Mr Jacob Astley
School of Health & Society
Current positions
Lecturer in Criminology
Biography
Jacob Astley is Lecturer in Criminology at the Â׸£ÀûƬ whose teaching and research are situated at the intersection of criminology, sociology and social policy. His research expertise covers contemporary forms of extremism, hate, and radicalisation, with particular attention to radicalisation pathways and journeys that are fluid, ambiguous, and ideologically unstable. His work employs a critical lens to challenge dominant counter-terrorism and extremism paradigms, which foreground rigid typologies that prioritise ideological categorisation over contextualisation.
In seeking to develop impactful research with real-world relevance, Jacob is particularly interested in the processes and practices through which young people negotiate and make sense of increasingly normalised radical(ising) content amid shifting social worlds. In particular, his research explores contemporary radicalisation processes and the ways in which young people encounter, engage with and interpret extremist and potentially radical(ising) content across online and offline social contexts. He examines how these experiences intersect with processes of youth socialisation, identity (trans)formation and meaning-making, and how engagements across digital environments and everyday offline settings are connected to experiences of stigmatisation, discrimination and victimisation, shaping lived experiences of risk, belonging and harm.
Across his work, Jacob is motivated by an interest in how risks, threats and harms are socially, culturally, and contextually produced in relation to contemporary extremism and radicalisation. He examines the operation of risk-based logics and mechanisms across multiple domains, including international security, education, welfare and the lived environment, to understand how contemporary governance frameworks shape experiences of harm, belonging and insecurity. This work is underpinned by the development of innovative methodological approaches to examine how risk and vulnerability are discursively constructed, embedded in policy and enacted in practice across contexts such as safeguarding, counter-terrorism and counter-radicalisation.
Building on this work, Jacob has developed an international research profile, delivering invited presentations and conference papers across Europe. His research has been published in a range of high-impact journals, including British Journal of Educational Studies, Crime Media Culture, Critical Social Policy, and the Journal of Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism.
Areas of Research
Contemporary forms of extremism and hate
Contemporary radicalisation pathways and journeys across online and offline contexts
Fluid and ideologically unstable extremism and radicalisation
Youth socialisation, identity, belonging and meaning-making
Lived experiences of risk, harm and insecurity
Risk-based governance in public policy and security policy
Risk, resilience and vulnerability in counter-terrorism and counter-radicalisation policy
Qualifications
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Criminology
2022 - 2026 -
Higher Education
2021 - 2022 -
Criminology
2019 - 2020 -
Ancient History
2016 - 2019