1: Lawrence Sherman - Policing

In this episode, I speak with Dr Evelyn Svingen who is an Assistant Professor at the University of Birmingham and a reluctant evolutionary criminologist. Her book Evolutionary Criminology and Cooperation was published in 2023 and won the European Society of Criminology Book of the Year award. We speak about: evolutionary criminology, human nature, misconceptions and strawmans about evolutionary criminology, Evelyn’s Reciprocity and Retribution model, which she developed during her PhD at Cambridge University, and behavioural economics games. Evelyn argues that we should include all levels of analysis, including evolution, to understand crime. Ultimately, Evelyn calls for interdisciplinary empathy and epistemological humility.

Dr Sarah Charman is Professor of Criminology in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Portsmouth. She is also Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice and Senior Associate Fellow at the Police Foundation. Sarah has researched and published widely on the sociology of policing and the policing organisation, most notably on policing cultures, police leadership, police recruits and pandemic policing. Her current research focuses on the areas of police wellbeing and police retention. In this episode, we discuss her research on recruits, women in policing, and police leavers. We also talk about policing the COVID-19 pandemic, defunding the police, and advice for aspiring researchers and the police.

Dr Tyson Yunkaporta is a member of the Apalech clan in far north Queensland, Australia. He is a Senior Research Fellow in Indigenous knowledges at Deakin University and the author of 'Sand Talk: How Indigenous Thinking Can Save the World' (2019). In this episode, we discuss the colonial space, Indigenous perspectives on deviance and social control, the culture wars, advice for police, and the idea that humans are a custodial species.

Dr Peter Neyroud is a lecturer in evidence-based policing at the Cambridge Institute of Criminology and a former Chief Constable for Thames Valley Police. We discuss his Turning Point Randomised Control Trial, police self-legitimacy, and the importance of education for police. He also shares some 'war stories' from his days as a constable.

Professor Lawrence W. Sherman is an esteemed Criminologist and police educator at the University of Cambridge. We discuss experimental criminology, gun violence in the United States, police shootings, police culture, and the ideal police recruit. Larry also shares some personal insights, including his biggest career regret.