About Me
Name: Patrick M. Derby
Current Institution and Degree:
MA Candidate, Criminology, University of Ottawa
Previous Degrees:
BA – Criminology (Honours) Sociology (Concentration), University of Ottawa
Diploma – Police Foundations (Honours), Algonquin College
Current Research:
Masters Thesis - Doing Surveillance Work
Overview:
Several researchers have grasped onto Michel Foucault’s concept of panopticism as an explanatory model for ‘new surveillance’, specifically visual forms of surveillance such as closed-circuit television. The degree to which contemporary surveillance practices mirror the panoptic has recently come to be questioned by surveillance theorists. The totalizing vision achievable in a setting such as Jeremy Bentham’s Panopticon is not easily reproduced beyond the prison walls (arguably even within). Visual surveillance in public and semi-public space, characterized predominantly by high levels of mobility and anonymity raise challenges not posed in the panoptic setting, specifically the challenge of selectivity. When faced with a mass of undifferentiated images how does the CCTV operator determine who should be scrutinized?
Norris and Armstrong (1999) suggest that in order to assist them in determining who to target for surveillance CCTV operators begin with an understanding of the distribution of criminality among the population under surveillance. However, they do not discuss how this understanding is informed and perpetuated. This is the question I will examine in my research, in the hopes of contributing to the debate of whether the social construction of suspicion, which guides the selective gaze of the camera operator, is created by the individual operator’s idiosyncrasies, determined by the institutional context in which they work, or influenced by both.
Research Project - 2006-present
Deterring Obedience?! Can International Criminal Justice Effectively Deter Crimes of Obedience?
Overview:
In this paper I will attempt to bridge policy and theoretically oriented criminology into a study of international criminal justice – an area of study characterized by a poverty of theoretical reflection (Zolo, 2004). I will recruit the work of Michel Foucault for ‘a criminology of war’ to add insight in responding to the question of whether international criminal justice can successfully deter crimes of obedience. Through an analysis of the two systems of rules and values which govern a soldier’s life, I will highlight the incongruence between them and suggest that the tactics employed through military training do more to impress upon a soldier the requirement for obedience than foster an environment where a soldier feels comfortable disobeying. I provocatively suggest that crimes of obedience and other crimes of war will continue unabated so long as wars continue to be fought. Thus, more must be done at the level of international criminal justice to deter crimes of aggression and the declaration of war, for it is only through the elimination of war that crimes inherently associated with war will cease.
Collaborative Research Project – 2006-present
The Paedophiliac Gaze: Exploring The Implications of Doing Chid Sexual Abuse Surveillance (in collaboration with Anne-Marie Grondin)
Overview:
The active surveillance of child sex abusers is an increasingly prevalent practice in Canadian communities. Police task forces on child pornography and Circles of Support and Accountability are two examples of such proactive responses. To date, there exists no data that qualifies the implications of doing the surveillance of paedophiliac activity. That said, the purpose of this undertaking is not to analyze the efficacy of these responses, but to explore how this particular line of work affects the workers. Adler (2001) asserts that, by redefining depictions of children as sexual, we look for sex in the ‘non-sexual’, and deligitimate children as ‘nude’ to instead view them as ‘naked’. Hypothetically, we posit that the paedophiliac gaze taken on by those who do child sexual abuse surveillance colours the interpretations of their daily interactions.
Research Interests:
While first and foremost I consider myself a criminologist, my interests remain broad. Currently, I am interested in realm of surveillance studies, specifically surveillance as a form of social control. Having also been a soldier in the Canadian Forces from 1997 to 2006, and given the current political climate, I am also interested in war studies. I am particularly interested in focusing the criminological lens upon the study of war. Finally, I am also interested in reflecting upon the discipline of criminology / criminal justice and its existence within the corporatized structures of contemporary colleges and universities.
Current and Recent Professional Experience:
Manager, Human Rights Division, Correctional Service of Canada
The strategic intent of the Human Rights (HR) division is to have a Correctional Service that manifests respect and human rights values in every action and decision it takes consistent with Canada's domestic and international human rights requirements. The purpose of the HR division is to cultivate and maintain a corporate culture respectful of the human rights of prisoners. This is pursued by identifying and communicating human rights issues and priorities throughout the service and increasing the knowledge of staff and managers about their human rights obligations and responsibilities.
Grievance Analyst, Offender Redress Division, Correctional Service of Canada
The intended mission of the Offender Redress (OR) division is to support respect for the rule of law and respect for the rights of prisoners by providing access to a fair and effective redress mechanism and by recommending corrective action in cases where there is mistreatment or injustice. The division also plays role in ensuring that the problems, concerns and expectations of prisoners are brought to the attention of operational managers across the country, by providing grievance-based information on trends and specific issues.
Lecturer, Police Foundations Program, Algonquin College
As a lecturer in a police foundation program, I provided an environment where students could think critically about criminological theory and the Canadian criminal justice system. I emphasized the importance of being reflexive about themselves and their chosen profession.
Contact info:
Overview:
Several researchers have grasped onto Michel Foucault’s concept of panopticism as an explanatory model for ‘new surveillance’, specifically visual forms of surveillance such as closed-circuit television. The degree to which contemporary surveillance practices mirror the panoptic has recently come to be questioned by surveillance theorists. The totalizing vision achievable in a setting such as Jeremy Bentham’s Panopticon is not easily reproduced beyond the prison walls (arguably even within). Visual surveillance in public and semi-public space, characterized predominantly by high levels of mobility and anonymity raise challenges not posed in the panoptic setting, specifically the challenge of selectivity. When faced with a mass of undifferentiated images how does the CCTV operator determine who should be scrutinized?
Norris and Armstrong (1999) suggest that in order to assist them in determining who to target for surveillance CCTV operators begin with an understanding of the distribution of criminality among the population under surveillance. However, they do not discuss how this understanding is informed and perpetuated. This is the question I will examine in my research, in the hopes of contributing to the debate of whether the social construction of suspicion, which guides the selective gaze of the camera operator, is created by the individual operator’s idiosyncrasies, determined by the institutional context in which they work, or influenced by both.
Research Project - 2006-present
Deterring Obedience?! Can International Criminal Justice Effectively Deter Crimes of Obedience?
Overview:
In this paper I will attempt to bridge policy and theoretically oriented criminology into a study of international criminal justice – an area of study characterized by a poverty of theoretical reflection (Zolo, 2004). I will recruit the work of Michel Foucault for ‘a criminology of war’ to add insight in responding to the question of whether international criminal justice can successfully deter crimes of obedience. Through an analysis of the two systems of rules and values which govern a soldier’s life, I will highlight the incongruence between them and suggest that the tactics employed through military training do more to impress upon a soldier the requirement for obedience than foster an environment where a soldier feels comfortable disobeying. I provocatively suggest that crimes of obedience and other crimes of war will continue unabated so long as wars continue to be fought. Thus, more must be done at the level of international criminal justice to deter crimes of aggression and the declaration of war, for it is only through the elimination of war that crimes inherently associated with war will cease.
Collaborative Research Project – 2006-present
The Paedophiliac Gaze: Exploring The Implications of Doing Chid Sexual Abuse Surveillance (in collaboration with Anne-Marie Grondin)
Overview:
The active surveillance of child sex abusers is an increasingly prevalent practice in Canadian communities. Police task forces on child pornography and Circles of Support and Accountability are two examples of such proactive responses. To date, there exists no data that qualifies the implications of doing the surveillance of paedophiliac activity. That said, the purpose of this undertaking is not to analyze the efficacy of these responses, but to explore how this particular line of work affects the workers. Adler (2001) asserts that, by redefining depictions of children as sexual, we look for sex in the ‘non-sexual’, and deligitimate children as ‘nude’ to instead view them as ‘naked’. Hypothetically, we posit that the paedophiliac gaze taken on by those who do child sexual abuse surveillance colours the interpretations of their daily interactions.
Research Interests:
While first and foremost I consider myself a criminologist, my interests remain broad. Currently, I am interested in realm of surveillance studies, specifically surveillance as a form of social control. Having also been a soldier in the Canadian Forces from 1997 to 2006, and given the current political climate, I am also interested in war studies. I am particularly interested in focusing the criminological lens upon the study of war. Finally, I am also interested in reflecting upon the discipline of criminology / criminal justice and its existence within the corporatized structures of contemporary colleges and universities.
Current and Recent Professional Experience:
Manager, Human Rights Division, Correctional Service of Canada
The strategic intent of the Human Rights (HR) division is to have a Correctional Service that manifests respect and human rights values in every action and decision it takes consistent with Canada's domestic and international human rights requirements. The purpose of the HR division is to cultivate and maintain a corporate culture respectful of the human rights of prisoners. This is pursued by identifying and communicating human rights issues and priorities throughout the service and increasing the knowledge of staff and managers about their human rights obligations and responsibilities.
Grievance Analyst, Offender Redress Division, Correctional Service of Canada
The intended mission of the Offender Redress (OR) division is to support respect for the rule of law and respect for the rights of prisoners by providing access to a fair and effective redress mechanism and by recommending corrective action in cases where there is mistreatment or injustice. The division also plays role in ensuring that the problems, concerns and expectations of prisoners are brought to the attention of operational managers across the country, by providing grievance-based information on trends and specific issues.
Lecturer, Police Foundations Program, Algonquin College
As a lecturer in a police foundation program, I provided an environment where students could think critically about criminological theory and the Canadian criminal justice system. I emphasized the importance of being reflexive about themselves and their chosen profession.
Contact info:
Patrick M. Derby
MA Candidate (Criminology)
University of Ottawa
posted by Patrick Derby at 7:19 PM
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