Antony Pemberton appointed as Endowed Professor of Victim Studies
The University of Humanistic Studies has appointed Antony Pemberton as professor by special appointment of Victim Studies from 1 August. The chair, established by the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR), aims to provide a more in-depth understanding of victimisation and the ways in which society, institutions and professionals (can) respond to it.
The chair researches victimization as a social phenomenon and focuses on academic knowledge development and a close connection with practice. “Victim Studies not only describes, but also takes a position: it is about what is just, what recognition really means, and how we can do justice to the experience of those affected without ignoring it. It is precisely this normative slant that makes the University of Humanistic Studies the ideal place for this chair. I want to connect the insights from academic victimology with those who are directly affected by victimization: experts by experience and professionals. That’s a bridge I want to build,” Pemberton says.
Important addition to victim research and education
The chair was established by the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR), part of the institutes organisation of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO). NSCR is engaged in victim research in a broad sense. Director a.i. Peter van der Laan on the new chair: “At NSCR, we are very pleased with the appointment of Antony Pemberton at the UvH. Not only because of the establishment of a chair in Victim Studies as an important addition to victim research and education in the Netherlands, but also because Antony Pemberton has been appointed to this chair. He is pre-eminently the right person for this. Moreover, this chair establishes cooperation between NSCR and the UvH. We see this collaboration as an enrichment for NSCR and look forward to jointly contributing to the further development of this important field.”
Valuable for study programmes
Perspectives from this chair and the research are relevant for professionals such as spiritual carers and social workers, which is why the insights from this chair will be reflected in the programmes at the UvH. “Students learn how victimization manifests itself in society, and in the work of institutions and professionals, such as that of social workers. This is essential because they will come into contact with victims in their work. We are therefore looking forward to working with Antony Pemberton and NSCR,” says Thomas Kampen, Professor of Social Work.
About Antony Pemberton
Anthony Pemberton has a background in political science and criminology. He worked for thirteen years at the International Victimology Institute Tilburg. Since 2019, he has been Professor of Criminology at KU Leuven and since 2020 a senior researcher within the Victimhood research group of the NSCR. In these positions, he has conducted and supervised a multitude of victimological research, including eleven completed PhD projects. In addition, he focused on policy, including as a member of the Donner Committee on Victim Compensation, as an advisor to the European Commission on the Victims’ Directive and as a co-author of the Council of Europe’s 2023 Victim Recommendation. In 2025, he received an NWO VICI grant for the WAVEN research project, which will further expand his research into victimhood in the coming years.