Representations of traffickers in official UK discourse: Examining the least known component of the human trafficking equation

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract / Description of output

Through a framework that combines literature's observations on traffickers’ policy-based representations with International Relations (IR) theories, this paper explores the representations of traffickers and anti-trafficking government goals in policies of the United Kingdom’s (UK), Scottish and Northern Irish governments. Policies were found to mostly subscribe to a Realist’s viewing of human trafficking, emphasising criminal choices. Still, and despite their growing tendency to focus on a wider range of traffickers, their dominant narrative tends to revolve around trafficking stereotypes, often ignoring the full spectrum of traffickers' identities to promote total human trafficking elimination. This discourse may overstate Britain's trafficking problem, sustaining state legitimacy and intervention and narrowing down the scope of anti-trafficking efforts. Conclusively, to ensure a more effective anti-trafficking response, the UK needs to set more feasible goals and based on an in-depth knowledge of traffickers strive to further enrich the policy-promoted human trafficking narrative.
Original languageEnglish
JournalInternational Journal of Law, Crime and Justice
Volume74
Early online date19 Apr 2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2023

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • human trafficking
  • traffickers
  • government policy
  • discourse analysis
  • stereotypes
  • elimination

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Representations of traffickers in official UK discourse: Examining the least known component of the human trafficking equation'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this