Dr. James Cuffe is an anthropologist and lecturer with the Department of Sociology & Criminology at UCC. His research interests include cyber-anthropology, anthropology of technology, technologies and techniques of social control, particularly anthropology and the 'smart city'. He holds an area expertise on Chinese society and culture.

James is currently directing a 3 year ethnographic study on the smart city through Irish Research Council Laureate funding. He has overseen and managed projects with companies such as RPS Ireland (on settlement impacts & socio-cultural integration), and, the Department of the Taoiseach (2010 World Expo, Irish Pavilion exhibition). He invites collaboration from industry in his ongoing projects on digital transitions and the entanglements of AI tech with social life. 

His PhD research was based on 2 years' ethnographic fieldwork in urban China culminating in an monograph titled "China at a Threshold: Exploring Social Change in Techno-Social Systems" with Routledge 2020.

He was General Editor of the Irish Journal of Anthropology from 2014 to 2019 and is a Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. 

Social Effects of Technology,
Social Factors within Cyber Security, 
Techno-Anthropology / Cyber Anthropology
Anthropological & Ethnographic Research

2024/2025 -

Sem 1: AY6013 (shared), AY2010 (shared), 
Sem 2: AY6002 (shared), AY6004 (shared), AY6010/AY6003 (shared), AY6017

2023/2024 -

Sem 1: AY1002 (shared), AY6013 (shared),
Sem 2: AY6002 (shared), AY6004, AY6010/AY6003 (shared), AY6017, AY6014

2022/2023 -     
Sem 2/3: IRC Laureate, AY6002 (shared) AY6004. AY6005 (shared) AY6010 (shared) Sem 1: IRC Laureate from Sept '22, AY6001 (shared)  

2021/2022 -      Sem 2/3: Sabbatical (From Jan, 6 months)
Sem 1: CR3001, AY6001 (shared), CR1001 (shared), AY2002 (50%) 2020/2021 -     
Sem 2/3: AY6004, CR2025, AY6002 (shared), AY6003 (shared), AY6005 (shared), AY6010 (shared), AY6012 (shared), CR6010 (shared), CR3002 (shared)

2019/2020 -     
Sem 2/3: CR2025, CR6020, AY6002 (shared), AY6003 (shared), AY6005 (shared), AY6010 (shared), AY6012 (shared), CR6010 (shared), CR3002 (shared) Sem 1: CR1001, CR3001, AY6001 (shared)
Sem 1: CR1001, CR3001, AY6001 (coordinator, shared),

2018/2019 -     
Sem 2/3: CR2025, CR6020, AY6002 (shared), AY6003 (shared), AY6005 (shared), AY6010 (shared), AY6012 (shared), CR6010 (Shared), CR3002 (shared)
Sem 1: CR3009, CR1001, AY6001 (shared), CR3001, CR6014 (shared)