Dr Paul Ryan

Sociology

Lecturer

Auxilia House
31
(01) 474 7153

Biography

I joined the Department of Sociology as an Irish Research Council Post-doctoral Fellow in 2007 becoming a Lecturer in 2010. I have previously lectured at the Department of Social Sciences and Law in the Dublin Institute of Technology and the Department of Sociology in University College Dublin from where I was awarded a PhD in 2005.

My main research and teaching interests lie within the sociology of the family & personal life, sexuality and the law. I have taught modules:on • Culture and Everyday Life (First Year), Contemporary Social Theory (Third Year), Sex, Law and Society (Third Year) • Fieldwork Methods (Second Year) & Qualitative Research Methods (MA)

Research Interests

My main research interests lie within the sociology of the family & personal life, sexuality and the law. My earlier work has focused on LGBTI communities and the history of the movement from the decriminalisation of homosexuality to the successful campaign for gay marriage in 2015, highlighting the creation of new categories of sexual citizens and the consequences for those sexual relationships that remained outside the regulation of the state.

My Post-doctoral research, and first book, combined a documentary analysis and a life history study of letters sent to the popular agony aunt, Angela Macnamara in the 1960s and 70s. The analysis revealed how families navigated intimate decisions about dating, fertility and sexuality within the confines of a religious and legal structure, contributing to a more nuanced understanding of Irish family life.  

My current research explores sex work and regulatory regimes governing prostitution within a European context. I have been a member of the COST Action – Comparing European Prostitution Policies and have published with colleagues documenting Ireland's movement to a policy of neo-abolitionism. I have recently published a book (Male Sex Work in the Digital Age, London: Palgrave) exploring how migrant male sex workers' use of social media has created both a flexible and ambiguous understanding of commercial sex in Ireland. The work illustrates how male sex workers use their micro-celebrity on social media (Grindr, Instagram) to construct a brand that can be converted into financial advantage within the sex industry. The digital identities that are created provide the  photographic and video material that are broadcast on new subscription platforms like OnlyFans.

I am currently working on a project (with Dr. Kathryn McGarry) funded by HIV Ireland exploring the possible consequences of new legislation (Criminal Law Sexual Offences Act 2017) on sex workers’ health and well-being. There is a specific focus on migrant female and trans sex workers and their level of engagement in sexual health services and practices such as condom use and HIV testing.

I welcome inquires from prospective PhD students interested in these research areas.

 

Research Projects

  Project Role Funding Body / Program Description Start Date End Date
Exploring the impact of the sex purchase ban on the health and well-being of sex workers in Ireland PI / HIV Ireland 01-MAR-19 31-OCT-19

Books

  Year Publication
2019 Male Sex Work in the Digital Age: Curated Lives.
Paul Ryan (2019) Male Sex Work in the Digital Age: Curated Lives. London: Palgrave. [Details]
2013 Asking Angela Macnamara: an Intimate history of Irish lives.
Paul Ryan (2013) Asking Angela Macnamara: an Intimate history of Irish lives. Dublin: Irish Academic Press. [Details]

Book Chapters

  Year Publication
2017 'Conducting sex work research in a politically contentious climate: Lessons from Ireland'
Ryan P.;Huschke S. (2017) 'Conducting sex work research in a politically contentious climate: Lessons from Ireland' In: Sexualities Research: Critical Interjections, Diverse Methodologies, and Practical Applications. [DOI] [Details]
2017 'Ireland: The Rise of Neo-Abolitionism and the New Politics of Prostitution'
Paul Ryan & Eilis Ward (2017) 'Ireland: The Rise of Neo-Abolitionism and the New Politics of Prostitution' In: Jahnsen, S. and Wagenaar, H (eds). Assessing Prostitution Policies in Europe. Milton Park: Routledge. [Details]
2012 '‘What I Knew was What I Learnt on the Street! Irish Drug Using Sex Workers Accounts of How They Contracted HIV and Hepatitis C'
Whitaker, T., Ryan, P. and Gemma Cox (2012) '‘What I Knew was What I Learnt on the Street! Irish Drug Using Sex Workers Accounts of How They Contracted HIV and Hepatitis C' In: K. Metodiev (eds). Immunodeficiency. London: InTech. [Details]
2004 'Ireland: disinterested commentary, but how effective?'
Cinneide, SO;Ryan, P (2004) 'Ireland: disinterested commentary, but how effective?' In: OECD AND EUROPEAN WELFARE STATES. CHELTENHAM: EDWARD ELGAR PUBLISHING LTD. [Details]
2013 'The Pursuit of Gay and Lesbian Sexual Citizenship Rights, 1980-2011'
Paul Ryan (2013) 'The Pursuit of Gay and Lesbian Sexual Citizenship Rights, 1980-2011' In: Sexualities and Irish Society: A Reader. Dublin: Blackhall Press. [IR Link] [Details]
2007 'Coming out of the dark: a decade of gay mobilisation in Ireland 1970-80'
Paul Ryan (2007) 'Coming out of the dark: a decade of gay mobilisation in Ireland 1970-80' In: Social Movements and Ireland. Manchester: Manchester University Press. [Details]

Peer Reviewed Journals

  Year Publication
2016 '#Follow: exploring the role of social media in the online construction of male sex worker lives in Dublin, Ireland'
Ryan P. (2016) '#Follow: exploring the role of social media in the online construction of male sex worker lives in Dublin, Ireland'. Gender, Place, and Culture, 23 (12):1713-1724 [DOI] [Details]
2011 '‘Stigmatization Among Drug-Using Sex Workers Accessing Support Services’'
Paul Ryan, Teresa Whitaker, Gemma Cox (2011) '‘Stigmatization Among Drug-Using Sex Workers Accessing Support Services’'. Qualitative Health Research, 21 (8):1086-1100 [Details]
2011 'Love, lust and the Irish: Exploring intimate lives through Angela Macnamara's problem page, 1963-1980'
Ryan, P (2011) 'Love, lust and the Irish: Exploring intimate lives through Angela Macnamara's problem page, 1963-1980'. Sexualities, 14 :218-234 [DOI] [IR Link] [Details]
2010 'Asking Angela: Discourses about Sexuality in an Irish Problem Page, 1963-1980'
Ryan, P (2010) 'Asking Angela: Discourses about Sexuality in an Irish Problem Page, 1963-1980'. Journal of the History of Sexuality, 19 :317-339 [IR Link] [Details]
2006 'Researching Irish Gay Male Lives: Reflections on Disclosure and Intellectual Autobiography in the Production of Personal Narratives'
Paul Ryan (2006) 'Researching Irish Gay Male Lives: Reflections on Disclosure and Intellectual Autobiography in the Production of Personal Narratives'. Qualitative Research, 6 [Details]
2003 'Coming Out, Staying In: The Personal Narratives of some Irish Gay Men'
Paul Ryan (2003) 'Coming Out, Staying In: The Personal Narratives of some Irish Gay Men'. Irish Journal of Sociology, 12 [Details]

Other Journals

  Year Publication
2013 'Reappraising the Irish Sexual Repression Narrative of the 1960s: Was Ireland Different?'
Paul Ryan (2013) 'Reappraising the Irish Sexual Repression Narrative of the 1960s: Was Ireland Different?' History Ireland, 20 . [IR Link] [Details]

Conference Contributions

  Year Publication
2018 Two stories about sex work: representativeness and narrative hegemony in the late modern age.
Paul Ryan (2018) Two stories about sex work: representativeness and narrative hegemony in the late modern age. [Oral Presentation], Irish Narrative Inquiry Conference, IT Sligo [Details]
2018 Safe Spaces? The use of new social media to challenge and redefine social and legal definitions of male sex work in Ireland.
Paul Ryan (2018) Safe Spaces? The use of new social media to challenge and redefine social and legal definitions of male sex work in Ireland. [Oral Presentation], Conference of Irish Geographers, Maynooth University [Details]
2017 ‘Wish List: Exploring Client Interactions with Male Sex Workers' Social Media Profiles’.
Paul Ryan (2017) ‘Wish List: Exploring Client Interactions with Male Sex Workers' Social Media Profiles’. [Oral Presentation], ISSACS XI International Conference: Breaking Boundaries. Sexuality, Gender, Reproduction, Health and Rights, Bangkok [Details]
2017 Exploring the Contexts and Conditions of Knowledge Production on Prostitution and Sex Work’.
Paul Ryan (2017) Exploring the Contexts and Conditions of Knowledge Production on Prostitution and Sex Work’. [Oral Presentation], Displacing Sex for Sale COST conference, Aalborg University, Copenhagen [Details]
2016 Regulating Male Sex Work in a Digital Age.
Paul Ryan (2016) Regulating Male Sex Work in a Digital Age. [Oral Presentation], 10th North South Criminology Conference,, Maynooth University [Details]
2016 ‘#Follow: exploring the role of social media in the online construction of male sex worker lives’.
Paul Ryan (2016) ‘#Follow: exploring the role of social media in the online construction of male sex worker lives’. [Plenary Lecture], Sociological Association of Ireland Postgraduate Conference, Plenary Presentation, Dublin [Details]
2015 ‘Sexual Entrepreneurs? ‘Locating Migrant Male Sex in Contemporary Debates on Prostitution Policy in Ireland.
Paul Ryan (2015) ‘Sexual Entrepreneurs? ‘Locating Migrant Male Sex in Contemporary Debates on Prostitution Policy in Ireland. [Oral Presentation], Troubling Prostitution: Exploring intersections of sex, intimacy and labour, COST Action IS1209 Conference, Vienna [Details]
2014 Colloquia Series Gender, Culture & Society.
(2014) Colloquia Series Gender, Culture & Society. [Oral Presentation], Locating Migrant Male Sex Workers in Contemporary Debates on Prostitution Policy in Ireland, University of Limerick [Details]
2014 Merriman Summer School.
(2014) Merriman Summer School. [Oral Presentation], The Emotional Lives of Irish Men, Ennis, Co. Clare [Details]
2011 IASSCS VIII Conference: Naming and Framing: The Making of Sexual (In) Equalit.
(2011) IASSCS VIII Conference: Naming and Framing: The Making of Sexual (In) Equalit. [Oral Presentation], ‘Exploring the performance of masculinities in the lives of Irish drug using sex workers’, Madrid [Details]
2011 ’American Sociological Association Annual Conference.
(2011) ’American Sociological Association Annual Conference. [Oral Presentation], Exploring the emergence of democratic parenting through the pages of an Irish problem page, 1963-80, Las Vegas, NV [Details]
2009 Sociological Association of Ireland Annual Conference, Galway,.
(2009) Sociological Association of Ireland Annual Conference, Galway,. [Public presentations], Love, Lust and the Quest for the Affectionate Irish Male in Angela Macnamara’s Problem Page 1963-80’, Galway, Ireland [Details]
2009 Turning Personal Conference, Morgan Centre for the Study of Relationships and Personal Life, Univers.
(2009) Turning Personal Conference, Morgan Centre for the Study of Relationships and Personal Life, Univers. [Oral Presentation], The Informalisation of Emotions in the Intimate Lives of Older Irish Men', Manchester, UK [Details]
2005 American Sociological Association Annual Conference,.
(2005) American Sociological Association Annual Conference,. [Oral Presentation], The Coming-Out of the Gay Movement in Ireland, 1970–80, Philadelphia, PA [Details]
2003 European Sociological Association Annual Conference.
(2003) European Sociological Association Annual Conference. [Oral Presentation], ‘Researching Sexuality: Reflections on Power and Reflexivity in the production of Personal Narrative, Murcia, Spain [Details]

Magazine Article

  Year Publication
2011 Exploring the Performance of Masculinities in the Lives of Irish Drug Using Sex Workers.
Ryan, P;Cox, G;Whitaker, T (2011) Exploring the Performance of Masculinities in the Lives of Irish Drug Using Sex Workers. ABINGDON: Magazine Article [Details]

Reviews

  Year Publication
2010 Asking angela: Discourses about sexuality in an irish problem page, 1963-1980.
Ryan P. (2010) Asking angela: Discourses about sexuality in an irish problem page, 1963-1980. Reviews [DOI] [Details]