Dr Nicola O'Leary
| Biography | I am a Reader in Criminology and a researcher in the fields of victimology, vulnerability, domestic abuse / coercive control, media and crime, and identity and representation. Having worked previously at the University of Leeds, I was appointed Lecturer the University of Hull in 2013; Senior Lecturer in 2021 and Reader in 2024. I am currently the Principal Investigator on a Home Office funded research project, entitled 'Community Insights into Hotspot policing and have worked on numerous other funded projects, including as PI on 'Giving voice to victims: a strengths-based investigation into victim identities', supported by the British Academy. |
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| Research Interests | My research interests lie in the interdisciplinary fields of victimology, criminology, cultural studies, innovative research methods and the ethics of researching vulnerable populations. My doctoral research and subsequent publications focus on the ethics and methods of investigating community-based and media representations of stigma, trauma and victimisation. Within this I have an identifiable interest in the management of self-identity, social reaction, transformative ability and resilience. I am an experienced researcher in the qualitative field with particular experience and understanding pertaining to use of in-depth narrative interviews with vulnerable populations, across a range of settings, who have experienced significant trauma and harm. More recently my research has focused on working with survivors and victims of domestic abuse; from how they can be supported and empowered to interact with the criminal justice system (or not), to understanding the dynamics of recovery and resilience. |
| Teaching and Learning | I am the Director of Research in the School of Criminology, Sociology and Policing at the University of Hull. I also lead and teach on a range of undergraduate modules including: Representations of Crime (L5); Victimology, Victims and Witnesses (L5) Criminal Justice Institutions (L4). |
| Scopus Author ID | 57193770058 |
| PhD Supervision Availability | Yes |
| PhD Topics | I am very interested in supervising doctoral students in the areas of: victimology, vulnerability and resilience, media and crime and collective identity and representation. Current PhD students: Thomas Hammond (PhD Criminology), Surveillance, Migration and Identity in Brexit Britain Patrick Oniya (PhD Criminology), An examination of why public sector corruption is resilient: a case study of Nigeria. |