Maeve McMahon

Research interests

• Criminal justice in the Baltic States

Current research

My research interests include contemporary and historical developments in criminology and criminal justice reform, and in the role of scholars and intellectuals in criminal justice politics and policy-making. Substantive topics that my work addresses include: historical and recent trends in the use of imprisonment and alternatives; police accountability; women working in corrections (including in prisons for men); female offenders and corrections; and theories of crime. Pursuant to spending an academic year in Lithuania in the early 1990s I also have an ongoing interest in crime, justice and human rights in post-communist societies.

My current research topics include privatization and criminal justice in Canada and internationally; the evolution of critical criminology and problematic perceptions of power; and the roles and influence of activist intellectuals in criminology.

Teaching interests

My teaching is informed by a critical criminological approach. Specific courses include ‘An Introduction to Criminal Law in Context,’ ‘Canadian Corrections in Historical Perspective,’ and ‘Human Rights in Canadian Prisons.’ The content of my courses includes reference to the international context. Lectures and readings are supplemented by valuable contributions by guest speakers (e.g. defence lawyers, police, and criminal justice reformers).

Selected publications

2007 “Review of American Journalist’s Account of State-Incarcerated Women,” (concerning Cristina Rathbone A World Apart: Women, Prison and Life Behind Bars. New York: Random House. 2005). Offender Programs Report, Jan/Feb: 67-70.

2006 “Review of Nils Christie’s A Suitable Amount of Crime.” Canadian Journal of Criminology , 47:1 (available at the Journal’s website).

2002 Everyday Life After Communism: Some Observations From Lithuania (with contributions by 22 Lithuanian students). Center for Russian and East European Studies, University Center for International Studies, University of Pittsburgh: Carl Beck Series on Eastern Europe.

2000 Editor. Assessment to Assistance: Programs for Women in Community Corrections. Lanham MD: The American Correctional Association. Includes Maeve McMahon “Assisting Female Offenders – Art or Science?”, pp. 279-328.

1999 Women on Guard: Discrimination and Harassment in Corrections. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

1998 “Control as Enterprise: Some Recent Trends in Privatization and Criminal Justice,” in Steve Easton (Editor) Privatizing Correctional Institutions. Vancouver: The Fraser Institute, pp. 109-128.