Dr Knut Roder BA, MA and PhD
Associate Head of Sheffield Institute of Social Sciences
Summary
Originally from Hamburg, Germany, Knut joined Sheffield Hallam University in 2014 from Saint Louis University, Madrid Campus. In his current role as Associate Head of the Institute of Social Sciences, Knut is involved in the leadership of the Institute’s quality processes, student voice and representation as well as the Institute's culture and communications.
In his previous role as Head of Politics, he worked on setting the direction and development of the BA (Hons) Politics and International Relations award, working on module and curriculum development, and administration of the course to meet internal and external standards. He also helped to foster a strong BA Politics and International Relations team ethic and identity.
As a lecturer, Knut enjoys teaching, and aims to making it an applied and stimulating experience for students. He takes a student-centred approach and feels very strongly about promoting self-directed learning. As part of this, Knut takes students in their second year on a field trip to Brussels offering them an enhanced, applied, and practical engagement that adds a strong internationalisation and employability component to their learning experience.
About
Knut Roder, Associate Head of Institute of Social Sciences, joined Sheffield Hallam University in 2014 as senior lecturer in Politics, becoming Head of Politics from 2019 to 2024. Before that, he taught Politics and Political Economy at Saint Louis University’s Madrid Campus for 13 years and was director of its International Relations program.
Knut holds a PhD from the London School of Economics where he researched ‘the development of labour market policies - comparing long-term policy change in the British Labour party and the Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschland's'. He spent extended periods as an invited research fellow at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy and the Centre for Advanced Study in the Social Science (CEACS)/Instituto Juan March in Madrid, Spain.
As the Associate Head of Institute of Social Sciences, he is committed to innovate and efficient quality processes, effective student voice and representation as well as enhancing the Institute's culture and communications.
Knut’s research and teaching interests focus on the politics and political economy of the European Union; party politics and policy-making processes, centre-left parties, environmental policymaking, international terrorism, and pedagogies around teaching and learning.
To create a rich student learning experience and foster students’ ability to relate and apply their academic knowledge to the real world, Knut regularly takes student groups to Brussels. He has published on ‘teaching European politics - field trips an underutilised resource’ (European Political Science, 13/2014) and believes that enabling students to study first-hand the wider European Union policy making environment by meeting stakeholders, diplomats, policy makers, lobbyists and NGOs is highly beneficial to learning outcomes.
Specialist areas of interest
Politics and Political Economy of the European Union
Post-Crash political economy
Teaching and Learning Politics
Political Parties and policy making processes
International Terrorism and Counterterrorism
Quantitative and qualitative content analysis
African Politics
Teaching
Sheffield Institute of Social Sciences
College of Social Sciences and Arts
Politics
BA (Hons) Politics & International Relations
BA (Hons) Applied Social Science
MA International Relations & Global Crisis
European (Dis)Integration
Europe, the European Union and Applied Politics
Political Economy of the European Union
International Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism
Global Political Economy
Comparative Politics
Introduction to Sub-Saharan African Politics
Introduction to Politics
Introduction to International Politics
International Organizations in a World of Nation States
Study Skills
PhD supervision
Research
Roder, K & M. Holmes (eds) (ongoing), 'Red and Green: The Left and the Environment'
Roder, K (submitted), 'A Brexit Effect: ‘Europeanizing’ party programs in Germany'
Roder, K & M. Holmes (eds) (2022), ‘The European Left and the Financial Crisis' (Manchester University Press, paperback 2022)
Roder, K. & M. Holmes (2021). Social Democracy and Euroscepticism: The Integration Trap. In Challenges to Democracy in the 21st Century. (pp. 19-41). Springer International Publishing: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54541-3_2
Roder, K. (2017). The Missing Linke? Restraint and Realignment in the German Left, 2005-2017¿El eslabón perdido? Restricción y realineamiento dentro de la izquierda alemana, 2005-2017. Revista Española de Ciencia Política - Ciencia Política y de la Administración, (45), 43-65. https://doi.org/10.21308/recp.45.02
Roder, K. (2014), 'Teaching European Studies: Field Trips to Brussels – an Underutilised Resource', European Political Science, 13/2014
Roder, K. & M. Holmes (2012), ‘The Left and the European Constitution’, Manchester University Press
Roder, K. (2003), Social Democracy and Labour Market Policy Developments in Britain and Germany, Routledge Research in Comparative Politics, London: Routledge
Publications
Journal articles
Roder, K. (2017). The Missing Linke? Restraint and Realignment in the German Left, 2005-2017¿El eslabón perdido? Restricción y realineamiento dentro de la izquierda alemana, 2005-2017. Revista Española de Ciencia Política - Ciencia Política y de la Administración, (45), 43-65. http://doi.org/10.21308/recp.45.02
roder, K. (2014). Teaching European Studies: Field Trips to Brussels – an Underutilised Resource. European Political Science, 13 (1), 43-52. http://doi.org/10.1057/eps.2013.33
Book chapters
Holmes, M., & Roder, K. (2021). Social Democracy and Euroscepticism: The Integration Trap. In Challenges to Democracy in the 21st Century. (pp. 19-41). Springer International Publishing: http://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-54541-3_2
Roder, K. (2019). In the shadow of Merkel: the German left and the crisis. In Holmes, M., & Roder, K. (Eds.) The European left and the financial crisis. Manchester University Press: https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526124289/
Holmes, M., & Roder, K. (2019). Alter-Europeanism? The left and European integration after the crisis. In Holmes, M., & Roder, K. (Eds.) The European Left and the financial crisis. Manchester University Press: https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526124289/
Roder, K., & Holmes, M. (2019). The European left and the crisis: opportunity or catastrophe? In The European Left and the Financial Crisis.
Roder, K., & Holmes, M. (2012). The Left from Leaken to Lisbon. In The Left and the European Constitution From Laeken to Lisbon. Manchester University Press
Roder, K. (2012). The German Left from Leaken to Lisbon. In The Left and the European Constitution From Laeken to Lisbon. Manchester University Press
Roder, K., & Holmes, M. (2012). The Left and European integration beyond Lisbon. In The Left and the European Constitution From Laeken to Lisbon. Manchester University Press
Roder, K. (2012). Contemporary Politics: Teaching the 'Contested Concepts' - International Terrorism Taught to Undergraduate Students in a Multicultural Environment. In Teaching Politics and International Relations. palgrave macmillan
Books
Holmes, M., & Roder, K. (Eds.). (2019). European Left and the financial crisis. Manchester University Press. https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526124289/
Holmes, M., & Roder, K. (2012). The Left and the European Constitution From Laeken to Lisbon. Manchester University Press.
Roder, K. (2003). Social Democracy and Labour Market Policy Developments in Britain and Germany. Psychology Press.
Postgraduate supervision
Current PhD Supervision:
John Woods - An exploratory study into how political communication discourses have contributed to the recent rise of populism in the United Kingdom
Previously Internal Examiner:
Lewis Eves - An “Unfortunate History”: Securitization and Historical Narratives within the Sino-Japanese Security Paradox
Media
Knut's main areas of research and teaching expertise are politics and political economy of the European Union, Germany and the UK.