Researcher biography

David has over 25 years experience in applied research and teaching. Over the course of his career, he has worked in senior research roles in both the university and government sectors, focusing on the use of applied social science to improve organisational practice and policy.

He has authored 30 refereed articles and book chapters, as well as of numerous research reports.  In his current role, he is frequently invited to present at industry and practitioner conferences and workshops, including as a keynote speaker at conferences in Chile, Mongolia, India, Papua New Guinea and Peru.

Prior to taking up his position at CSRM, David was Director of Research and Prevention at the then Queensland Criminal Justice Commission (CJC) for eight years where he was responsible for managing the Commission’s research and monitoring programs and, for the last two years, its corruption prevention program. He oversaw and contributed substantially to in excess of 60 completed research projects, including several book length reports.

Before joining the CJC, David taught Legal Studies at La Trobe University and Politics at the University of Melbourne and Monash University, and also worked as a Principal Consultant to the Law Reform Commission of Victoria, where he was the lead researcher on a project that led to major changes in that state’s sexual assault laws.

He holds a BA (Hons) from the University of Melbourne and a PhD in Political Science from Stanford University.