Jyrki Ruohomäki, Ph.D
Ph.D.
Political Science
Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy
University of Jyväskylä
E-mail: jyrki.ruohomaki@jyu.fi
Unionist intellectual interventions in Northern Ireland
Jyrki Ruohomäki’s doctoral thesis (2008) discussed the political interventions of the unionist minded intellectuals to the Northern Ireland political debates circa 1971-1998. As well as Northern Irish politics, the study touched the long lasting debate of the role of an intellectual in society and politics. Is the intellectual an objective outsider, an observer who should keep away from “wordly passions”, such as politics? Or is being political, engaging and committing, on the contrary the prerequisite of being an intellectual?
Ruohomäki’s current research continues with the theme of Northern Ireland, but he is also broadening the scope with a multidisciplinary project that offers a linguistic and rhetorical perspective to the practice of conflict resolution as well as to the theory related to peace and conflict studies. This project is combining political science, peace and conflict studies, conflict psychology and international relations in a project that is looking at texts related to the triangular communicative relations that take place in conflict resolution and peace negotiations between the parties in conflict and the third party mediator.