On the Brink of Prison – An Ethnographic Study of Police Responses to Youth Crime in Western Canada

• Applicant: Dr. Katharina Leimbach
• Subject Area: Empirical Social Research ; Criminology
• Term: since 2026
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 576564220

In criminology, we often encounter individuals who have followed so-called “criminal careers”. Qualitative interviews with incarcerated individuals frequently reveal that many had early and ongoing interactions with institutions of social support and control. However, what remains unclear is how these programs are implemented and why, despite institutional interventions, many struggle to transition to a non-criminal life. The interactions between young individuals and institutions of social control (e.g. police) in the critical phase shortly before incarceration remain largely unexplored. Despite the increasing relevance of diversion and prevention strategies, little is known about how police respond to juvenile offenders who are already on the threshold of entering the penal system. This exploratory study aims to ethnographically examine police interventions that seek to avert custodial sentences for young people. By focusing on the dynamics, practices, and situational logics of these interactions, the project seeks to contribute to a deeper understanding of the role of the police in order to avert the imprisonment of young people and how people perceive the program participation. This project investigates how interactions between police officers and young people are structured and experienced by both sides within the framework of a specific intervention to prevent an incarceration. While the institutional response to juvenile delinquency in Germany has been extensively studied, qualitative and ethnographic research that moves beyond questions of effectiveness and program evaluation remains marginal. Such approaches constitute a niche within the broader field, despite their potential to yield deeper insights into the everyday practices, meanings, and unintended effects of intervention. Moreover, this area has not yet been examined from a cross-cultural or comparative perspective. The project also aims to broaden perspectives by examining institutional practices through a culturally sensitive lens, in order to lay the groundwork for a cross-cultural study of deviance.

• DFG Programme: Fellowship
• International Connection: Canada
• Host: Professorin Dr. Sandra Bucerius