James Haydock (he/him) is a Lecturer in Criminology at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington. He is also a PhD Candidate in Criminology, supervised by Professor Simon Mackenzie, Dr. Fiona Hutton, and Professor Elizabeth Stanley.  

With a focus on the intersection between narratives, politics, and criminal policy, James’ research explores the ideological roots of modern law and order regimes in Aotearoa New Zealand. Specifically, it looks at how political actors and institutions use tailored narratives to depict social harm(s) in ways that benefit their political agendas.  

James’ Masters (2022-2023) examined the use of exclusionary narratives around refugees and asylum seekers in post-Brexit UK (post-2020), and the way politicians use those narratives to justify domineering power dynamics and human rights violations.  

Having completed an undergraduate degree in Criminology at Auckland University of Technology (AUT), James returned to Wellington to continue studies in 2021 completing an Honors degree and MA with Distinction under the supervision of Professor Elizabeth Stanley.  

James’ teaching experience has involved Tutor and Lead Tutor roles (2024-2026) in a variety of Criminology courses, as well as guest lectures focusing on state and corporate crime.  

Qualifications: 

BA in Criminology (AUT), BA with Honours in Criminology (VUW), MA in Criminology (VUW)