Student motivations for studying criminology: a narrative inquiry

Article


Trebilcock, J. and Griffiths, C. 2022. Student motivations for studying criminology: a narrative inquiry. Criminology & Criminal Justice. 22 (3), pp. 480-497. https://doi.org/10.1177/1748895821993843
TypeArticle
TitleStudent motivations for studying criminology: a narrative inquiry
AuthorsTrebilcock, J. and Griffiths, C.
Abstract

The number of students studying criminology at university has significantly increased. Yet, criminology students have been all but ignored in research, despite being key stakeholders and ambassadors in the criminological enterprise. Drawing on the analysis of twelve in-depth interviews, we explore why students are motivated to study criminology and how these motivations are linked to their past experiences and future aspirations. Using a narrative inquiry, three types of stories emerged through our analysis: stories about (1) building on existing interests; (2) understanding the 'self'; and (3) securing 'justice' and ‘helping’ others. The stories students tell about their exposure to ‘crime’ help motivate their decision to study criminology, while their engagement with the discipline, enables them to make sense of these previous experiences and of themselves.

KeywordsBiography, identities, narrative criminology, public criminology, study, university
PublisherSage
JournalCriminology & Criminal Justice
ISSN1748-8958
Electronic1748-8966
Publication dates
Online22 Feb 2021
Print01 Jul 2022
Publication process dates
Deposited25 Jan 2021
Accepted20 Jan 2021
Output statusPublished
Publisher's version
License
Accepted author manuscript
File Access Level
Restricted
Copyright Statement

© The Author(s) 2021
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1177/1748895821993843
LanguageEnglish
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