Dr Clarke Jones

Dr Jones specialises in ethnographic, longitudinal, and participant observation research. He works closely with communities that are often marginalised, hard-to-access and at-risk. This includes terrorist offenders and prison gangs in the Philippines, as well as work with specific marginalised and vulnerable communities in Australia. His intention is to develop more culturally and religiously suitable youth interventions to see whether this improves program efficacy and reduces crime or future offending.

Rather than taking a ‘countering violent extremism’ approach, Dr Jones’ work is grounded on the notion that, to adequately address anti-social and violent behaviours in young people, all efforts must be embedded within activities that engage and support families and communities. He works together with a range of international and domestic experts including psychologists, criminologists, and sociologists to provide support to community groups working with troubled young people.

Dr Jones also has several other areas of research expertise, which focus on prison reform and terrorist inmate management in the Philippines. His is currently exploring how different prison environments influence terrorist inmates’ beliefs and behaviour: that is, whether certain prison environments inhibit or foster prison radicalisation and rehabilitation. He compares the beliefs and behaviours of terrorist inmates incarcerated in two different correctional facilities in the Philippines.