Research

My research has pioneered a socially engaged and reflexive approach to philosophy, which not only brings existing philosophical research to bear on practical problems, but also examines how detailed understanding of practical problems reveals gaps and conceptual problems in existing philosophical theories.

Many people (especially philosophers themselves) tend to assume that philosophy is not a practical discipline. Philosophy’s supposed lack of utility is seen as a badge of pride by some philosophers, and a reason to dismiss it by somewhat greater numbers of nonphilosophers.

Both are mistaken. Philosophy done well springs from, and returns to, the problems we face in living in the world. The problems that most urgently require philosophical reflection in any generation will usually be those which come out of changed conditions of human life, rather than those which simply continue long-running philosophical debates at a greater level of sophistication. John Dewey put it best: “Philosophy recovers itself when it ceases to be a device for dealing with the problems of philosophers and becomes a method, cultivated by philosophers, for dealing with the problems of men.”

Public health ethics. Much of my research focuses on how states should protect and promote the health of their citizens. This is ethically and politically complicated for many reasons. For example: some citizens will not take kindly to their lives being interfered with; major health problems such as obesity or air pollution are complex and multifactorial and there is no “magic bullet” to solve them; and the resources available for health interventions are scarce. My monograph, Philosophy for Public Health and Public Policy: Beyond the Neglectful State (OUP, 2021), provides an authoritative and synoptic theory of this terrain, clarifying not only the nature of the philosophy of public health policy, but arguing for the distinctive claim that there is a right to public health, and that this should profoundly shape our understanding of the role of the state in protecting and promoting health.

My most recent project constructs a cultural naturalism by examining forms of meaning-making in art, ritual and culture more broadly.