Dr Nicholas Gibbs

Lecturer

Department: Social Sciences

Dr Nick Gibbs is a Lecturer in Criminology at Northumbria University. Having gained undergraduate and post-graduate degrees in Criminology at Birmingham City University, Nick completed his PhD in 2021 at Northumbria. This project focussed on the use and supply of image and performance enhancing drugs (IPEDs). Nick developed this thesis into a solo-authored monograph, 'The Muscle Trade', which was published by Bristol University Press in November 2023.

Broadly, his work can be situated within the schools of ultra-realism and deviant leisure, and encompasses the intersecting topics of IPEDs, illicit markets, masculinity, harm reduction, and gym culture. Looking forward, Nick is developing his research to explore critical sports criminology more broadly and widening the lens of his current focus.

Though rooted in the discipline of Criminology, Nick previously worked at Leeds Trinity University as a University Teacher in Policing. Teaching on the West Yorkshire, Durham, and Northumbria Police Constable Degree Apprenticeships means that Nick is a well-rounded educator who now works across the subjects of Criminology, Sociology, and Policing.

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Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Beyond the law: Exploring the impact of criminalising anabolic–androgenic steroid use on help-seeking and health outcomes in Australia, Piatkowski, T., Gibbs, N., Dunn, M. 1 Mar 2024, In: Journal of Criminology
Emerging anabolic androgenic steroid markets; the prominence of social media, Cox, L., Gibbs, N., Turnock, L. 3 Mar 2024, In: Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy
Big business: The private sector market for image and performance enhancing drug harm reduction in the UK, Turnock, L., Gibbs, N., Cox, L., Piatkowski, T. 1 Dec 2023, In: International Journal of Drug Policy
Click, click, buy: The market for Novel Synthetic Peptide Hormones on mainstream e-commerce platforms in the UK, Turnock, L., Gibbs, N. 1 Jun 2023, In: Performance Enhancement and Health
“I Feel Like I’m Walking the Line; One Side It’s Manageable, the Other Side It’s F**king prison”: exploring the Dual Nature of User-Manufacturers of Image and Performance Enhancing Drugs, Piatkowski, T., Gibbs, N., Dunn, M. 25 Aug 2023, In: Deviant Behavior
#Sponseredathlete: the marketing of image and performance enhancing drugs on Facebook and Instagram, Gibbs, N. 28 Mar 2023, In: Trends in Organized Crime
The Liver King Lie: Misrepresentation, justification, and public health implications, Gibbs, N., Piatkowski, T. 1 Apr 2023, In: International Journal of Drug Policy
The Muscle Trade: The Use and Supply of Image and Performance Enhancing Drugs, Gibbs, N. 16 Nov 2023
The pleasures of consumption: the curious case of Phillip , Gibbs, N. 16 Nov 2023, The Muscle Trade, Bristol, Bristol University Press
Anabolics coaching: Emic harm reduction or a public health concern?, Gibbs, N., Cox, L., Turnock, L. 1 Aug 2022, In: Performance Enhancement and Health

Qualifications

Criminology PhD July 31 2021
Criminology MA August 14 2017
Criminology BA (Hons) June 20 2016
FHEA Fellow (Advantage HE)
Member British Society of Criminology (BSC) 2022

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