Timothy J. Sinclair
Associate Professor of International Political Economy
Email: timothy.sinclair@warwick.ac.uk
Room: B0.11 Social Sciences Building
Office Hours:* Terms 1 /2: Tuesday 5.30-6.30 pm; Wednesday 5.30-6.30 pm; Term 3: By appointment
*No office hours in reading weeks, public holidays, examination season & university vacations.
About me
My research as a political scientist is concentrated in the field of international relations and the sub-field of international political economy. My work is focused on puzzles in the politics of global finance, rating and evaluation systems, and emerging concepts of global governance. Before undertakling a Ph.D at York University in Toronto I worked in the New Zealand Treasury on public finance and the privatization of government agencies.
Like a number of colleagues, I have been strongly influenced by the classic writings on the political economy of capitalism, its emergence, forms, and problems. In addition, I am interested in retroduction and counterfactual method, the historical approach of Robert W. Cox, the significance of collectively held ideas as the basis of social action, and most recently, the social theory of philosopher John R. Searle. Although largely concerned with rich country issues until recently, I am increasingly interested in emerging market problems to the extent that these are of global or systemic relevance.
Research
My interests include the disintermediation of credit and the growth of securitization. By securitization, I mean the tranformation of illiquid bank loans and other debts into tradeable securities, and the implications of this revolution for the character of the financial system, including the influence of credit rating agencies. Given the scope for regulatory arbitrage provided by these circumstances, the effective regulation of financial markets - in terms of rule-making and enforcement - seems no better than a forlorn hope to me. As a consequence, we need to think much more seriously about how to actively make finance serve societal interests.
You can find out more about what I do at my research expertise website
and my website on the credit rating agencies.
Ph.D supervision
I am interested in supervising Ph.D candidates working on the politics of global finance, especially the growth of capital markets, problems of financial regulation and the role of private institutions; credit rating agencies; private authority and international affairs; theories of global governance; collective ideas and social action; and institutional change and development in market and emerging market societies.
