Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Religion And Crime Studies: Assessing What Has Been Learned, Melvina Sumter, Frank Wood, Ingrid Whitaker, Dianne Berger-Hill

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

This paper provides a review of the literature that assesses the relationship between religion and crime. Research on the relationship between religion and crime indicates that certain aspects of religion reduces participation in criminal activity. A review of the literature indicates religion reduces participation in criminal activity in two broad ways. First, religion seems to operate at a micro level. Studies have pointed to how religious beliefs are associated with self-control. Second, researches have examined the social control aspects of religion. In particular, how factors such as level of participation and social support from such participation reduces criminal activity. Likewise, …

Life In Hampton Roads Survey Press Release #2: Police, Race Relations And Attitudes Regarding The Homeless And Mentally Ill In Hampton Roads, Social Science Research Center, Old Dominion University

Life in Hampton Roads Survey Report

[Introductory paragraph]

This report examines regional and sub-regional perceptions of crime and police from the 2017 Life In Hampton Roads survey (LIHR 2017) conducted by the Old Dominion University Social Science Research Center. Data from prior years is also provided when available to show comparisons in responses over time. Responses were weighted by city population, race, age, gender, and phone usage (cell versus land-line) to be representative of the Hampton Roads region.

Life In Hampton Roads Survey Press Release #2: Police, Crime, Offender Rights, And Attitudes Regarding The Homeless And Mentally Ill In Hampton Roads, Social Science Research Center, Old Dominion University

Life in Hampton Roads Survey Report

[Introductory paragraph]

This report examines regional and sub-regional perceptions of crime and police from the 2016 Life In Hampton Roads survey (LIHR 2016) conducted by the Old Dominion University Social Science Research Center. Data from prior years is also provided when available to show comparisons in responses over time. Responses were weighted by city population, race, age, gender, and phone usage (cell versus land-line) to be representative of the Hampton Roads region.

The Strength Of Social Bonds In Preventing At Risk Youth From Engaging In Delinquent And Law Violating Behavior, Christopher A. Falcone

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of the study is to assess whether social bonds (i.e., attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief) are associated with a decrease in delinquent and law violating behavior among at-risk youth in various geographical locations. According to Travis Hirschi's (1969) social bonding theory, delinquent acts occur when an individual's bond to society is weak or broken. Hirschi stated that humans by nature are deviant, and that the value individuals place on their relationships prevent them from engaging in such behavior. Using data from the 2000 ICPSR Evaluation of the Children at Risk Program in Austin, Texas; Bridgeport, Connecticut; Memphis, Tennessee; …

Life In Hampton Roads Survey Press Release #2: Crime And Politics, Social Science Research Center, Old Dominion University

Life in Hampton Roads Survey Report

This report examines regional and sub-regional perceptions of crime and politics from the 2015 Life In Hampton Roads survey (LIHR 2015) conducted by the Old Dominion University Social Science Research Center. Data from prior years is also provided when available to show comparisons in responses over time. Responses were weighted by city population, race, age, gender, and phone usage (cell versus land-line) to be representative of the Hampton Roads region.

Crime And Natural Resource Booms: Evidence From Unconventional Natural Gas Production, Timothy M. Komarek

Economics Faculty Publications

The USA has experienced a sudden expansion of oil and natural gas production due to the combination of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling. The energy extraction boom has had many localized impacts, most notably in areas with substantial shale gas reserves. This paper exploits a natural experiment in the Marcellus region to examine one channel of the so-called resource curse, the effect of resource extraction on local crime. The results show that areas experiencing a natural gas extraction boom suffer an increase in overall violent crimes, while property crimes remain similar to non-boom areas. Furthermore, the violent crime increase appears …

Life In Hampton Roads Survey Press Release #2: A Tale Of Many Cities: Economy, Crime, And Politics, Social Science Research Center, Old Dominion University

Life in Hampton Roads Survey Report

This report examines regional and sub-regional measures of economy, crime, and politics perceptions from the 2014 Life In Hampton Roads survey (LIHR 2014) conducted by the Old Dominion University Social Science Research Center.

Sources Of Informal Social Control And The Relationship To Victimization In Southeastern Virginia, Jennifer R. Jones

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The link between community characteristics and crime has been at the forefront of criminological research for some time. Social disorganization theory focuses on the relationship between structural characteristics of communities and crime. Recent examination of the social disorganization perspective has emphasized the role of informal social control as mediating the effects of structural characteristics on victimization. In this study, contemporary social disorganization theory was tested using data from the U.S. Census Bureau: Census Tract Fact Finder (2000) and the Southeastern Virginia Community Survey (2008). This research addressed three central research questions: Is there a relationship between structural characteristics (i.e., poverty, …

Media Exposure And Women's Fear Of Crime, Pamela C. Hooper

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the relationship between the media portrayal of women and crime on television and fear of crime among female viewers. Data from the National Opinion Survey of Crime and Justice was used. A weak relationship between media exposure and fear of crime was found. Consistent with previous research, a statistically significant gender difference was revealed. Women reported higher levels of fear overall. When television dramas were examined, women who watched these shows had a lower reported fear of crime. An unexpected inverse relationship emerged between women's age and fear of crime. This finding contradicts a majority of the …

Social Disorganization And The Ability And Willingness To Enact Control: A Preliminary Test, Ruth A. Triplett, Ivan Y. Sun, Randy R. Gainey

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Dominant models in the social disorganization literature differentially focus on the ability of neighborhoods to enact social control and the willingness to do so. Despite the interest in both concepts, often no clear definition of either is provided, and there is little discussion of their relationship or how they interact to affect neighborhood crime rates. This paper begins to explore the relationship between ability and willingness to enact social control. The findings suggest that, for formal control, ability and willingness are closely related. Furthermore, at the aggregate level, concentrated disadvantage combined with perceived inability has a strong impact on neighborhood …

A Cross-National Analysis Of The Impact Of Conscription On Crime Rates, Nicolette G. Rose

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Research has repeatedly shown that males in the age range of 16 to 24 years account for a disproportionately large volume of crime (Sampson and Laub 1993 ). The armed forces are major employers of young males in this crime-prone age range and could thus play an important role in crime prevention. The military provides many varied opportunities including a highly structured and regimented institution in which rigid behavioral norms and close monitoring are imposed. Some other incentives that service provides include educational opportunities through the" Advanced Individual Training", the GI Bill, in-service tuition assistance, and world-wide travel. All these …

Neighborhood Characteristics And Crime: A Test Of Sampson And Groves' Model Of Social Disorganization, Ivan Y. Sun, Ruth A. Triplett, Randy R. Gainey

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

In 1989 Sampson and Groves proposed a model of social disorganization. In this model, neighborhoods with low socioeconomic status, high residential mobility, racial heterogeneity, and family disruption were predicted to have sparse local friendship networks', low organizational participation, and unsupervised youth groups. These, in turn, were predicted to increase neighborhood crime rates. Although Sampson and Groves' work represents the most complete model of social disorganization to date, it has only been tested twice and then on the same data set. Using data from 36 neighborhoods from 7 U.S. cities, this study examines extensions of Sampson and Groves' model suggested by …

Justifications For The Probation Sanction Among Residents Of Virginia--Cool Or Un-Cool?, Brian K. Payne, Randy R. Gainey, Ruth A. Triplett, Mona J. E. Danner

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Perhaps as evidence of a growing cultural gap between our students and ourselves, one of the authors was recently amused when a student asked whether probation was a "cool" sanction. In this study, we begin an investigation into how cool the probation sanction is in the eyes of residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Specifically, we use data from a telephone survey of 840 registered voters to explore three questions. First, how often would they recommend the probation sanction in comparison to other sanctions? Second, how do they justify the sanction relative to justifications for other sanctions? Finally, are their …

A Comparative Study Of Black And White Girls' Delinquency, Kenya Larae Covington

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

In this research, I examined the similarities and differences between black and white female delinquents. A secondary analysis of the Survey of Youth in Custody, 1987 data was utilized to answer the following research questions: (1) What factors contribute to each group's delinquency the most? (2) Are the factors that contribute to black girls' delinquency significantly different from those factors that contribute to white girls' delinquency? The study was guided by previous research on race and female delinquency, girls' victimization, the role of the family and school performance. The independent variables victimization, family structure, family function and school performance were …