PhD Studentship: Emerging Technologies, Digital Surveillance and Stalking—Understanding Perpetrator Behaviour, Victim Impact, and System Responses

The Centre for National Training and Research Excellence in Understanding Behaviour (Centre-UB) at the University of Birmingham, in collaboration with The Home Office, is offering a fully funded PhD studentship focused on the intersection of emerging technologies, digital surveillance, and stalking. This research opportunity addresses urgent national concerns, as technology-facilitated abuse (TFA) and stalking affect a significant proportion of the UK population, with one in seven adults and one in five women reporting lifetime experiences. The project will investigate how consumer technologies—including IoT devices, wearables, GPS trackers, and AI-based tools such as deepfake generators—are weaponised for coercive control, impersonation, harassment, and surveillance. Despite increasing awareness, there remain substantial evidence gaps: there is no UK-wide taxonomy of emerging-tech stalking, no reliable population-level measurement of prevalence, and no empirical models identifying which technologies or behaviours are associated with serious harm or escalation. Current practice responses, such as police cyberstalking guidance, Stalking Protection Orders (SPOs), platform safety measures, and specialist tech-abuse services, are fragmented and rarely evaluated. This PhD aims to map technological harms and the behaviours that sustain them, estimate prevalence, model risk trajectories, and identify system-level interventions relevant to the Online Safety Act, the VAWG Strategy, and the Domestic Abuse Plan. Key research questions include: (1) How are emerging technologies used for digital surveillance, harassment, and coercive control? (2) What patterns and trajectories of tech-enabled stalking behaviour can be identified, and how do practitioners interpret these in operational contexts? (3) What is the prevalence and impact of tech-enabled stalking in the UK? (4) Which technology-enabled behaviours are linked to elevated risk of escalation or harm? (5) What system-level responses offer the greatest potential for harm reduction? The successful candidate will join a vibrant research community at Centre-UB and the School of Psychology, working under the supervision of Dr Anthony Murphy, Professor H Flowe, and Professor C Baber. Applicants should have a 1st class or 2:1 degree in Forensic Psychology, Criminology, Social Policy, Computer Science, or Mathematics. An MSc in a relevant area is desirable but not essential. Experience with quantitative and qualitative data, especially in a criminal justice context, is advantageous. Due to Home Office security clearance requirements, applicants must have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. Up to 30% of international applicants may be recruited each year, subject to UKRI funding stipulations. Centre-UB studentships provide full tuition coverage, a maintenance stipend, support for research training, and research activity support grants. The application deadline is February 17, 2026, with interviews expected on March 13, 2026. For further details on eligibility and funding, visit the Centre-UB studentships website. Informal enquiries about the project can be directed to Dr Anthony Murphy at [email protected]. To apply, follow the instructions at the Centre-UB application process page and ensure you meet all eligibility criteria. This is an excellent opportunity for candidates passionate about understanding and addressing the societal impacts of technology-facilitated abuse and stalking.