Dr James Kaufman
Salford Business School
Current positions
University Fellow
Biography
James Kaufman is a University Fellow in Social Policy at the University of Salford and a member of the Centre for Research on Inclusive Society (CRIS).
His research examines how welfare states understand, respond to and govern human need. Working primarily within social policy, he combines conceptual, qualitative and participatory approaches to explore questions of poverty, social security, democratic participation and the changing relationship between citizens and welfare institutions.
James has published research on welfare conditionality, street-level practice, poverty and participatory research. He was a core member of the Covid Realities and Changing Realities research programmes, working alongside families experiencing poverty to understand everyday experiences of the social security system and to develop more participatory approaches to policy development. He is also co-author of the forthcoming *Participatory Research* (Bloomsbury Academic), which reflects on the theory and practice of collaborative research.
His current research develops a broader programme on the concept of need in social policy, exploring how changing understandings of need shape welfare institutions, democratic governance and contemporary policy debates. Alongside this work, he continues to research social security, insecurity, participatory methods and democratic innovation, including emerging work on eco-social policy and just transitions.
Jim’s research is rooted in methodological innovation and a commitment to public engagement. He was a core team member on the Covid Realities and Changing Realities projects, which used participatory methods to document life on a low income during the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis. He is co-author of A Year Like No Other (Bristol University Press, 2023), winner of the Social Policy Association book award, and has published in Social Policy & Administration and major edited collections on conditionality, street-level bureaucracy, and participatory practice.
He is active in national and international networks on sustainable welfare and climate justice, and contributes to shaping emerging research agendas through workshops, policy briefings, and co-produced outputs. He is especially interested in democratic innovation, lived experience as evidence, and the challenges of governing in an age of disruption.
Areas of Research
**Social policy, poverty and social security**
Research on welfare reform, poverty, insecurity and the changing organisation of social security, with particular interests in welfare conditionality, street-level implementation and citizens' experiences of welfare institutions.
**Need, democracy and the welfare state**
Conceptual and historical research examining how ideas of need shape welfare institutions, democratic politics and contemporary debates about welfare reform, participation and ecological transition.
**Participatory research and democratic knowledge**
Research on participatory, co-produced and qualitative methods, exploring how collaborative research can generate new forms of knowledge while strengthening relationships between research, policy and lived experience.
**Eco-social policy and just transitions**
Research exploring the relationship between welfare, climate change and democratic transition, including participatory approaches to developing fair and publicly legitimate responses to ecological challenges.
James teaches across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in social policy and applied social research methods.
His teaching focuses on helping students connect critical social policy debates with the practical realities of conducting research beyond the university. He has particular interests in research design, participatory methods, research leadership, public engagement and research impact, and regularly works with practitioners, policymakers and community organisations to bring real-world research challenges into the classroom.
He currently convenes the MSc module *Supporting Research: Developing Leadership and Impact* and contributes teaching on poverty, social policy and social change across the School of Health and Society.
Qualifications
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Social Policy
2013 - 2018 -
Social Anthropology
2007 - 2008 -
Philosophical Studies
2002 - 2005