Dr Suraj Lakhani
Senior Lecturer
Institution
University of Sussex
Research Area Keywords: Video-gaming and violent extremism; Terrorism; Radicalisation; PVE; Counter-terrorism policy.
Contact: s.lakhani@sussex.ac.uk
About Suraj
Suraj Lakhani is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Sociology and Criminology at the University of Sussex. He also holds the roles of Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute and Research Fellow at VOX-Pol. Suraj is also part of: the Steering Board of the Extremism and Gaming Research Network (EGRN), the Leadership Team at VOX-Pol; the Christchurch Call New Technologies Working Group; the European Working Group on Radicalization, Extremism, and Terrorism at the European Society of Criminology; and the Home Office’s Accelerated Capability Environment (ACE) Research Network.
Suraj’s research interests include video-gaming and violent extremism, violent extremism and the internet, radicalisation, and counter-terrorism policy. He has published a number of peer reviewed journal articles in internationally recognised academic publications, including Critical Studies on Terrorism, Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, Terrorism and Political Violence, and The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice, amongst others. He also has a number of book chapters in edited collections. Suraj has acted as primary investigator, both individually and leading recognised international consortiums, on research projects funded by, for example, the Home Office, European Commission, Research England, ESRC, British Academy, and the Leverhulme Trust.
Publications
Journal articles
When Digital and Physical Worlds Combine: The Metaverse and the Gamification of Violent Extremism (2023)
Europe’s Far-Right Online Ecosystem: An Exploratory Twitter Outlink Analysis of Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland and France’s Rassemblement National (2022)
Macdonald, S, Yilmaz, K, Herath, C, Berger, J M, Lakhani, S, Nouri, L, and Conway, M
‘Press F to Pay Respects’: An empirical exploration of the mechanics of gamification in relation to the Christchurch attack (2022)
Lakhani, S and Wiedlitzka, S
‘Prevent Duty’: Empirical Reflections on the Challenges of Addressing Far-Right Extremism within Secondary Schools and Colleges in the UK (2021)
Lakhani, S and James, N
A Snapshot of the Syrian Jihadi Online Ecology: Differential Disruption, Community Strength, and Preferred Other Platforms (2021)
Conway, M, Khawaja, M, Lakhani, S, Reffin, J, and Robertson, A
Social capital and the enactment of Prevent duty: An empirical case-study of schools and colleges (2020)
Extreme Criminals: An Empirical Exploration of the Relationship between Criminals and Extremists in the United Kingdom (2020)
Reports
The Gamification of (Violent) Extremism: An exploration of emerging trends, future threat scenarios, and potential P/CVE solutions (2022)
Lakhani, S, White, J and Wallner, C
Gamification of (Violent) Extremism: Current Applications and New Trends (2022)
Book chapters
‘There’s a chance for adventure…’: Exploring Excitement as an Existential Attraction of Violent Extremism (2020)
Lakhani, S and Hardie-Bick, J, in D. Polizzi (Ed.), Jack Katz: Seduction, the Streets and Emotion
Grants and Projects
2023-2024: TASM: Video-gaming and violent extremism policy implications
2022: Research England: Violent Extremism and the Metaverse
2022: European Commission (Radicalisation Awareness Network Policy Support): The Gamification of (Violent) Extremism (White J, Wallner C)
2021: European Commission (Radicalisation Awareness Network Policy Support): Video Gaming and (Violent) Extremism
2021: RESOLVE Network: Analysing the outlinking patterns and online ecology of far-right groups in Europe (Macdonald S, Lakhani S, Conway M, Berger J M, Herath C, Yilmaz K, Nouri L
2018-2018: Home Office: Understanding How Terrorist Groups Share Content, and where it Appears On-Line (Conway M, Reffin J, Weir D, Khawaja M)
2018-2019: BA/Leverhulme: ‘Prevent Duty’: Understanding the Effects of Counter-Terrorism Policy within Secondary and Further Education Institutions
2016-2017: Home Office: Measuring the impact of disrupting online terrorist material, through a Twitter analysis (Conway M, Reffin J, Weir D, Khawaja M)