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Lifting the burden of imprisonment: Creating safer and stronger communities. This project aims to identify how a reduction in imprisonment rates could benefit Australian communities and enhance their safety and wellbeing. It will link a range of statistical data sources on imprisonment, crime and community wellbeing. We will, for the first time, comprehensively demonstrate the impact of imprisonment on individuals and communities in Australia and beyond. Expected outcomes of this project include ....Lifting the burden of imprisonment: Creating safer and stronger communities. This project aims to identify how a reduction in imprisonment rates could benefit Australian communities and enhance their safety and wellbeing. It will link a range of statistical data sources on imprisonment, crime and community wellbeing. We will, for the first time, comprehensively demonstrate the impact of imprisonment on individuals and communities in Australia and beyond. Expected outcomes of this project include expansion and innovation of coercive mobility theory, novel integration of data, and a forecasting tool to assess the impact of imprisonment reduction on communities. This evidence will assist advocacy groups and policy makers seeking to address Australia’s burgeoning imprisonment rate.Read moreRead less
Informing intervention responses to violent offenders through data linkage. The project aims to capitalise on new data access capacity to improve knowledge on violent offender pathways and criminogenic needs, such as acquired brain injury, to reduce offending and re-offending. Violence is a major social and health issue nationally and internationally. While there has been substantial investment in treatment/prevention campaigns, rates of violence remain high. Using diverse linked administrative ....Informing intervention responses to violent offenders through data linkage. The project aims to capitalise on new data access capacity to improve knowledge on violent offender pathways and criminogenic needs, such as acquired brain injury, to reduce offending and re-offending. Violence is a major social and health issue nationally and internationally. While there has been substantial investment in treatment/prevention campaigns, rates of violence remain high. Using diverse linked administrative data, we will identify key risk factors and times in trajectories, as well as effective treatment/justice responses. Expected benefits include evidence-based recommendations and engagement with policymakers targeting recidivism, offender screening, treatment, and coordinated violence prevention policy and practice.Read moreRead less
What works, what doesn't, and what is promising for preventing sexual violence and abuse: the effectiveness of situational prevention. The costs of sexual violence and abuse are enormous and involve immediate and long-term negative effects for the life of victims, families and the society. This project will investigate and provide critical evidence-based knowledge on the effectiveness of situational prevention measures.
Parole in crisis? Public opinion on the use of parole. Serious crimes committed by parolees in Australia have brought parole into the public eye. Without concrete evidence, governments often act on the assumption that the public holds punitive attitudes. This project is expected to develop an evidence base to inform policy on parole at a crucial time when governments are under pressure to restrict its use. Three mixed-method studies aim to assess: what public views on parole are; why the public ....Parole in crisis? Public opinion on the use of parole. Serious crimes committed by parolees in Australia have brought parole into the public eye. Without concrete evidence, governments often act on the assumption that the public holds punitive attitudes. This project is expected to develop an evidence base to inform policy on parole at a crucial time when governments are under pressure to restrict its use. Three mixed-method studies aim to assess: what public views on parole are; why the public holds these views; and what influence these views have on policy and practice. The project is expected to make contributions to: creating information strategies that properly inform the public; supporting prisoner reintegration strategies; and shaping criminal justice policies based on informed community feedback.Read moreRead less
Challenges to moral responsibility. Agents deserve various kinds of benefits and burdens (such as punishment) only if they are morally responsible for their actions. This project aims to assess several sorts of alleged threats to our moral responsibility, and thereby to better the social allocation of goods to individuals.
Where are Indigenous women in the sentencing of Indigenous offenders? The project aims to explore the experience of Indigenous women in Australian courts. Legal sentencing principles for Indigenous defendants have been formulated almost exclusively with Indigenous men in mind. Insufficient research has been undertaken on whether these principles are applicable for Indigenous women. This project undertakes a qualitative analysis of local court sentencing remarks, case files and interviews with In ....Where are Indigenous women in the sentencing of Indigenous offenders? The project aims to explore the experience of Indigenous women in Australian courts. Legal sentencing principles for Indigenous defendants have been formulated almost exclusively with Indigenous men in mind. Insufficient research has been undertaken on whether these principles are applicable for Indigenous women. This project undertakes a qualitative analysis of local court sentencing remarks, case files and interviews with Indigenous women prisoners, court actors and pre-sentence reporters. It seeks to ascertain how local courts represent Indigenous women's experiences such as family violence and family responsibilities and the quality of information before sentencing courts. The project's aim is to ensure appropriate engagement with Indigenous women in courts and sentencing outcomes for Indigenous women offenders.Read moreRead less
Understanding and preventing youth sexual violence and abuse: an investigation of offender development, offending onset, and progression. Youth sexual violence and abuse poses serious threats to the health and well-being of Australian women and children. This project will investigate the development, onset and progression of youth sexual violence and abuse, and thereby contribute to its management and prevention.
Social Infrastructure in a Society of Captives. This project aims to understand how innovations in the prison environment can promote positive human connections between prisoner and staff groups, which has the potential to reduce the dehumanisation and related harms associated with imprisonment in Australia. Using state of the art research methods and innovative theoretical tools, the project will explore how the concept of social infrastructure can be applied in prisons. Outcomes include new kn ....Social Infrastructure in a Society of Captives. This project aims to understand how innovations in the prison environment can promote positive human connections between prisoner and staff groups, which has the potential to reduce the dehumanisation and related harms associated with imprisonment in Australia. Using state of the art research methods and innovative theoretical tools, the project will explore how the concept of social infrastructure can be applied in prisons. Outcomes include new knowledge focused on the interaction between people and spaces in correctional settings when the purpose is positive human development. The anticipated benefits include the release of more prisoners who can be functioning citizens, contributing to community safety and productivity in the long term.Read moreRead less
The impact of solitary confinement on convicts, 1817-1853. This project aims to explore the impact of solitary confinement on the health and well-being of 72,500 convicts transported to Australia between 1817 and 1853. It will do so by linking detailed life course histories for these men and women to psychiatric admission data for Tasmanian 19th century institutions. The project results will inform policy as well as increasing on-line access to Australia's UNESCO Memory of the World registered c ....The impact of solitary confinement on convicts, 1817-1853. This project aims to explore the impact of solitary confinement on the health and well-being of 72,500 convicts transported to Australia between 1817 and 1853. It will do so by linking detailed life course histories for these men and women to psychiatric admission data for Tasmanian 19th century institutions. The project results will inform policy as well as increasing on-line access to Australia's UNESCO Memory of the World registered convict records. The project outcomes will help to contextualise the risks associated with different types and rates of solitary confinement exposure.Read moreRead less
A comparative analysis of youth punishment in Australia and the United Kingdom. This project is a comparative Australian and United Kingdom investigation of penal policy and the punishment of juvenile offenders. The research analyses the changing approaches to juvenile incarceration, particularly in the context of perceived effects on crime and the substantial public and social costs of incarceration.