of competence: political philosophy, International Relations
Current Work
Pattison is currently working on two research projects:
  1. He is writing a research monograph on humanitarian intervention (under contract with Oxford University Press), provisionally entitled Humanitarian Intervention and the Responsibility to Protect: Who Should Intervene? This book will consider which agent of intervention, if any, should undertake humanitarian intervention. It draws on his doctoral research, “Legitimacy and Humanitarian Intervention: Who Should Intervene?” which was supervised by Professor Simon Caney (University of Oxford) and Professor Peter Jones (Newcastle University).
  2. His other research project concerns the normative issues surrounding the use of private military force (most of the work in this area has been empirical and conceptual, rather than normative). His most recent paper considers the deep normative issues with the use of private force.
Major Recent Publications

See: James Pattison's personal web site where many of these papers can be freely downloaded.

James Pattison (under contract) Humanitarian Intervention and the Responsibility to Protect: Who Should Intervene? (Oxford: Oxford University Press), forthcoming. 

James Pattison (200X) Humanitarian Intervention and the Responsibility to Protect: Who Should Intervene? (Oxford: Oxford University Press), forthcoming.

James Pattison (200X) “Humanitarian Intervention, the Responsibility to Protect, and jus in bello”, Global Responsibility to Protect, forthcoming. [11,000 words]

James Pattison (2008) “Whose Responsibility to Protect: The Duties of Humanitarian Intervention” Journal of Military Ethics, 7 (4), 262-83. [11,000 words]

James Pattison (2008) “Legitimacy and Humanitarian Intervention: Who Should Intervene?”, International Journal of Human Rights, 12 (3), 395-413. [11,000 words]

James Pattison (2008) “Just War Theory and the Privatization of Military Force”, Ethics and International Affairs, 22 (2), 143-62. [9,000 words]

James Pattison (2008) “Just War Theory and the Privatization of Military Force”, Ethics and International Affairs, 22 (2), 145-164. [9,000 words]

James Pattison (2008) “Humanitarian Intervention and a Cosmopolitan UN Force”, Journal of International Political Theory, 4 (1), 126-145. [9,000 words]

James Pattison (2007) “Representativeness and Humanitarian Intervention”, Journal of Social Philosophy, 38 (4), 569-587. [10,000 words]

James Pattison (2007) “Humanitarian Intervention and International Law: The Moral Significance of an Intervener’s Legal Status”, Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, 10 (3), 301-319. [9,000 words]

Minor Recent Papers

James Pattison (200X) "Legitimacy". Commissioned entry in Mark Bevir (ed) Sage Encyclopaedia of Political Theory, forthcoming [2,500 words]

James Pattison (2009) Commissioned ‘Book Note’ of Eric Heinze’s Waging Humanitarian War: The Ethics, Law, and Politics of Humanitarian Intervention (Albany: SUNY Press, 2009) for Human Rights and Human Welfare,

James Pattison (2008) Roundtable in Human Rights and Human Welfare: An International Review of Books and Other Publications,

James Pattison (2008) Commissioned book review of Robert Jackson’s Sovereignty, Evolution of an Idea (Cambridge: Polity Press, 2007) for International Affairs, 84 (1), January 2008, 145-146.

Recent Conference Presentations

“Who Should Intervene? The Agents of Humanitarian Intervention and the Responsibility to Protect”

  • Invited Speaker: Paper presented to the Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law, and Armed Conflict (ELAC), Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, 11 Feb. 09. This can be listened to here (mp3).

“Who Should Intervene? The Agents of Humanitarian Intervention and the Responsibility to Protect”

  • Invited Speaker: Paper to be presented to the Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law, and Armed Conflict (ELAC), Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, 9 Feb. 09.

 “Humanitarian Intervention, the Responsibility to Protect, and jus in bello”

  • Paper presented at the British International Studies Association’s Annual Conference, University of Exeter, 16 Dec. 08.
  • Invited Speaker: Paper presented as part of the ‘New Voices’ Seminar Series, Newcastle University, 11 Dec. 08.
  • Invited Speaker: Paper presented at the Social Ethics Research Seminar, University of Wales, Newport, 22 Oct. 08.
  • Invited Speaker: Paper presented as part of the Seminar Series, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Southampton, 16 Oct. 08.

“The Privatisation of Military Force: An Overview of the Ethical Issues”

  • Paper presented at Thinking (With)Out Borders: International Political Theory in the 21st Century, University of St Andrews, 12-13 Jun. 08.

“Private Force, Public Cost: The Privatisation of Military Force”

  • Paper presented at the Burwalls Centre for Continuing Education, Department of Politics, Philosophy, and International Relations, University of the West of England Research Away Day, 22 May 08.

“The Privatisation of Military Force and Just War Theory”

  • Paper presented at the Association of Legal and Social Philosophy’s Annual Conference, University of Nottingham, 27-29 Mar. 08.

“The Privatisation of Military Force: A Challenge to Just War Theory?

  • Paper presented at the British International Studies Association’s Annual Conference, University of Cambridge, Dec. 07.
  • Paper presented at ‘Global Social Justice in Theory and Practice?’, the Seventh Annual Conference of the Global Studies Association, 5 Sept. 07.

“Outsourcing the Responsibility to Protect: Humanitarian Intervention and Private Military Companies”

  • Invited speaker, School of Geography, Politics, and Sociology, Newcastle University, 19 Jan. 07.

“Whose Responsibility to Protect? The Duties of Humanitarian Intervention”

  • Paper presented to the British International Studies Association’s Annual Conference, University of Cork, 20 Dec. 06.
  • Invited speaker, Newcastle Political Philosophy Group, 13 Dec. 06.

“Legitimacy and Humanitarian Intervention: Who Should Intervene?”

  • Paper presented at ‘Brave New World’, the Tenth Graduate Conference in Political Theory, University of Manchester, 28 Jun. 06.
  • Paper presented at ‘Liberty, Security and the Challenge of Government’, the 56th Political Studies Association Annual Conference, University of Reading, 6 Apr. 06. Available online at www.psa.ac.uk/2006/pps/Pattison.pdf

“Humanitarian Intervention and a Cosmopolitan UN Force”

  • Paper presented at the Eighth Annual Graduate Conference in Political Theory, University of Warwick, 11 Feb. 06.

“Representativeness and Humanitarian Intervention”

  • Invited speaker, Newcastle Political Philosophy Group, 7 Dec. 05.
  • Paper presented at the Third Pavia Graduate Conference in Political Philosophy, University of Pavia, Italy, 15 Sept. 05.
  • Paper presented at ‘Global Poverty or Global Justice?’, the Fifth Annual Conference of the Global Studies Association, 8 Sept. 05.

“Humanitarian Intervention and International Law: The Moral Significance of an Intervener’s Legal Status”

  • Paper presented at ‘Brave New World’, the Ninth Graduate Conference in Political Theory, University of Manchester, 28 Jun. 05.
  • Invited speaker, Newcastle Political Philosophy Group, 27 Apr. 05.
  • Paper presented at the Seventh Annual Graduate Conference in Political Theory, University of Warwick, 7 May 05.
Esteem Indicators

(i) Convening and Organising

  • Co-convener. Global Ethics BISA Working Group, (globalethicsbisa@yahoo.co.uk) 2008-
  • Convener and Chief Organiser. CANE (Central and Northern England) PSA Graduate Conference in Politics. Newcastle University, 20th January 2007.
  • Organiser of Departmental External Speaker Seminar Series, Department of Politics, Philosophy, and International Relations, University of the West of England, Mar 09-present

(ii) Research Affiliate

(iii) Refereeing and Editorial Boards

Journals

  • Journal of Global Ethics
  • Ethics and International Affairs
  • Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy
  • The International Journal of Human Rights
  • Journal of Moral Philosophy
  • Journal of International Political Theory
  • Journal of Social Philosophy
  • Millennium
  • American Political Science Review

Publishing houses

  • University of Chicago Press
  • Routledge

Editorial Board Member

 (iv) Professional Affiliations

 (v) Funding

  • Research Collaboration Scheme, Association of Commonwealth Universities/British Academy. “Privatised Humanitarianism: An Ethical Imperative”. This funding will be to used to commence collaboration with Deane-Peter Baker (Senior Lecturer in the School of Philosophy and Ethics, University of KwaZulu-Natal) on a joint research project on PMCs and humanitarian intervention from May 09. Worth: £4514.80.
  • One-year ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship. Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford. Worth £89,574.00 (FEC). July 2007  (I did not take up this Fellowship since I was offered a permanent position at the University of the West of England at the same time
  • Funding for CANE graduate conference. £500 secured from School of Politics, Geography, and Sociology and £350 secured from PSA Graduate Network. Jan 2007
  • Expenses and Living Costs to be a Research Affiliate at New York University. Awarded by the ESRC as part of their Overseas Institutional Visit scheme (worth over £3000). Jul-Sep 2006
  • Four-year ESRC Studentship Award (1+3 Scheme). Covered all living expenses and fees for the duration of the M.A. and PhD (Worth over £60,000). Oct 2002-2006    

(vi) Awards

  • Sir Ernest Barker Prize for Best Dissertation in Political Theory. Awarded by the Political Studies Association (award for best PhD in field in the U.K.),  2008.        
  • Hugh Berrington Prize for Outstanding Performance. Awarded by the School of Geography, Politics, and Sociology, Newcastle University (award for highest average on Masters programmes), 2003                  

(vii) Recent Knowledge Exchange

Appointments
  • Senior Lecturer in International Relations. Department of Politics and Philosophy, University of the West of England, Bristol, Jan 08-
  • Lecturer in International Relations. Department of Politics and Philosophy, University of the West of England, Bristol, Sep 07-Jan 08                    
  • Temporary Lecturer. School of Geography, Politics, and Sociology, Newcastle University, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Jan-Jul 07                       
  • Research Affiliate. Wilf Family Department of Politics, NYU (New York University), New York, Jul-Sep 06
  • Seminar Leader. School of Geography, Politics, and Sociology, Newcastle University, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Jan 04-Jun 06
 Qualifications
  • PhD: “Legitimacy and Humanitarian Intervention: Who Should Intervene?”. Department of Geography, Politics, and Sociology, Newcastle University. (Submitted within 3 years and passed viva with no revisions or changes required.) ***Awarded ‘Sir Ernest Barker Prize’ for Best Dissertation in Political Theory 2006/7 by the Political Studies Association***, Oct 03-Dec 06
  • M.A. Politics (Research). Department of Geography, Politics, and Sociology, Newcastle University. (Distinction; ***Awarded ‘Hugh Berrington Prize for Outstanding Performance’ for highest mark in year***), Oct 02-03.
  • B.A. Politics. Department of Geography, Politics, and Sociology, Newcastle University. (First Class Honours), Oct 99-02.
Current Teaching
  • Global Ethics
  • Theories of International Relations
  • MA: The Politics of Human Rights
  • PhD supervision
Previous Teaching
  • Foreign Policy
  • Kant and Hegel
  • Political Thought: Perspectives on International Affairs