The 'Sharing Economy' fallacy (published by The Conversation)
How debates over the way we define economic behaviour influence the way policy is formed
I’m an Assistant Professor in the N/Lab and NUBS at the University of Nottingham. I hold a PhD in Economic Anthropology and specialise in the study of informal economies, particularly through ethnographic and computational network analysis methods. I’m interested in the intersection of economic anthropology and human-computer interaction, although I sometimes also dabble in the philosophy of social science. I teach and supervise on a variety of undergraduate and postgraduate modules, including consumer behaviour, digital marketing and research projects. My Google Scholar profile can be found here.
I am also available for PhD supervision. If you would like to undertake a research project with me please send a copy of your CV and proposal.
Student and media queries can be sent to john.harvey2@nottingham.ac.uk
Recent Work
Most of my research has an academic focus, but I occasionally write for a general audience. Some examples can be seen below:
The 'Sharing Economy' fallacy (published by The Conversation)
How do designers consider kindness?
A study of how designers influence people to be kind to each other.
How do people use the Internet to subvert the market? (Journal of Consumer Behaviour)
An ethnographic study of 'prosocial exchange systems' including Freecycle, Couchsufing and Landshare.
Is collaborative consumption good for society? (ABC Radio Documentary)
A discussion of the way sharing resources through technology changes the nature of social interaction.
Fare's Fair? (Featured in New Statesman)
How peer-to-peer technology is disrupting the taxi industry and provoking industrial action.
'Sharing not always caring' (Interview with the Ethics Centre)
What might increased use of peer-to-peer technology mean for the way we think about work and the organisation-employee relationship?