Our research

The Department is comprised of a multidisciplinary team conducting research within sociology, criminology, work science, and science and technology studies.

Our research programmes cover the labour market and working life, occupations, family, children, older people and social welfare. Civil society and social movement research is another important area. Research in the field of criminology and the sociology of law covers subjects including the police and gang formation, homelessness, public safety and financial crime. Researchers at the Department are also studying the connections between sustainable development, environmental policy, and advances in transport and energy technology.

Evolving research areas include economic sociology and political sociology accompanied by burgeoning fields of research centring around governance and globalisation. Additionally, gender and class are pervasive themes in all the research undertaken at the Department.