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King’s People

Biography

Daniel Nilsson DeHanas joined King’s as a Lecturer of Political Science and Religion in September 2014. He completed his doctoral studies in sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, spending part of this time affiliated with the politics department at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. He has previously held research positions at the University of Bristol and the University of Kent, and as a Fulbright research fellow at the University of Tampere in Finland.

Research interests and PhD supervision

  • Religion, politics, and contemporary governance
  • Transnational Muslim networks
  • Religious international NGOs
  • London as a global city of migration
  • Religion and secularity in theory and practice
Daniel Nilsson DeHanas has investigated influences of post-migration religion – Islam and Christianity – on subjective belonging, political participation, contemporary governance, and transnational networks.  His recent research has included work on second generation young Londoners’ modes of political participation; the everyday tactics of young Muslim identity; the politics of opposition to mosque construction; hip hop music as an embodied performance of Christian belief; the role of short term ‘roots visits’ to Mecca and Bangladesh in everyday belonging; Prevent and UK counter-terrorism; and the engagement of British Muslims in governance networks and policy circles. 
 
Dr DeHanas’ book London Youth, Religion, and Politics (OUP 2016) is an in-depth comparative study of how religion shapes ethnic minority youth political participation. The book is based on extensive ethnographic research and interviews with young British Jamaicans in Brixton (mostly Christian or non-religious) and young British Bengalis in the East End of London (predominantly Muslim), whom DeHanas recruited from local streets, markets, mosques, and churches. Although he found common features in these youths’ political attitudes, the Muslim and Christian youth displayed large differences in styles and levels of political participation, with wider implications for the politics of immigration and religious diversity.
 
Dr DeHanas serves as editor of the international academic journal Religion, State and Society (Routledge), working alongside his co-editor Dr Marat Shterin. He is also a co-founder and editorial board member for Public Spirit, an online forum based at the University of Bristol for ‘spirited debate about religion and public policy.’
 
Daniel Nilsson DeHanas welcomes proposals from independently motivated students who are interested in research on religion through the lens of political science, sociology, or public policy.

Teaching

Dr DeHanas has taught on the following modules:

Undergraduate:

  • 4AAT1830: Introduction to Religion and Politics
  • 5AAT2830: Religion in International Relations
  • 5AAT2851 Leadership in Religion and Politics
  • 6AAT3830: Religion, Politics and Global Media

Postgraduate:

  • 7AATC830: Religion and Politics in Western Societies