Dominic Parker Moore

PhD thesis working title: Economists and the 2008 Financial Crisis: A Theory of Intellectual Transition and Impact

Research interests:

1. The sociology of intellectuals, academics and experts
2. Political and economic crises
3. Positioning theory and network analysis
4. Cultural trauma

This research will examine how economists responded to the 2008 financial crisis. I am specifically interested in investigating their success in promoting economic solutions to the structural flaws exposed by the crisis. I will draw on a range of frameworks from cultural and intellectual sociology to analyse political discourse, policy decisions, intellectual debates and the cultural positioning of economists, which will help develop an understanding of the relationship between culture and economic decision making. Crucially, I want to trace how economic ideas evolved in the post 2008 period, specifically regarding intellectual and expert understandings of capitalism, the financial sector, regulation, central banking and the state, thereby attending to this moment of ‘intellectual transition.’

Who or what inspired you to pursue your research interests?

I completed my MPhil in Sociology at the University of Cambridge under Professor Patrick Baert, one of the foremost experts in the sociology of intellectuals. For my MPhil thesis, I examined French intellectual history during the Algerian War of Independence. More specifically, I examined Sartre’s transition into a Tiermondist thinker during a period of immense cultural trauma. I wanted to continue researching ideas, intellectuals and cultural change, but apply the theories I had been working with to a more recent crisis – the 2008 Financial Crisis. This seems important given the complex economic challenges facing our society.