His specialist field is political economy (with a particular focus on conservatism, extremism and populism). He was elected to a Jean Monet Research Fellowship of the European University Institute in Florence, Italy (2000–01) and was an Honorary Fellow of the Political Economy Research Centre at Sheffield University in 2005–06 and again 2008–10. In spring 2011 he was a visiting professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Cincinnati, sponsored by the Taft Research Centre.