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Full-Text Articles in Criminology

A Study Of Public Opinion: The Importance Of Mental Illness Diagnosis And Perceptions Of Recidivism On Parole Eligibility, Emily Pedigo Jan 2023

A Study Of Public Opinion: The Importance Of Mental Illness Diagnosis And Perceptions Of Recidivism On Parole Eligibility, Emily Pedigo

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The present study examined the impact a mental illness diagnosis has on parole eligibility mediated by the participants’ perceptions of whether the prospective parolee would commit future crimes if released. Participants watched a video vignette of an individual charged with second degree manslaughter and diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, antisocial personality disorder, or bipolar disorder while incarcerated. Results indicated that a diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder indirectly reduced parole success compared to bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder when mediated by participants’ perceptions of whether the convict would recommit a crime following release.


The Development And Validation Of The General Attitudes Toward Police (Gap) Questionnaire, Rachel Greis Jan 2021

The Development And Validation Of The General Attitudes Toward Police (Gap) Questionnaire, Rachel Greis

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Previous studies have examined the relationships between various demographic characteristics (e.g., race/ethnicity, prior arrest experience, residential living area, political affiliation) and various measures of attitudes toward police (e.g., trustworthiness, legitimacy; Brown & Benedict, 2002; Hindelang, 1974; Rizer & Trautman, 2018; Schuck et al., 2008). However, a measure of overall general attitudes toward police has not been established. The main goal of the present research was to fill this gap in the literature by creating and validating a brief questionnaire that effectively captures respondents’ general attitudes toward police. In Study 1, a brief 14-item questionnaire that captured general attitudes toward police …


Judges, Attorneys, And Psychologists' Views Of Sole-Parent Child Custody Evaluations, Chandler Flynt Jan 2021

Judges, Attorneys, And Psychologists' Views Of Sole-Parent Child Custody Evaluations, Chandler Flynt

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Judges, attorneys, and psychologists are individuals in the legal system who have the most interaction with child custody evaluations (CCEs), yet there is little research regarding whether these parties have different views on what factors are important in CCEs. The present study examined how judges, attorneys, and psychologists evaluated sole-parent child custody cases. A sample of judges, attorneys, and psychologists completed a forty-item questionnaire regarding their opinions of what factors they believe are most/least important in CCEs. The goal of this study was to first observe if there were differences among the parties’ ratings, and secondly, determine why might differences …


The Influence Of Mental Illness On The Perception Of Guilt, Sydney Garrison Apr 2019

The Influence Of Mental Illness On The Perception Of Guilt, Sydney Garrison

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The purpose of this study was to investigate how the presence of a mental disorder in a person accused of a crime affects an individual’s perception of the accused person’s guilt. Participants were randomly assigned a vignette used in a study by Skeem & Goulding (2001), describing a crime that has been committed; one condition included the presence of an unnamed mental illness and the other condition did not. Immediately after reading the vignette participants completed a survey that included a question regarding the perceived guilt of the person accused of the crime. The answers to this question were compared …


Factors Affecting Juvenile Drug Use In Medellín, Colombia, Kendall Miller Jan 2019

Factors Affecting Juvenile Drug Use In Medellín, Colombia, Kendall Miller

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Evidence shows that peer pressure is a strong indicator of juvenile substance use. Oetting and Beauvais (1986) determined that the Peer Cluster Theory was a common phenomenon in which adolescents tend to share the same opinions on substance use as their friends do, namely that juveniles who had friends that abused substances were likely to abuse substances themselves. The present study sought to determine if this phenomenon was true for adolescents in Medellín, Columbia. Data was collected on participants’ demographics, their opinions of their community, their relationship to their families and friends, how they spend their time each week, and …


Student Attitudes Toward Sex Offender Policies And Laws In An Era Of High Profile Sex Crimes In The News, Amber Bennett Oct 2018

Student Attitudes Toward Sex Offender Policies And Laws In An Era Of High Profile Sex Crimes In The News, Amber Bennett

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This is a study looking at the attitudes that undergraduate college students taking introductory sociology and criminology courses have toward sex offender policies and laws such as community notification, residence restrictions, and the registry system. Voluntary participants were also asked to look at the appropriateness of the punishment given to perpetrators in case studies based off real cases. Results showed that there are potential gender differences in the attitudes about appropriateness of notification and the registration of sex offenders. There were less favorable attitudes toward chemical and surgical castration. Further research should be done to look at different types of …


The Relationships Among Moral Judgement, Social Identification, And Stigmitization, Rebecca Isaacs Apr 2018

The Relationships Among Moral Judgement, Social Identification, And Stigmitization, Rebecca Isaacs

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Stigma has had a perceived link with the concept of morality since the Grecian era (Goffman, 1963). The purpose of this study was to see if there was a correlation between moral judgement (using the Defining Issues Test 2; DIT2), social identification (using the Identification with all Humanity Scale; IWAHS) and stigma attributions toward those with mental illness. Specifically, whether those with a heightened sense of identification with all humanity and more developed moral judgement schemas are less likely to make negative stigma attributions toward persons with mental illness. The results this study supported correlations between those variables and the …


Neighborhood Friendship Networks And Fear Of Crime, Mandy Palmiter Apr 1998

Neighborhood Friendship Networks And Fear Of Crime, Mandy Palmiter

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This research project addresses the relationship between fear of crime and neighborhood friendship networks, and provides an examination of fear of crime models. The data used were collected using both questionnaires and interviews in a 1988 survey of residents of Nashville, Tennessee. Crosstabulation tables and correlation analyses are presented with results showing a significant relationship between some measures of neighborhood friendship networks and fear of crime. Results also indicate that relationships exist between environmental conditions, previous victimization, personal characteristics, and fear of crime. The possible reasons for these relationships are discussed.


Gang And Gang Activity In A Non-Metropolitan Community: The Perceptions Of Students, Teachers, And Police Officers, Joshua Swetnam May 1997

Gang And Gang Activity In A Non-Metropolitan Community: The Perceptions Of Students, Teachers, And Police Officers, Joshua Swetnam

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

In recent years, both the media and the research literature have noted an increased presence of street gangs in non-metropolitan and rural communities. An initial step in the investigation of this phenomenon is to gauge how the members of these communities react to increases in gang activity. This study was conducted in a small (approximately 20,000 citizens) Kentucky town identified by its police force as having a sizable gang population. Individuals from three groups within the community who have frequent, direct contact with gang members (police officers, teachers, and students) look part in the study. Participants completed questionnaires designed to …


Assessing The Need For A Formal Training Program Concerning Shoplifter Apprehension, April Lynn Hicks Apr 1995

Assessing The Need For A Formal Training Program Concerning Shoplifter Apprehension, April Lynn Hicks

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The present study was conducted to determine if supervisors and subordinates perceived a need for a formal training program on apprehending shoplifters. The study also determined whether supervisors perceived a greater or lesser need for a formal training program than did subordinates. Twenty supervisors and 70 subordinates from four retail locations were administered a Shoplifting Awareness Survey. It was found that both supervisors and subordinates perceived a need for a formal training program. The data revealed that supervisors perceived the need for a training program to be as strong as the need perceived by subordinates. Subordinates overwhelmingly indicated that they …