Impact and the reflexive imperative in criminal justice policy, practice and research

Armstrong, S. , Blaustein, J. and Henry, A. (2016) Impact and the reflexive imperative in criminal justice policy, practice and research. In: Armstrong, S., Blaustein, J. and Henry, A. (eds.) Reflexivity and Criminal Justice: Intersections of Policy, Practice and Research. Palgrave Macmillan: Basingstoke, pp. 1-30. ISBN 9781137546418 (doi: 10.1057/978-1-137-54642-5_1)

Abstract

This chapter is a substantive editorial introduction to the book, Reflexivity and Criminal Justice: Intersections of Policy, Practice and Research. It develops and argues for an account of reflexivity in criminology beyond the researcher-researched relationship to the field of research itself. Universities are under increasing pressure to document the value of their work, often defined instrumentally in terms of immediate practical and commercial activities. This has led to increasing emphasis on ‘partnerships’ and knowledge exchange with organisations and actors outside of academia. While such relationships may be empowering and supportive of good research and thriving societies, they also raise critical questions about agenda setting and valuation of social science. These questions become especially acute in a discipline such as criminology, with its attention to crime control, surveillance and state punishment, topics which can be co-opted by particular interests. We address the potential and risks of reflexivity in this setting, concluding that it might offer a stance that assists researchers in exposing the complicated dynamics of the conditions of criminal justice research in contemporary times. The content of the chapters comprising the book are summarised and woven into the discussion throughout this introduction.

• Item Type: Book Sections
• Keywords: Reflexivity, criminal justice, neoliberal university, criminological research.
• Status: Published
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Armstrong, Professor Sarah
• Authors: Armstrong, S., Blaustein, J., and Henry, A.
• Subjects: H Social Sciences > HM Sociology; H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Sociology Anthropology and Applied Social Sciences
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• ISBN: 9781137546418
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2017 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Reflexivity and Criminal Justice: Intersections of Policy, Practice and Research: 1-30
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy