Research in Rural Crime – serie

What are the theoretical and conceptual framings of rural criminology across the world? Thinking creatively about the challenges of rural crime and policing, in this stimulating collection of essays experts in this emerging field draw from theories of modernity, feminism, climate change, left realism and globalisation. This first book in the Research in Rural Crime series offers state-of-the-art scholarship from across the globe, and considers the future agenda for the discipline.

Bringing a unique rural lens to the analysis of dark tourism in Australia, this book covers a range of sites including convict museums, sites of serial killings and colonial violence, ghost tours and the emerging tourism of bushfire sites.While some rural communities develop a ‘dark tourism strategy’ to maintain economic viability, others may distance themselves from what they perceive to be unethical tourism practices. Jenny Wise examines the roles geographical locations play in dark tourist sites, and how their histories are portrayed, considering how the concept of the rural idyll or dystopia plays a part in Australia’s national identity.

Gender-based violence (GBV) can take many forms and have detrimental effects across generations and cultures. The triangulation of GBV, rurality and rural culture is a challenging and essential topic and this edited collection provides an innovative analysis of GBV in rural communities. Focusing on under-studied and/or oppressed groups such as immigrants and LGBTQIA+ people, the book explores new theories on patterns of violence. Giving insights into GBV education and prevention, the text introduces community justice and victim advocacy approaches to tackling issues of GBV in rural areas. From policy review into actionable change, the editors examine best practices to positively affect the lives of survivors.

This book offers the first comprehensive study of heritage crime in rural contexts, focusing on a broad range of international case studies. From vandalism and illegal treasure-seeking to the erosion of cultural traditions, it examines both legally defined crimes and broader harms to tangible and intangible heritage. Taking a harm-based approach, the book challenges narrow definitions of heritage and crime, highlighting impacts on communities and environments. It interrogates the concept of ‘rural’, considers policing successes and failures, and calls for urgent action to protect diverse heritage.

This timely collection crosses international boundaries to highlight criminological issues with a rural focus. Using a variety of different perspectives, the contributors offer lessons from research on rural crime, justice and security from the seven continents with a macroscopic perspective on issues of international concern. The book identifies the global context in which rural crime takes place, presenting insights on crime prevention, safety and security to students, researchers, policymakers and practitioners.Chapters 2 and 8 available open access digitally under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.

Rural societies commonly face geographical isolation and a lack of resources, both of which impact policing practices in such communities. This collection addresses a gap in the literature on rural police leadership with a truly international perspective.Data gathered through interviews with senior police officers illustrates their leadership challenges, including those around the prevention and reduction of crime, engagement and policing of diverse communities and the growing role of technology. The authors of this volume draw out the key themes of these practitioner voices, highlighting both best practice in police leadership and future directions for criminal justice practice, policy and research.