Adam Smith Research Foundation

Doctoral students


Steve Collins

Steve has just completed an MPhil in Theatre Studies at the University of Glasgow and has recently begun researching a joint PhD between the Law School and Theatre Studies. Specifically, the focus of his research is the copyright regime in Ghana which regulates the use of folklore, how it works, and how that regulation effects the ability of playwrights and theatre makers to create new work. More broadly, the work looks at the ways in which international bodies promote the protection of indigenous knowledge, and the ways in which postcolonial nations use and regulate culture to construct and communicate a sense of identity as part of a move towards political independence.

Supervisors: Dr Katie Gough (Theatre) and Prof Ronan Deazley (Law)


Carole Couper

Carole has a BA in Chinese Studies from a French University and an MSc in Management Research (Distinction) from the Business School of the University of Glasgow. Her research focuses on the internationalisation of the small firm in the context of China and Chinese networks (guanxi). The objective of her doctoral research is to explore the development of networks by small Scottish firms, across borders and institutional distance. She aims to identify both the nature and structure of those cross-border networks, as well as the factors that led to their successful development.

Previously, Carole worked within the food and drink industry as a senior Sales and Marketing Manager for British blue chip organisations such as Scottish & Newcastle International Ltd and Diageo plc. A Mandarin-speaker, she specialises in Greater China and has lived and worked in a number of countries, including Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Research supervisors: Professor Jane Duckett, Dr Shameen Prashantham and Professor Stephen Young


Karen Siegel

Karen has an MA (Honours) in French and Politics from Edinburgh University and an MSc in Postcolonial Politics (Distinction) from the Department of International Politics at Aberystwyth University. She joined the Department of Politics at the University of Glasgow in 2009. Her research focuses on environmental cooperation in South America, in particular the Mercosur countries –Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. The objective is to see which factors influence cooperation on environmental matters in the region and to which extent Mercosur as a regional integration system plays a role in this. Previously she spent two years working in Brussels. This included an internship with the European Commission, DG External Relations – Latin America and working as a researcher for a consultancy on several projects on EU social and employment policy for the European Commission. In 2005-2006 she taught English and French at the language school of the Escuela Politécnica Nacional in Quito, Ecuador.

Research supervisors: Dr Kelly Kollman and Dr Mo Hume


Nicole Sweeney

Nicole has a BA (Hons) in French and Spanish from the University of Strathclyde and an MSc in Conference Interpreting from Heriot-Watt University. She worked as an interpreter in the Parliament of Canada for a number of years and, during this time, she developed an interest in law and policy. She completed her LLB in 2010 and has just begun her PhD at the Law School. Her research focuses on the law of succession and has two overarching objectives: firstly, to better understand the attitudes of Scottish families towards inheritance; and, secondly, to consider how best to reflect these views, alongside other policy concerns, in the law reform process. In particular, she will be addressing how contemporary socio-demographic changes, primarily the rise in the number of reconstituted families and the ageing population, shape the debate.

Research supervisors: Dr Jane Mair and Ms Dot Reid