In this week’s episode, I explore one of criminology's central puzzles: How does an offender choose their target?

A recent US study approached this challenge by working with 160 incarcerated burglars using Virtual Reality. Researchers immersed participants in a virtual neighborhood, using a "think-aloud protocol" to capture their real-time thought processes.

The study in question is called How environmental features and perceptions influence the perceived risks and rewards of criminal opportunities by William P. McClanahan, Daniel S. Nagin, Marco Otte, Peter Wozniak, and Jean-Louis van Gelder, published in the journal Criminology.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1745-9125.12401

If you’ve read some research you think others should know about, drop me a message via the link in the show notes.

And, if you yourself have new work coming out and would like it covered, please, get in touch.

https://linktr.ee/APerspectiveOnCrime

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How did the term "incel" transform from a supportive blog in 1997 into a platform for violent, misogynistic extremism?

This week, we dive into the complex and troubling phenomenon of involuntary celibacy (incel) extremism and the real threat it poses to the UK by looking at new research by Jonathan Jackson, Katie Oxley, Daniel Sefton in The International Journal of Criminology and Policing Education

DOI: 10.70386/ijcpe.v1i1.17

To get in touch, follow the link below

https://linktr.ee/APerspectiveOnCrime

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Prisons are meant to be an antidote to crime; a place where those who commit crimes are sent to break there cycle of offending. The assumption is that at least while behind bars, they can't be up to no-good. A new paper in by Kate Gooch, Matt Hopkins, and James Treadwell, published in the journal Criminology & Criminal Justice challenges this idea.

Titled Prisons as ecosystems of organised and entrepreneurial crime: Developing a theoretical and empirical understanding it turns this thinking on it's head and explores whether prisons in England and Wales are in fact incubators for criminal organisations.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17488958251348051

Key Words: Prison, Organised Crime, Ecosystems,

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This episode investigates the nature and extent of victim and perpetrator misidentification, particularly concerning policing responses to coercive and controlling behaviour (CCB) in England and Wales.

It looks at an academic research paper called "Who is the victim? Exploring the complexities of misidentification" by Charlotte Barlow and Sandra Walklate published in Criminology & Criminal Justice

https://doi.org/10.1177/17488958251355378

Key words : Coercive Control, Victim, Perpetrator, Police Response, Criminology

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In this episode, we explore the role of restorative justice in addressing historical clerical child sexual abuse at Blackrock College, a prominent school in Dublin, Ireland.

The discussion is grounded in the academic research paper: Empowering Victims/Survivors or Restorative Washing? Institutional and Clerical Sexual Abuse of School Children and Restorative Justice by David O’Mahony and Michelle Butler, published in the British Journal of Criminology.

https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azaf055

The RTE podcast mentioned in the episode.

https://www.rte.ie/radio/doconone/1333550-blackrock-boys

Keywords: restorative justice, clerical abuse, child sexual abuse, Blackrock College, Dublin, institutional abuse, survivor empowerment, criminology, restorative washing

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This analysis interrogates the key findings of research focusing on the profound and often contradictory experiences of young people serving community sentences in rural England.

The discussion is grounded in the academic research paper Rurality and Crime: A Qualitative Study Exploring Young People’s Experiences in a Region of England Sarah Lavinia Joseph , Hannah Marshall , Joel Harvey, Caroline Lanskey , Abbie McKennan and Juliette H. Lanskey published in The Journal of Youth Justice.

https://doi.org/10.1177/14732254251340553

Keywords : Rural, Countryside, Youth Justice, Criminology, Community Sentencing, The Archers

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A Perspective on Crime is a podcast that explores contemporary research in Criminology.

The show launches on 16th October 2025 and will run weekly... new episodes arriving every Thursday.

To suggest a piece of research you've read or are about to publish, don't hesitate to drop me a line.

peaktruecrime@protonmail.com

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