Oana Petcu

Working title of PhD: Policing drugs in rural Scotland, an exploration of the intersection between environmental demands and technological development

Year commenced PhD study: 2020

Institution: University of Glasgow

Funding Source: University of Edinburgh/University of Glasgow (UoE/UofG) Joint PhD Studentship – Criminology

PhD Supervisors: Professor Fergus McNeill (Glasgow) and Professor Angus Bancroft (Edinburgh)

Synopsis: 

Rural areas have historically been associated with remoteness and difficult access, which when presented in the context of drug markets, have been described as areas with little drug trafficking (Stenbacka, 2022). Nonetheless, emerging research is pointing out that remote areas in Scotland are experiencing an unexpectedly high volume of incoming drug parcels (Matthews et al., 2021). Despite knowing that drugs are present in rural areas, we know very little more about what that actually looks like and what implications it has on those communities. Thus, my research aims to shed light on one aspect of drugs in rural areas, that is, how policing of drugs is impacted by rurality, space and technology.

Recent Publications

Reka Solymosi, Oana Petcu & Jack Wilkinson (2020) Exploring public engagement with missing person appeals on Twitter, Policing and Society, DOI: 10.1080/10439463.2020.1782409 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10439463.2020.1782409?journalCode=gpas20