Robert Blakey

Rob is a DPhil Criminology student interested in whether one day criminal behaviour will be treated like a brain-based trauma, rather than punished like evil, and whether brain-based explanations of crime will convince the public to support such policy changes. He is running public opinion experiments at the National Theatre and Science Museum in London to test whether neuroscience might changes attitudes towards the purpose of punishment.

Rob has a background in psychology, having graduated on the BA Experimental Psychology at Oxford, receiving the Gibbs Prize for second best performance. He then completed the MSc Criminology and Criminal Justice (Research Methods), receiving the Routledge prize for the research methods Master’s. Hence he is keen to integrate the often separated fields of psychology and criminology.

If you are also interested in the divide between criminology and psychology or the effects of different explanations for crime on attitudes towards offending, please feel free to drop Rob an email - he is very keen to work on studies with anyone who has similar interests.