Justice Analytical Services: Areas of Research Interest

Crime, Prevention & Specific Crime Types

Crime Prevention: Understanding and Addressing the Underlying Causes of Crime

• What are the most significant risk and protective factors for crime victimisation and/or offending in Scotland at each level of the ecological framework (societal, community, relationship and individual level) and how do factors at the different levels interact? Are there variations depending on the type of crime(s)?
• What policies and interventions are most effective (for whom and in what circumstances) at reducing risk and enhancing protection from crime victimisation and /or offending? At which stages in an individual's life are interventions most effective?
• What are the characteristics of those at greatest risk of experiencing and/or committing crime(s) in Scotland, and are there variations depending on the type of crime?
• How do the categories of ‘victim’ and ‘perpetrator’ overlap and shift across the life course in Scotland and what effect does this have on crime prevalence?
• To what extent, and in what ways, are new and emerging factors at a societal level (e.g. covid recovery, the cost of living crisis, developments in technology and social media use) influencing crime victimisation and/or perpetration? What are the implications for prevention and intervention?
• Are public awareness campaigns effective at reducing certain types of crime, for example, anti-social behaviour, cybercrime or domestic abuse? If so, what type of public awareness campaigns are the most effective?

Violence Prevention

• Who is at greatest risk of experiencing and/or perpetrating interpersonal violence (with a focus on non-sexual, community violence) in Scotland, and why? How do the categories of ‘victim’ and ‘perpetrator’ of violence overlap and shift across the life course?
• Building on findings from ‘Repeat violence in Scotland: a qualitative approach’, how is repeat violence experienced by hard to reach groups, including within the following communities:
  • Disabled people
  • People in the LGBTQI+ community
  • Racialised/ethnic minority communities, including migrant communities and asylum seekers
  • Men who experience domestic abuse and sexual violence
  • Those whose experiences are less likely to be captured through official statistics on violent crime and victimisation, including people living in institutions
• What interventions and policies are effective at enhancing protective factors and mitigating risk factors for interpersonal violence (with a focus on non-sexual, community violence) at each level of the ecological framework (societal, community, relationship and individual level)? What can Scotland learn from other jurisdictions?
• What is the scale and nature of interpersonal violence involving young people in Scotland? Which young people are at greatest risk of experiencing and/or perpetrating violence?
• How does early involvement in criminal activities, including anti-social behaviour, influence the likelihood of reoffending, in adulthood?
• To what extent and in what ways are new and emerging factors at a societal level (e.g. covid recovery, increases in the cost of living, developments in use of technology and social media) influencing community violence in Scotland, and what are the implications for prevention and intervention? What can Scotland learn from other jurisdictions and countries?
• What interventions and policies are most effective at preventing and responding to community violence (including youth violence and violence in the evening economy) and repeat violence victimisation? What can Scotland learn from other jurisdictions?
• What are the drivers of weapon-based crimes in Scotland and what works to reduce weapon-based crimes (particularly knife crime)? What can Scotland learn from other jurisdictions?
• How effective is the current Public Health Approach response to violence prevention in Scotland and how could it be improved?

Human Trafficking and Exploitation

• What factors contribute to the under-identification of victims of trafficking and exploitation in Scotland and how can this be rectified/improved?
• What are the experiences of victims of multiple forms of exploitation and/or their experiences of accessing support?
• What are the experiences of victims of labour exploitation in Scotland who are on the health & social care visa scheme?
• What are the experiences of adult victims of criminal exploitation (including where these overlap with other forms of trafficking and exploitation) and their experiences of support and/or the justice system?
• How have the risk factors, routes into exploitation and support experiences of trafficked children in Scotland changed since the 2020 Child Trafficking research?
• What are the merits of incorporating contextual safeguarding into Scotland’s child protection framework in order to address child criminal exploitation and how best could this be achieved?
• How do social media and technology facilitate child criminal exploitation, and what are the implications for prevention and intervention?
• What are the effects of the asylum dispersal system around the UK/Scotland on victims and their experiences of accessing support in the medium and long-term?
• How effective are local and regional partnerships in Scotland in supporting survivors and disrupting perpetrator activities?
• How can horizon scanning be improved to systematically identify emerging trends in trafficking & exploitation in Scotland?

Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)

• What are the characteristics and risk factors relating to the perpetration and escalation of VAWG, and (how) is this changing given developments in technology?
• What interventions and policies work to prevent different forms of technology-facilitated VAWG (recognising the links between online and offline VAWG)?
• How is the justice system’s response to experiences of tech facilitated- VAWG affected by understandings of the different forms of abuse, the law and victim experiences?
• How is domestic abuse and the justice system experienced by victims with protected characteristics, marginalised groups and/or those experiencing intersectional multiple disadvantage? What are the implications of this for expanded understandings of domestic abuse, policy development, legislation and service delivery?
• What are the most effective approaches for reducing reoffending and/or escalation of offending by perpetrators of VAWG, taking account of the way in which technology is changing how VAWG is perpetrated?
• What are the most effective ways for the justice system to identify and/or respond to those at risk of so-called ‘honour-based’ abuse and extended family abuse (e.g. the effectiveness of risk assessments)?
• What are the most effective approaches to measuring and monitoring a public health approach to addressing VAWG?

Retail Crime

• Who is affected by retail crime and what is the impact on workers, businesses and communities? What is the relationship between shoplifting and crimes against retail workers? How do experiences vary e.g. by locality and business size?
• What are the underlying causes of retail crime at each level of the ecological framework (societal, community, relationship and individual level) and how do factors at the different levels interact?
• What works, for whom and in what circumstances to prevent retail crime and reduce the related harm? What can we learn from other jurisdictions?
• How do organised crime groups use retail crime to exploit children and young people, and what are the implications for prevention and intervention?

Fraud

• How has the nature of fraud changed over recent years? How have technological advancements influenced the evolution of fraud tactics and the effectiveness of fraud prevention strategies?
• How do demographic factors such as age, gender, and socioeconomic status influence the susceptibility to and impact of various types of fraud?
• What works, for whom and in what circumstances to prevent fraud and reduce fraud related harm? What can we learn from other jurisdictions?

Hate Crime

• What approaches and initiatives are effective in preventing hate crime (in general or against particular communities) and/or building community cohesion? What are the most effective approaches to measuring and monitoring the impact of interventions and approaches to prevent hate crime? What can Scotland learn from approaches in other jurisdictions?
• What works to improve and encourage reporting of hate crime (including to third party reporting centres)?
• How can we build our understanding of the scale/nature of hate crime in Scotland, including experiences not reported to the police?

Extremism and Counter-terrorism^[1]

• How can evidence enhance our understanding of the nature and scale of extremism, radicalisation and terrorism-related risks in Scotland, and how these might evolve into the future?
• What factors influence or are associated with extremism and radicalisation in Scotland, and how are these developing over time? What individuals or groups are most at risk of engaging in extremist/terrorism-related behaviour or being radicalised, and for what reasons?
• What are the most effective approaches to prevent, tackle and mitigate extremism, radicalisation and terrorism-related risks in Scotland, whilst taking into account the reserved context of counter-terrorism policy? What works, for whom, and in what contexts? What impact do wider prevention and safeguarding strategies and approaches in Scotland have on extremism and radicalisation in Scotland?