Advancing Policy on Technology-Facilitated Domestic Abuse

Project ID: 2228cd1288 (You will need this ID for your application)

Under Offer

Research Theme: Digital Security and Resilience

Project Summary:

This PhD project is associated with the UKRI FLF grant “Revolutionising Online Safety: Tackling Technology-Facilitated Abuse to Protect Victims and Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)”, which aims to pre-emptively inhibit domestic abuse perpetrators from abusing through digital systems rather than placing the responsibility on victims/survivors to re-actively adjust their behaviour.

You join the growing “Gender and Tech” Lab embedded in UCL Computer Science’s Information Security Research Group. Our research team investigates the intersection points of technology, security, and gender to improve the design and development of digital technologies. We work closely with (inter)national third-sector organisations and policy and industry actors.

For this project, you will map the policy dimensions around tech abuse in the UK (e.g., domestic abuse, online harms, and cybercrime legislation), with the exact remit of the studentship defined and shaped in exchange with the UK Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s Office. Your driving research question will be: How can policy better respond to tech abuse? You will consequently review and monitor the global tech abuse policy landscape to identify and systematically appraise the most suitable policy options to help inform UK policy relating to domestic abuse and online harms.

To effectively do this research, you must be comfortable in co-creation processes (i.e., your PhD will be led by the needs of policy stakeholders), confident in policy/legal analysis methods (e.g., stakeholder analysis, needs analysis, systems mapping, multi-criteria decision analysis, etc.), and open to pursue engagement activities (e.g., planning/organising workshops) plus a three-month placement at the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s Office.

At the application stage, please provide evidence of your (1) passion for this interdisciplinary research area; (2) ability to learn (especially on your own) and work under pressure/time constraints; and (3) experience working with high-profile stakeholders (such as policy officials).