Research Centre for Criminology

    The Centre for Criminology was established in 2022 within the School of Law and Criminology at Maynooth University, which houses the largest concentration of criminological scholars in Ireland. The Centre supports, promotes, and enhances the School’s reputation as a national centre of excellence in criminological research and expertise. 

    Mission

    The Centre’s members share a mission to use social scientific theories and empirical methodologies to produce research that helps policymakers and advocates. Members seek to address pressing social problems with humane, policy-relevant solutions that work towards social justice. The Centre recognises that the very concept of crime is socially and politically constructed, and that criminal justice system interventions can perpetuate and exacerbate harms against offenders, victims, and criminal justice professionals. The Centre is committed to critical, productive research to build better systems and processes for all persons affected by crime. Centre members research a wide variety of topics that include:

    • Colonialism and its legacies 
    • Crime, social harm, and criminalisation 
    • Policing, sentencing, community sanctions, and imprisonment 
    • State and corporate crime  
    • Surveillance and security studies
    • The intersections of race, ethnicity, gender, social class, and other identities with crime and social control
    • The politics of crime and criminal justice
    • Transnational crime and terrorism
    • Victimology and restorative justice 

    ​Centre members are actively engaged in high-quality, funded research projects across these key areas.   ​
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    A goal of the Centre is to foster collaborative and innovative research between our researchers and others whose research bears upon the subject of crime and criminology within Maynooth, across universities in Ireland, and abroad.  

    Activities 

    To further its mission, the Centre aims to: 

    • Assist criminological researchers in efforts to secure research grants from national and international funders.

    • Coordinate, facilitate, and enhance internal research activities through workshops, seminars, and reading groups.

    • Disseminate research knowledge through conferences, roundtables, and various forms of public communication. 

    • Facilitate engagement between researchers and external stakeholders, including members of the community, policymakers, criminal justice professionals, and journalists.

    • Serve as a point of contact for people who wish to learn more about criminological research and pedagogy at Maynooth University. 

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    Members 

    Dr Rhiannon Bandiera
    Dr Cormac Behan
    Dr Lynsey Black 
    Dr Ciara Bracken-Roche 
    Dr Avril Brandon  
    Dr Megan Coghlan 
    Dr David Doyle
    Dr Joe Garrihy 
    Professor  Claire Hamilton 
    Dr Ian Marder 
    Dr John Morrison 
    Dr Cian  Ó Concubhair 
    Dr Etain Quigley 
    Dr Sinead Ring 
    Dr Kevin Wozniak 
     

    Ph.D. Student Affiliates

    Rachel Brannick
    Kate Duffy
    Danielle Jefferis
    Triona Kenny
    Iva-Nicole Mavrlja
    Ashleigh Pillay
    Andrea Pownall
    Cydney Sheridan

    If you desire more information or would like to become a member of the Centre, please contact the Centre’s leadership team: 

    Dr. Kevin Wozniak

    Director

    [email protected]

    Dr. Ciara Bracken-Roche

    Co-deputy Director

    [email protected]

    Dr. Ian Marder

    Co-deputy Director

    [email protected]