How biography influences research: an autoethnography

Inspired by Professor Yvonne Jewkes’ plenary speech at the 2013 British Society of Criminology conference, this paper focuses on the experiences of a researcher setting out on her journey into the field of criminological research. In the burgeoning tradition of autoethnography, it will tell the story of how aspects of the researcher’s own ‘biography’ affected the data collection process in a study of ‘hidden’ older illegal drug users in the UK. The research employed snowball sampling and semi-structured interviews and at the outset great difficulties were encountered which were caused, in part, by the researcher’s age, nationality, professional standing and cultural awareness. However, as the researcher’s own personal biography developed over the long duration of the study, some of these problems were alleviated. In the process something of the nature of the participants themselves was revealed, namely their reticence to be too revealing to an ‘outsider’ about their illegal pastime, the manner in which their illegal drug use took place in a specific cultural milieu, and the extent to which they saw their drug use as being an unremarkable and normal part of their life. By the conclusion of the study, a by now older, more experienced and acculturated researcher was able to see this with far greater clarity. As criminology increasingly takes account of researcher biography, the argument presented here suggests that not only can it have significant impacts upon the research process, but even over the duration of a single study developments in the biography of the researcher can alter the nature of their relationship with research subjects and contribute to a greater understanding of them

The emotional labour of doctoral criminological researchers

Embarking upon empirical qualitative research can be a daunting and emotional task, particularly for those who are new to research and for those who research vulnerable groups and emotive topics. Doctoral criminological researchers transect these realms, often making their research experiences acutely emotional and challenging. In addition, researchers must be able to perform emotional labour as an important part of their professional practice. Based on 30 semi-structured interviews, this is the first study to explicitly explore the emotional labour of criminological researchers. Using the lens of emotional labour, the performance and impact of undertaking qualitative data collection in doctoral research is examined. From the interview data, three main themes are discussed: emotional labour, the consequences of performing that emotional labour and coping mechanisms to deal with those consequences. The article concludes with recommendations around support and training for PhD candidates, their supervisors and the higher education sector more broadly

Illegal drug use among older adults.

Illegal drug use IS a much discussed, publicised and researched area of criminology. However, there has been little interest in its mature users. It is this subsection of illegal drug users that is investigated in this research. As the first generation of widespread and popular drug users is reaching late-middle age, this is becoming a fast growing and fascinating area of study. As the size of this drug using subsection is set to grow in coming years, the lack of existing research in this area is becoming more and more apparent. Existing research related to the area of drug use among older adults tends to be out-of date, predominantly American based, and looks largely at alcohol use, prescription misuse, and over-the-counter abuse. Equally, there is a lack of community based research in this area, which relies heavily on samples taken from the criminal justice system and treatment centres. This research aims to address these deficiencies. To create therefore as complete a picture of this little investigated social phenomenon as possible both quantitative and qualitative research techniques are incorporated into the research. Quantitatively, secondary data analysis is used to explore the British Crime Survey. Univariate, bivariate, and multivariate techniques are used to analyse the data set, including hypothesis testing and logistics regression. For the qualitative component, the research uses snowball sampling to conduct face to-face in-depth interviews with adults over the age of 40 involved in recent illegal drug use living in the community. Overall, this research shows that older recent illegal drug users exists, it produces a profile of older recent drug users, including demographic and criminological characteristics, and illustrates the drug using careers of older drug users, showing how they incorporate drug use into their lives. Ultimately, it provides evidence that contradicts the notion that illegal drug use is an activity reserved exclusively for the young and shows that drug use does not exclude having a long, happy and productive life

Prevalence of gambling disorder among prisoners: a systematic review

This article presents the first systematic review of studies on the prevalence of gambling disorder among prisoners across international jurisdictions. Only original studies that were published in English and employed reliable and valid screening tools are included in this analysis. The review finds that rates of problem or pathological gambling in prison populations are highly variable, ranging from 5.9% to 73% of male and female inmates surveyed. Nevertheless, recorded rates of problem and pathological gambling among inmates are consistently and significantly higher than rates of problem and pathological gambling recorded among the general population. The review indicates that the institution of problem gambling treatment programmes in carceral settings is necessary, to aid community re-entry and reduce the likelihood of re-offending. Moreover, it is suggested that the screening of inmates should become standard practice across penal institutions and other criminal justice organisations, with a view to better addressing the needs of offenders

The Gambling Act 2005 and the (De)regulation of Commercial Gambling in Britain: A State-Corporate Harm

This article explores the forms of harmful practices and harms experienced by individuals since the implementation of the Gambling Act 2005. Employing the state-corporate crime paradigm as an analytical lens through which to examine the narratives of individuals who gamble and affected family members, and supporting secondary sources, it illustrates the ‘collateral damage’ that has resulted from an industry that embeds harmful practices as a means of capital accumulation. By providing insight into the often-hidden array of economic, physical, emotional, and psychological, and cultural harms that result from the entrenchment of a leisure culture that institutes ever more potent forms of aleatory consumption, the article offers a rare sociological critique of an industry that has been able to flourish as a consequence of an alliance between state and business

An examination of the interrelationship between disordered gambling and intimate partner violence

In response to the liberalisation and deregulation of gambling across much of the Western world, academics continue to examine gambling-related harms that result from the increased availability of gambling products and services. This paper explores the interrelationship between disordered gambling and intimate partner violence. Qualitative data is derived from interviews with 26 female research participants, illustrating how intimate partner violence is perpetrated by men with gambling disorders is often instrumental in nature. The narratives of our respondents indicate that coercive and controlling practices are employed by the intimate partner with a gambling disorder to: (a) access money for gambling; (b) hide their gambling behaviour from others; (c) assuage their guilt and apportion blame to the female partner for their disordered gambling and abusive behaviour. Consideration is given to how criminal justice, domestic violence, victim and gambling support agencies may best address the needs of partners and families impacted by disordered gambling

Threshing Floors as Sacred Spaces in the Hebrew Bible

Vital to an agrarian community’s survival, threshing floors are agricultural spaces where crops are threshed and winnowed. As an agrarian society, ancient Israel used threshing floors to perform these necessary activities of food processing, but the Hebrew Bible includes very few references to these actions happening on threshing floors. Instead, several cultic activities including mourning rites, divination rituals, cultic processions, and sacrifices occur on these agricultural spaces. Moreover, the Solomonic temple was built on a threshing floor. Though seemingly ordinary agricultural spaces, the Hebrew Bible situates a variety of extraordinary cultic activities on these locations. In examining references to threshing floors in the Hebrew Bible, this dissertation will show that these agricultural spaces are also sacred spaces connected to Yahweh. Three chapters will explore different aspects of this connection. Divine control of threshing floors will be demonstrated as Yahweh exhibits power to curse, bless, and save threshing floors from foreign attacks. Accessibility and divine manifestation of Yahweh will be demonstrated in passages that narrate cultic activities on threshing floors. Cultic laws will reveal the links between threshing floors, divine offerings and blessings. One chapter will also address the sociological features of threshing floors with particular attention given to the social actors involved in cultic activities and temple construction. By studying references to threshing floors as a collection, a research project that has not been done previously, the close relationship between threshing floors and the divine will be visible, and a more nuanced understanding of these spaces will be achieved. After careful analysis, the outcome of this work is the assertion that Yahweh is connected to threshing floors because essential life-sustaining activities take place at these spaces. Throughout the Hebrew Bible, Israel’s belief in Yahweh’s important role in livelihood and survival is asserted. Because threshing floors are inherently locations of food and sustenance, these spaces are divinely controlled and auspicious areas for human-divine communication. While threshing floors were continually used for their agricultural purposes, the Hebrew Bible places a greater emphasis on their depiction as sacred spaces