My main research areas are youth offending, youth justice, domestic violence, youth homelessness and transitions from youth to adulthood. Much of my research to date has included in-depth qualitative research focussing on the lives of marginalized youth, often employing the biographical interview as the key research method. My current research projects include:

• Transgenerational Legacy and Young People (July 2018-December 2020): I am a Co-Investigator on this project which is funded by the Commission for Victims and Survivors. The project adopts a child-rights based approach to examining the legacies of the Conflict, and their impacts, on children and young people in Northern Ireland and the border regions of Ireland.
• Understanding Young People’s Experiences of Child-to-Parent Violence (August 2018-March 2021): I am Principal Investigator on this project which is funded by British Academy/Leverhulme. Utilising life history interviews with 20 young people, this project aims to provide an in-depth analysis of the experiences of young people engaging in violence and abuse directed towards their parents/guardians. A key aim of this study is to place the young person’s voice central to an analysis of CPV in order to inform and shape responses which acknowledge and engage with their capacity for change.  

Previous research has included: my PhD research (completed in 2011) which provided a biographical analysis of the offending careers of young people in contact with criminal justice agencies in Dublin; From Boys to Men Project (led by Prof. David Gadd, University of Manchester) – a mixed methods study exploring young people’s experiences of domestic violence; and, a qualitative longitudinal study on the lives of homeless youth (led by Dr. Paula Mayock, Trinity College Dublin), examining their pathways into, through and out of homelessness.

I joined the School in July 2015 and currently convene two modules:

Youth Crime and Criminal Justice

Youth Justice: Theory, Law and Practice

I have also contributed to the following modules:

Perspectives on Childhood and Youth

Childhood and Youth Research in Practice

Youth and Social Justice

Research Project and Dissertation

Youth Justice Dissertation

Development of Policing

Criminological Theory

Social Work in Criminal Justice and the Courts

I am interested in supervising students in the following areas: youth offending, youth justice, offending careers, experiences of marginalised youth, domestic violence, biographical research, homeless and housing careers.  

Co-Programme Director PgDip/MSc in Youth Justice

Member of the Centre for Children's Rights

Member of the School Athena SWAN Self Assessment Team

Member of the School Ethics Committee