Zachary Towns
Biographic Data
| ID | 4198937 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Zachary Towns |
| GIVEN NAMES | Zachary |
| FAMILY NAME | Towns |
| SIGNATURE | TOWNS Z |
| AFFILIATIONS | Marine Institute at Memorial University of Newfoundland |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6961-8157 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 2 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 14 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Occupational Challenges for Physical Fitness in Canadian Federal Correctional Services
Effective service delivery by correctional officers (COs) requires timely responses to critical incidents, making physical fitness essential. Research across public safety sectors links regular exercise to improved mental well-being, job satisfaction, and self-esteem. However, little qualitative research has examined how fitness shapes COs’ experiences, addresses the occupational barriers tied to exercising, and assesses its impact on officer men…
“It’s imperative. We can’t do it, without it”
The police tactical armored vehicle (TAV) has become the beacon for criticism underpinning police spending, overreach, and police militarization. Consistent with how patrol cruisers indicate police presence, the TAV shows police tactical (TAC) team presence. Missing among contested arguments surrounding police TAVs is an understanding from practitioners as to why the police need the TAV and how it is used to maintain human safety during rapidly u…
Mentally, I will never be what I was’
On any given day, tens of thousands of people are in custody in Canada’s correctional systems. Serving time in prison affects the person incarcerated and their family and/or loved ones psychologically and emotionally. To explore how, we interviewed 15 adults residing in Ontario with family members incarcerated in Canada. Our focus was on the adult family members’ experiences and the effects of having a family member in prison on their well-being.…
How practical is tactical? Political sociology, militarization, and police tactical teams in Canada
Emergency Response Teams (ERT), commonly referred to as Special Weapons And Tactics (SWAT) teams, are the specialized police unit responsible for mitigating violent and dangerous conflict beyond the capacity of general duty to handle effectively. Debates surrounding the application and effectiveness of ERTs in policing highlight a need to keep ERT members safe due to adequacy and occupational health and safety standards while concurrently managin…
“Cops Need Doxxed”
The present study explores the phenomenon of doxxing and, in particular, the use of doxxing as a form of harassment against police officers. This work relies on an analysis of in-depth interviews with 65 ( n = 65) police officers from across Canada, each of whom has had experiences of policing politically contested events. Drawing on our data, we outline specific examples of the doxxing of police officers, before exploring the political and other…
Protocol for a national study on emergency response team officers' mental health and well-being
Purpose The purpose of our article is to explicate how researchers in Canada can learn from our methodology to work in collaboration with police services and foster research collaborations with “hard-to-reach” groups. Police ERTs have been criticized for being “secretive,” “elite,” distrusting of popular media or outside research, and difficult to contact. Subsequently, researchers often struggle to form partnerships with police agencies to acces…
The non-uniformed TAC member
To others it’s just tape
A comparative analysis of two Canadian police tactical teams’ operations, training, patrol support, and police militarisation
The Language of Authority
Understanding the physical fitness standard, recruitment, and retention of Canadian Emergency Response Teams
Canadian police services rely on their Emergency Response Teams (ERT) to respond to diverse calls for service, requiring ERT members to meet physical fitness standards aligned with the physically demanding components of ERT responsibilities. In the current article, we explore the different physical testing components of Canadian tactical teams to better understand the physical testing standards for ERT. We do this by investigating how members of …
Feed them, protect them, give them what they want”
In prior punishment studies, researchers examining food in prisons focused on incarcerated people's experiences with food insecurity, food nutrition, and access to food, some even connecting food to deprivations as per the "pains of imprisonment" . Others have studied the evolving expectations that correctional officers (CO) care and deliver care to incarcerated people who rely on COs to meet their basic needs (food, clothing, shelter). We, in th…
Of boredom and havoc
Despite early calls to pay attention to the role of emotions in crime and criminal justice, including in prison studies, empirical research focusing on emotions in the administration of criminal justice has been sporadic. With notable exceptions, little attention has been paid to the role of boredom, meaning, and the labour processes of criminal justice personnel more broadly, and correctional officers specifically. We fill the lacuna in knowledg…
The Top Cop
Correctional officer recruits (CORs) must complete the correctional training program (CTP) mandated by Correctional Service Canada (CSC), in preparation for the plethora of occupational responsibilities they will be tasked with in their occupational role of correctional officer (CO). During training, recruits continue to conceive ideas about their career trajectories. Previous research exploring CO or COR motivations has focused largely on occupa…
Feed them, protect them, give them what they want”
In prior punishment studies, researchers examining food in prisons focused on incarcerated people's experiences with food insecurity, food nutrition, and access to food, some even connecting food to deprivations as per the "pains of imprisonment" . Others have studied the evolving expectations that correctional officers (CO) care and deliver care to incarcerated people who rely on COs to meet their basic needs (food, clothing, shelter). We, in th…
The Top Cop
Correctional officer recruits (CORs) must complete the correctional training program (CTP) mandated by Correctional Service Canada (CSC), in preparation for the plethora of occupational responsibilities they will be tasked with in their occupational role of correctional officer (CO). During training, recruits continue to conceive ideas about their career trajectories. Previous research exploring CO or COR motivations has focused largely on occupa…
Understanding the physical fitness standard, recruitment, and retention of Canadian Emergency Response Teams
Canadian police services rely on their Emergency Response Teams (ERT) to respond to diverse calls for service, requiring ERT members to meet physical fitness standards aligned with the physically demanding components of ERT responsibilities. In the current article, we explore the different physical testing components of Canadian tactical teams to better understand the physical testing standards for ERT. We do this by investigating how members of …
Feed them, protect them, give them what they want”
In prior punishment studies, researchers examining food in prisons focused on incarcerated people's experiences with food insecurity, food nutrition, and access to food, some even connecting food to deprivations as per the "pains of imprisonment" . Others have studied the evolving expectations that correctional officers (CO) care and deliver care to incarcerated people who rely on COs to meet their basic needs (food, clothing, shelter). We, in th…
Of boredom and havoc
Despite early calls to pay attention to the role of emotions in crime and criminal justice, including in prison studies, empirical research focusing on emotions in the administration of criminal justice has been sporadic. With notable exceptions, little attention has been paid to the role of boredom, meaning, and the labour processes of criminal justice personnel more broadly, and correctional officers specifically. We fill the lacuna in knowledg…
How practical is tactical? Political sociology, militarization, and police tactical teams in Canada
Emergency Response Teams (ERT), commonly referred to as Special Weapons And Tactics (SWAT) teams, are the specialized police unit responsible for mitigating violent and dangerous conflict beyond the capacity of general duty to handle effectively. Debates surrounding the application and effectiveness of ERTs in policing highlight a need to keep ERT members safe due to adequacy and occupational health and safety standards while concurrently managin…
“Cops Need Doxxed”
The present study explores the phenomenon of doxxing and, in particular, the use of doxxing as a form of harassment against police officers. This work relies on an analysis of in-depth interviews with 65 ( n = 65) police officers from across Canada, each of whom has had experiences of policing politically contested events. Drawing on our data, we outline specific examples of the doxxing of police officers, before exploring the political and other…
Protocol for a national study on emergency response team officers' mental health and well-being
Purpose The purpose of our article is to explicate how researchers in Canada can learn from our methodology to work in collaboration with police services and foster research collaborations with “hard-to-reach” groups. Police ERTs have been criticized for being “secretive,” “elite,” distrusting of popular media or outside research, and difficult to contact. Subsequently, researchers often struggle to form partnerships with police agencies to acces…
The non-uniformed TAC member
To others it’s just tape
A comparative analysis of two Canadian police tactical teams’ operations, training, patrol support, and police militarisation
The Language of Authority
Occupational Challenges for Physical Fitness in Canadian Federal Correctional Services
Effective service delivery by correctional officers (COs) requires timely responses to critical incidents, making physical fitness essential. Research across public safety sectors links regular exercise to improved mental well-being, job satisfaction, and self-esteem. However, little qualitative research has examined how fitness shapes COs’ experiences, addresses the occupational barriers tied to exercising, and assesses its impact on officer men…
“It’s imperative. We can’t do it, without it”
The police tactical armored vehicle (TAV) has become the beacon for criticism underpinning police spending, overreach, and police militarization. Consistent with how patrol cruisers indicate police presence, the TAV shows police tactical (TAC) team presence. Missing among contested arguments surrounding police TAVs is an understanding from practitioners as to why the police need the TAV and how it is used to maintain human safety during rapidly u…
Mentally, I will never be what I was’
On any given day, tens of thousands of people are in custody in Canada’s correctional systems. Serving time in prison affects the person incarcerated and their family and/or loved ones psychologically and emotionally. To explore how, we interviewed 15 adults residing in Ontario with family members incarcerated in Canada. Our focus was on the adult family members’ experiences and the effects of having a family member in prison on their well-being.…
Criminology (6 works) · Law (6 works) · Policing Practices and Perceptions (6 works) · Political science (6 works) · Psychology (6 works) · Business (5 works) · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis (5 works) · Law (4 works) · Officer (4 works) · Sociology (4 works)