Violence, Protest and Resistance to COVID-19 Policies

Coventry University (CU) is inviting applications from suitably-qualified graduates for a fully-funded PhD studentship examining COVID-19 policies/restrictions violence and resistance movements. Candidates will be based in the Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations – a research centre in the Institute for Peace and Security.

The impact of COVID-19 on society has unearthed a variety of previously hidden social and cultural structures and governmental policies which can act as catalysts to violence. This project will explore and identify, from a peace studies perspective, those hidden forms of everyday cumulative power and violence(s) perpetuated through state-sponsored COVID-19 policies, lockdowns and restrictions. It will explore the everyday experience and responses of such perceived power and violence(s) through the lens of grassroots movements of so-called ‘anti-lockdown’ and/or ‘vaccine free’ resistance movements and those activists’ understandings of what a post-COVID-19 sustainable peace might look like.

This PhD project will be comparative, and the candidate can propose potential case studies of their interest (e.g., USA and UK). A creative multimethod approach will be applied to the research, and methods may include interviews, participatory and arts-based methods, or ethnographic observations. We invite the candidate to propose methods that complement their proposed case studies, and which are innovative in nature. This will be the first project to explore this topic from a peace studies perspective, and we look to challenge current mainstream narratives surrounding this resistance movement and push boundaries within peace studies.

Entry criteria for applicants to PhD 

·      A bachelor’s (honours) degree in a relevant discipline/subject area with a minimum classification of 2:1 and a minimum mark of 60% in the project element (or equivalent), or an equivalent award from an overseas institution.

·      A Master’s degree in a relevant field (peace studies, sociology, anthropology, politics, human geography, etc.)

·      PLUS 

·      the potential to engage in innovative research and to complete the PhD within 3.5 years

·      An adequate proficiency in English must be demonstrated by applicants whose first language is not English. The general requirement is a minimum overall IELTS Academic score of 7.0 with a minimum of 6.5 in each of the four sections, or the TOEFL iBT test with a minimum overall score of 95 with a minimum of 21 in each of the four sections.

For further details, please visit: https://www.coventry.ac.uk/research/research-opportunities/research-students/making-an-application/research-entry-criteria/

https://www.coventry.ac.uk/research/research-opportunities/research-students/making-an-application/