Child Criminal Exploitation, County Lines & Victim Identification: An Exploratory Study
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Criminology
Abstract
This research explores the processes by which young people involved in county lines drug dealing identify, and are identified, as victims of child criminal exploitation (CCE) in the context of the English youth justice system. Despite calls to recognise experiences of CCE among young people involved in county lines, the label 'victim' is still selectively applied, and many young people affected by CCE are still criminalised and labelled as offenders. This oversight has serious consequences for the lives of those affected. Yet at present we know very little about the processes by which victim status emerges in relation to CCE.
This research addresses this oversight, drawing on in-depth interviews with 50 youth justice practitioners and 17 young people affected by CCE, and on over 100 hours of observations of activities relating to CCE victim identification within an English Youth Offending Service, conducted over the course of 18 months. Using a grounded theory approach, this research explores three key influences on processes of victim identification. Firstly, it examines the roles of youth justice practitioners, focusing on the impact of their conceptualisations of 'exploitation' and 'victimhood', as shaped by the organisational contexts in which they work. Secondly, it explores victim identification as an interactional process, examining how relationships between practitioners and young people, and between young people and their families and peers, influence processes of victim identification. Finally, it analyses young people's reasons for rejecting, claiming, and accepting, status as CCE victims.
Through its exploration of the attribution of victim status as an ongoing process of negotiation and renegotiation, this research sheds light on new facets of victim identification, excavating its relational nature, developing the concept of the 'scarcity of victimhood', and demonstrating the ongoing challenges associated with victim identification in the context of the youth justice system. This research also takes the first step towards establishing a 'critical youth victimology', which engages with young people's experiences of processes of victim identification. With regard to policy and practice, this research demonstrates that, because they so often fail, processes of victim identification do not adequately serve the needs of young people affected by CCE. This research advocates for a social harm-focused approach which looks beyond the assessment of deservingness of support through the allocation of victim status, towards our collective responsibility to respond to the needs of all young people involved in county lines and the harms that they have experienced.
This research addresses this oversight, drawing on in-depth interviews with 50 youth justice practitioners and 17 young people affected by CCE, and on over 100 hours of observations of activities relating to CCE victim identification within an English Youth Offending Service, conducted over the course of 18 months. Using a grounded theory approach, this research explores three key influences on processes of victim identification. Firstly, it examines the roles of youth justice practitioners, focusing on the impact of their conceptualisations of 'exploitation' and 'victimhood', as shaped by the organisational contexts in which they work. Secondly, it explores victim identification as an interactional process, examining how relationships between practitioners and young people, and between young people and their families and peers, influence processes of victim identification. Finally, it analyses young people's reasons for rejecting, claiming, and accepting, status as CCE victims.
Through its exploration of the attribution of victim status as an ongoing process of negotiation and renegotiation, this research sheds light on new facets of victim identification, excavating its relational nature, developing the concept of the 'scarcity of victimhood', and demonstrating the ongoing challenges associated with victim identification in the context of the youth justice system. This research also takes the first step towards establishing a 'critical youth victimology', which engages with young people's experiences of processes of victim identification. With regard to policy and practice, this research demonstrates that, because they so often fail, processes of victim identification do not adequately serve the needs of young people affected by CCE. This research advocates for a social harm-focused approach which looks beyond the assessment of deservingness of support through the allocation of victim status, towards our collective responsibility to respond to the needs of all young people involved in county lines and the harms that they have experienced.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Hannah Marshall (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES/P000738/1 | 01/10/2017 | 30/09/2027 | |||
| 2131944 | Studentship | ES/P000738/1 | 01/10/2018 | 07/01/2022 | Hannah Marshall |
| Description | This research explores the processes by which young people involved in county lines drug dealing identify, and are identified, as victims of child criminal exploitation (CCE) in the context of the English youth justice system. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 50 youth justice practitioners and 17 young people affected by CCE, and on over 100 hours of observations of activities relating to CCE victim identification within an English Youth Offending Service, conducted over the course of 18 months, this research explores three key influences on processes of victim identification. Firstly, it examines the roles of youth justice practitioners, focusing on the impact of their conceptualisations of 'exploitation' and 'victimhood', as shaped by the organisational contexts in which they work. This research identifies numerous barriers that professionals experience to CCE victim identification, including: organisational culture, lack of resources, and the challenges of interpreting the concepts of 'exploitation' and 'victimhood'. Secondly, it explores victim identification as an interactional process, examining how relationships between practitioners and young people, and between young people and their families and peers, influence processes of victim identification. This section focuses on sharing information and accepting care and support as two key interactions that facilitate the identification of young people as CCE victims. It also explores the barriers that young people experience to participating in these interactions, including concerns about: criminalisation, violent ramifications, practitioners' lack of shared experience, and a need for greater participation and control. Finally, this research explores how young people are defined as victims in relation to their family members and peers. Finally, it analyses young people's reasons for rejecting, claiming, and accepting, status as CCE victims. This research finds that young people claim victim status in contexts where 1) they face a crisis situation in which claiming victim status can facilitate access to support 2) they have been able to come to terms with victimisation through experiences of post-traumatic growth. This research finds that, more often than not, young people reject victim status. This is for three main reasons: 1) the stigma associated with victimhood. 2) conflict between normative associations of victimhood with passivity and young people's assertion of their capacity to make constrained choices to engage in drug dealing as a way of navigating socio-economic deprivation. 3) young people's perceptions of positive aspects of involvement in drug dealing. |
| Exploitation Route | This research would be of interest to policy makers and practitioners working in the fields of youth justice and child safeguarding. Individuals working in these areas may be interested in the findings of this research regarding the barriers identified regarding CCE victim identification, and in the finding that, because they so often fail, processes of victim identification do not adequately serve the needs of young people affected by CCE. This research advocates for a social harm-focused approach which looks beyond the assessment of deservingness of support through the allocation of victim status, towards our collective responsibility to respond to the needs of all young people involved in county lines and the harms that they have experienced. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Description | Societal impact: Findings from this research were submitted as evidence to the UK Parliament Committee on Supporting Vulnerable Adolescents. Findings from this research were discussed with senior figures from HM Prison and Probation Service as part of the University of Cambridge's Centre for Science and Policy Fellowship Scheme. Findings from this research, including specific recommendations for practice, have been shared with the participating staff members from the Youth Offending Service, Police, and wider county council through a series of presentations and summary documents. In 2022 I was awarded a Public Engagement Starter Fund Grant from the University of Cambridge. The funding will be used for a series of rap/spoken word workshops in which young people affected by issues of criminal exploitation will be able to contribute their views on the issue. Academic impact This research has provided the foundations for two new areas of academic enquiry. 1) the development of a youth-specific victimology and 2) the development of an understanding of processes of victim identification that is more attuned to the role of interactions and relationships. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Impact Types | Societal |