He is recognized for his contributions to the economics of participation, particularly his pioneering work on the econometric analysis of worker cooperatives, employee ownership, and profit-sharing firms.
After a year at the Constantine College of Technology he went on to read Economics at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and gained a BA first class honors (1968).
[7] He has collaborated with many distinguished economists including Saul Estrin, Jan Svejnar, Avner Ben-Ner, Louis Putterman, John Bonin, Dave Backus, Geoff Hodgson, Kosali Ilayperuma-Simon, Takao Kato, Stephen Smith, Will Bartlett, and Jacques Defourny.
[8] Jones has received numerous honors, including Hamilton College's inaugural Career Achievement Award in 2008.
His fellowships include those from Ikerbasque, the Finnish Foundation for Education, the German Marshall Fund, and the Social Science Research Council (UK).