Joseph Patrick McAulay

Joseph is a research fellow at the University's Centre for Socio-Legal Studies where he  was recently awarded a 3 year competitive Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship. His current project "Dangerous Spectacles" examines the relationship between conspiracy theories, social media, and crime in the United Kingdom. He is also currently a co-convenor of the ConspirOX conspiracy theory discussion group, an inter-disiplinary research group that works to share and disseminate cutting edge research on the intersection of conspiracy theories, radicalisation, and contemporary culture, and a co-convenor of the Alternative Political and Legal theory discussion group.

Before this he completed a DPhil in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the Centre for Criminology at the University of Oxford . His project examined how Queer men navigate and make sense of Intimate Partner Violence from a male romantic and seuxal partner using a narrative framework. His project was supervised by Professor Carolyn Hoyle and  funded by a 1 + 3 Economic and Social Research Council studentship as part of the Grand Union Doctoral Training Partnership. 

He has previously worked as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at the University of Oxford's Law Faculty, and a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Roehampton where he lectured in Global Disorder and Contemporary Issues in Criminology.  

In addition to his Dphil studies and teaching, Joseph has worked on a number of different research projects including for the University of Edinburgh and the University of Oxford's Pro Bono Publico free law research clinic as a research assistant. He was a member of the Cameroon Conflict Research Group which researches and reports on the ongoing civil conflict and humanitarian crisis occurring within Cameroon and has contributed to both of its recent publications. 

Prior to beginning his DPhil, Joseph completed an MSc in Criminology & Criminal Justice at the Centre for Criminology in Oxford, achieving a grade of Distinction.  Between 2013-2017 he studied Law at the University of Edinburgh where he achieved First Class Honours. He was also awarded the McClintock Prize in Criminology for achieving the highest mark in a criminological subject of the entire honours year group. 

Joseph's general research interests lie in Cultural and Narrative Criminology. He is interested in the ways in which harm is subjectively experienced by individuals and communities, and seeks to link these experiences to the wider social changes caused by Late Modernity. Joseph also maintains an interest in the impact of Globalisation on crime and disorder, with a particular focus on the study of conspiracy theories.