Professor David Bright

Professor David Bright is a criminologist and forensic psychologist with the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia. Prior to a career in academia, he worked in a range of clinical and forensic settings including community mental health services, police agencies, courts, and prisons. After completing a PhD in forensic psychology in 2008, Professor Bright joined the National Drug and Alcohol Centre at UNSW, where he conducted research on illicit drug markets and organised criminal groups. In 2012 he commenced a teaching and research position with the School of Social Sciences at UNSW where he took up the role of Deputy Head of School (Research). In 2016, he was appointed Associate Dean Research for the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at UNSW. He subsequently worked at Flinders University (2017-2021) where he was Deputy Director of the Chair Crime Policy and Research. He commenced at Deakin University in 2021.

Professor Bright's research interests include criminal networks, organised crime, terrorism, drugs and crime, and desistance from crime. He is Director of the Melbourne Illicit Networks Lab which conducts ground-breaking research using social network analysis and related approaches to study organised criminal groups and terrorist groups. He is also convenor of the ANZSOC Thematic Group on Illicit Networks.