School of Social and Political Science

Background

Fiona Mackay is  Emerita Professor of Politics. Her research focusses on the gendered power dynamics of political and other public institutions, including mechanisms of institutional continuity and change. As founding co-Director of  the Feminism and Institutionalism International Network (FIIN), she has been a leading figure in the development of Feminist Institutionalism (FI), an important methodological approach in the gender and politics sub-field. She currently co-edits the Oxford University Press book series Studies in Feminist Institutionalism. 

She served as Dean and Head of School (2014-2017; and, again, as Interim Dean, 2021-2022); founding director of GENDER.ED the University's interdisciplinary hub for gender and sexualities studies (2017-2022); Senate assessor on the University of Edinburgh Court (2020-22); and Director of the SPS Graduate School (2019-22). Fiona is an elected Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS), the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE).  She served as elected Trustee and Honorary Secretary of the Political Studies Association (2019-22), and in 2025 was appointed as one of twelve founding Fellows of the PSA.