Tahir Abbas

Professor Tahir Abbas is a leading academic in criminology, political sociology, and radicalisation studies. Currently serving as Professor of Criminology and Global Justice at Aston University's School of Law and Social Sciences (Department of Society and Politics), he also holds an Honorary Professor position at the University of Exeter's Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies since 2023.

• PhD, Ethnic Relations, University of Warwick (2001)
• MSocSc, Economic Development and Policy, University of Birmingham (1994)
• BSc(Econ), Economics with Mathematical Studies, Queen Mary University of London (1993)

His research intersects radicalisation, ethnicity, and social exclusion, with a focus on UK and Western Europe. He critically examines state responses to Islamophobia, polarisation, and political violence, emphasizing structural causes of social division. Methodologically, he combines structural equation modelling, multiple imputation, and machine learning with qualitative analysis.

Recent projects include the €3m EC-funded DRIVE project (2020-2024) on radicalisation in Europe and the €1.4m ISF-funded PROTONE project (2023-2025) protecting religious spaces. He also co-edited Ethnicity, Religion, and Muslim Education in a Changing World (2024) with K. Iqbal and contributes to Global Counter-Terrorism: A Decolonial Approach (2025).

Scientific Awards:

• Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (AcSS)
• Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA)

He teaches Theories of Crime and Victimology, and sits on editorial boards for journals like Bandung: Journal of the Global South and Critical Muslim. His work spans criminology, political sociology, and urban studies, addressing global challenges in integration and identity.