Alissa M. Greer

BIOGRAPHY

Alissa Greer is an Associate Professor in the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University. Dr. Greer’s research program increasingly focuses on qualitative research methods, particularly critical and innovative approaches to qualitative inquiry, alongside research on governance, politicization, and social policy. Her methodological work is informed by her experience conducting qualitative research across a range of substantive areas, including drug policy, policing, public health, and criminal justice. Her current work is expanding this methodological focus to consider broader questions about how qualitative research is designed, conducted, interpreted, and used – in policymaking and beyond.

Dr. Greer is an Associate Editor of the International Journal of Drug Policy and serves on the Board of the International Society for the Study of Drug Policy. At the School of Criminology, she organizes and facilitates a qualitative journal club and community of practice for researchers engaged in qualitative research, supporting methodological development and knowledge exchange among qualitative researchers.

AREAS OF INTEREST

Qualitative research methods; critical perspectives; feminism; policymaking and governance; policy analysis; institutions; social issues

EDUCATION

BA (UVic)
MPH (UToronto)
PhD (UBC)

Note for potential graduate students:

Professor Greer is accepting new MA and PhD students and serving on committees starting in 2027. Students with an interest in public policy, governance, qualitative research methods, and/or social issues such as drugs are encouraged to inquire by emailing Professor Greer at Alissa_greer@sfu.ca.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Greer, A., Wood, B., Zakimi, N., & Scher, B. (2026). What’s a policy without trust? How the legacy of policing shapes experiences of drug decriminalization in British Columbia. Social Science & Medicine, 403(Article 119371).
Zakimi, N., Wood, B., Santos, R. & Greer, A. (2026). Learning from the drug policy curriculum: People who use drugs policing in the context of decriminalization. Contemporary Drug Problems, 53(3), 626-647.
Ferencz, S., Greer, A., & Butler, A. (2026). Drug decriminalization and policy alienation among frontline police in British Columbia: A qualitative study. Criminology & Public Policy, 25(1), 63–88.
Rowan, Z., & Greer, A. (2024). The administration of youth justice through the lens of community-based service providers: evolving risk factors and programming challenges. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 66(3–4), 1–23.
Zakimi, N., Bouchard, M., Ritter, A., & Greer, A. (2024). "Working in a relational way is everything:” Perceptions of power and value in a drug policymaking network, 22, 139. Health Research Policy and Systems, 22(1).
Greer, A., Xavier, J., Loewen, O.K., Kinniburgh, B., & Crabtree, A. (2024). Awareness and knowledge of drug decriminalization among people who use drugs in British Columbia: a multi-method pre-implementation study. BMC Public Health, 24(1), 407.
Scher, B. D., Neufeld, S. D., Butler, A., Bonn, M., Zakimi, N., Farrell, J., & Greer, A. (2023). “Criminalization causes the stigma”: Perspectives from people who use drugs. Contemporary Drug Problems, 50(3), 402-425.
Greer, A., Bonn, M., Shane, C., Stevens, A., Tousenard, N. & Ritter, A. (2022). The details of decriminalization: designing a non-criminal response to the possession of drugs for personal use. International Journal of Drug Policy, 102, 103605.
Butler, A., Zakimi, N & Greer, A. (2022). “Total systems failure”: police officers’ perspectives on the impacts of the justice, health, and social service systems on people who use drugs. Harm Reduction Journal, 19(1), 48.
Greer, A., Butler, A., Zakimi, N., & Ferencz, S. (2022). Simple possession as a ‘tool’: police discretion and drug enforcement practices among police officers in British Columbia, Canada. International Journal of Drug Policy, 99, 103471.

SELECTED GRANTS AND AWARDS

2023-2026 Drug decriminalization in British Columbia: An equity-oriented qualitative research project. Canadian Institute for Health Research (CIHR) Project Grant. [Principal investigator]
2023-2026. Policing in the context of decriminalization in British Columbia: A qualitative study. Center for Mental Health and Addiction. [Co-Principal Investigator with Dr. Amanda Butler]
2022-2027 Scholar Award: Alternative approaches to the criminalization of drugs: A drug policy research program for BC. Michael Smith Health Research BC. [Principal Applicant]
2022-2026 Provincial qualitative evaluation of the impact of decriminalization among people who use drugs in British Columbia. BC Center for Disease Control & BC Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction. [Principal Investigator]
2021-2023 Learning from the past to inform the future: A retrospective case study of the Four Pillars Drug Strategy and drug policy implementation in Vancouver, British Columbia. Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Insight Grant: [Principal Investigator]

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Reviewer in training program with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Fall 2022
Emerging Thought Leaders Program. Simon Fraser University & Informed Opinions. May 2021
Blended learning design, Simon Fraser University Fall 2022
Reimaging course design, Simon Fraser University Summer 2021
Instructional Skills Workshop, Simon Fraser University Spring 2020

RECENTLY TAUGHT COURSES

CRIM 862: Advanced Qualitative Research Methods
CRIM 312: Criminological perspectives on social problems [offered online and in person]
CRIM 417: Special Topics: Drug Policy [offered blended learning and in person]

***Professor Greer is currently not teaching courses until January 2025

Courses

This instructor is currently not teaching any courses.

School of Criminology