Global Affairs and Societal Change
DISCOVER CUTTING EDGE GLOBAL AFFAIRS AND SOCIETAL CHANGE RESEARCH
WORLD DYNAMICS AND SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION: FROM HISTORY TO HORIZONS
Our community of renowned interdisciplinary researchers, scholars, and students are dedicated to fostering a modern, connected environment where diverse fields intersect. We embrace challenge, innovation, and collaboration, using our expertise across the arts, humanities, social sciences, business, and law to make a meaningful impact locally, nationally, and globally. Together, we are committed to addressing complex societal issues and advancing knowledge that transforms lives.
CONFLICT AND PEACEBUILDING
Questions of peace, security, and justice are central to the discussions of governments, international organizations, and civil society. Queen's University stands as a world-leading institution in addressing these critical issues, bringing together one of the UK’s largest and most diverse groups of scholars across conflict studies, human rights, politics, and international relations.
Situated in Northern Ireland, a post-conflict society, the university offers a unique vantage point for exploring peacebuilding and conflict resolution from multiple perspectives.
LAW AND HUMAN RIGHTS
The School of Law at Queen’s University Belfast is renowned for its world-leading research with local, national, and international impact. Its strong connections with the legal profession, devolved government, and NGOs in Northern Ireland foster dynamic research opportunities. The school’s research spans six key areas: Human Rights and Public Law, Criminology and Criminal Justice, Private and Commercial Law, European and Transnational Studies, Transitional Justice, and Law, Innovation, and Technology.
Queen's Law supports three major research centers—the Human Rights Centre, the Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice, and the Global Intellectual Property and Technology Centre. The school’s work influences public policy and legal reforms, addressing issues like post-conflict peacebuilding, criminal justice reform, and socio-economic rights.
MEANINGFUL PARTICIPATION OF CHILDREN
We have a globally recognized research centre dedicated to improving children's lives by advancing knowledge on children’s rights, participation and amplifying children’s voices. Our work focuses on key issues such as children’s involvement in decision-making and rights-based research methods. Our research is organized around two interconnected areas: children's rights and research with children.
In the Children’s Rights area, we use the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international standards to assess laws, policies, and practices affecting children. In Research with Children, we focus on the best methods for conducting research on children’s lives, particularly approaches that actively engage children in the research process. Our expertise includes employing the 'Lundy Model' of child participation, a recognized framework for involving children in research.
YOUTH, FAMILY AND COMMUNITY
Researchers at Queen’s are dedicated to advancing knowledge and improving the lives of children, young people, and families. Our faculty, from fields such as social work, psychology, law, education, and health, collaborate with international research centres to address key welfare challenges.
Our research covers a wide range of services, including early intervention, family support, child protection, out-of-home care, leaving care, and adoption. By working closely with policymakers, practitioners, and families, we co-create knowledge that responds to real-world needs, ensuring that our evidence-based insights inform policy, enhance professional practice, and improve outcomes for children and families.
LANGUAGE TEACHING AND LEARNING
We recognize that we live in multilingual, multimodal societies where language and education are central to individuals, groups, and cultures. Our approach goes beyond seeing language as a mere code and addresses social justice issues tied to language use.
Research at Centre for Language Education Research spans topics such as bilingual education, multilingualism, language awareness, assessment, digital literacy, multimodality, and refugee education. Our goals include advancing knowledge on language in multilingual environments, bridging research-practice divides through partnerships, and building research capacity in Applied Linguistics and Language Education.
We challenge everyday assumptions about language use, collaborating with international researchers and stakeholders to explore how communication and learning shape our ultra-social lives, always grounded in evidence and interdisciplinary research.
ARTS AND CREATIVE EXPRESSION
The School of Arts, English, and Languages at Queen's unites expertise across drama, film, music, sonic arts, arts management, and cultural policy, creating a vibrant and dynamic environment for research and creativity. Within this exciting community, world-leading academics, novelists, poets, and playwrights collaborate across disciplines to produce award-winning research with tangible real-world impact.
Our research, spanning literary, cultural, and visual studies, as well as linguistics, excels both locally and globally, reflecting the School's commitment to disciplinary and interdisciplinary excellence in shaping the arts, language, and culture.
TRANSFORMING SOCIETY THROUGH BUSINESS
Our research drives transformation in business and society by analysing economic, business, and social trends to generate new theories, insights, and recommendations for public policy and business innovation. We enhance understanding of how markets, organizations, and social institutions develop over time.
With a strong, diverse research culture, we take pride in our contributions to the economy and society. Looking ahead, we are committed to expanding our international collaborations, increasing research impact, and enhancing our PhD programs.
POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Politics influences every aspect of society, shaping decisions about how we understand, organize, and plan for our collective future. At Queen's University Belfast, the discipline of Political Science and International Relations is explored in its broadest sense—ranging from local to global contexts and across diverse theoretical and methodological approaches.
With a rich tradition of studying complex issues like sovereignty, identity, and power-sharing, Queen's provides an ideal environment for examining the political forces that impact both governance and societal structures.
SOCIOLOGY AND HUMAN BEHAVIOUR
Sociology at Queen’s University Belfast focuses on understanding social life and human behaviour, from global issues like power, politics, and climate change to individual experiences such as identity, mental health, and beliefs. Our faculty are internationally recognized for research in areas like political sociology, violence, peace, religion, and health.
Over 88% of research submitted by colleagues from Criminology, Social Policy, Sociology and Social Work to the Social Policy and Social Work Unit of Assessment (UoA) was judged to be World Leading or Internationally Excellent. An endorsement of the quality of our research and its impacts in areas such as the penal system, mental health and trauma; work once again achieved through work undertaken in partnership with the health, social care and criminal justice sectors.
HISTORY AND DEALING WITH THE PAST
History at Queen’s University is an internationally renowned centre for historical research and teaching, spanning from antiquity to the present. Our research community is recognized for both academic excellence and societal impact. The expertise and publications from staff at the school have significantly shaped public understanding and debate on a variety of historical topics. They have been active in commemorations like the ‘Decade of Centenaries’ and the First World War in Ireland and Britain, and in contributing to museum and heritage work.
Key research areas include the role of religion, women's equality, and race relations. Recent projects span subjects like women in 19th-century America, war and the supernatural in early-modern Europe, popular music in early-modern England, and the global history of the Irish revolution.
OUR EXPERTISE
RESEARCH HUBS
- The Senator George J Mitchell Institute For Global Peace, Security and Justice
- Institute of Irish Studies
- Institute of Professional Legal Studies
- Centre for Children’s Rights
- Centre for Technological Innovation In Mental Health and Education
- Centre for Shared Education
- Centre for Language Education Research
- Centre for Child, Youth and Family Welfare