Rupert Taylor (b. 1958) is Associate Professor of Political Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. He completed a BA degree in Politics and Government at the University of Kent in 1980, followed by an MSc at the London School of Economics in 1982 and a PhD in Sociology at Kent, completed in 1986.[1] He was formerly a Visiting Research Fellow in the Department of Political Science at the New School for Social Research in New York, Adjunct Professor in the Department of Political Science at Columbia University and a Visiting Research Fellow in the School of Politics, Queen's University Belfast.[1]
Taylor's research interests include political violence, transitions to democracy and non-governmental organisations. Taylor has written widely in the areas of South African politics and the Northern Ireland conflict. He has been critical of consociationalism as a strategy of conflict management.[2] His publications include articles in African Affairs, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Peace and Change, The Political Quarterly, Race and Class, The Round Table, and TELOS. He is currently editor of Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations.