School of Social and Political Science

Kate Holliday

Job Title

PhD Student

Research interests

Research interests

My PhD research focuses on framing and political polarisation in contentious and controversial policy disputes, using the ongoing debates in Scottish and UK politics over proposed reforms to the Gender Recognition Act (GRA) as a case study. This research examines how framing is used and navigated by governments and other policy stakeholders, and the resulting impact on policy considerations and conduct of political debate. 

My research interests include:

  • Feminist and gender politics
  • Public policy 
  • Political polarisation and policy controversies
  • Frame analysis 
  • Contemporary transgender rights activism and gender-critical feminism 
  • The GRA debate
  • Institutionalism
  • Feminist theory and methods
  • Political knowledge and evidence in policymaking 

Background

University of Edinburgh - PhD Politics, 2021-present

University of Edinburgh - MScR Social and Political Sciences, 2020-2021

University of Edinburgh - Politics (MA) (Hons), 2016-2020