Criminology Commons^™

Exploring The Factors That Influence Female Offending In The U.S. And Mexico, Dana Villasenor

CMC Senior Theses

Hollywood has painted a picture of the criminal woman as a sexy, sneaky, and often psychotic female fatale. This is because men run Hollywood. Much like movies, research on why women offend had historically focused on men as their stellar. However, towards the turn of the century and with the disproportionate rise in female incarceration, literature caught up to the fact that women and men do not experience the same socialization, standards, or reality and, therefore, have different reasons for and ways of offending. This research explores those reasons for women in the U.S. and Mexico and paints the picture …

A Criminological Analysis Of Notorious Serial Killers In The United States, Hannah E. Booth

Honors Thesis

Serial killing is a phenomenon that both fascinates and scares people. The United States has experienced several notorious serial killers that remain well-known, even years after their crimes. Serial killers are known for having many similar, but also many different traits. Ted Bundy, Dennis Rader, and Aileen Wuornos are some of America's deadliest serial killers, but each has backgrounds and traits that make them unique. This paper will provide an analysis of their psychopathic traits, and a model showing the significance of biological and environmental factors in their lives. Analyzing individual case studies for each killer will explain how their …

The Influence Of Social Media On Murder, Brandy Jones

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This research contains information on how much or if at all social media influences murder. Social media has such a big impact on the lives of many around the world, it is almost impossible to avoid. There is research on how social media effects brain processes and may even cause addiction. And there is research on why people commit murder, but there is little to no research on the role social media can play in some murders. Social media is almost like an alternate universe where people can pretend to be the people they want to be in real life, …

Parents Who Kill: Media Constructions Of Male And Female Filicide Cases, Mary Mccluskey

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Often, mothers who murder their children are portrayed as “bad mothers”, as “the news media creates monsters out of [those] who transgress what is considered appropriate maternal behavior” (Goc, 2009, p. 42). This is especially important, as the media has created portrayals of females as murderers which are different from portrayals of males who murder their children. Previous research has addressed the association of motherhood in female offenders, however, there is a lack of research that compares the portrayals of females and males who murder their children, formally known as filicide. Using a social constructionist lens, this research analyzes filicide …

Islamic Terrorism In The United States – The Association Of Religious Fundamentalism With Social Isolation & Paths Leading To Extreme Violence Through Processes Of Radicalization., Shay Shiran

Student Theses

This exploratory study focuses on identifying motivations for religious terrorism and Islamic terrorism in the United States in particular. Terrorism is a crime of extreme violence with the end purpose of political influence. This crime is challenging to encounter for its multi-faced characteristics, the unusual motivations of its actors, and their semi-militant conduct. The hypothesis of this study asserts that religious terrorists are radicalized by passing from fundamental to extreme devout agendas, caused by isolation from the dominant society, and resulted in high potential to impose those agendas by extreme violence. Under the theoretical framework of subculture in criminology, this …

What Can State Talk Tell Us About Punitiveness? A Comparison Of Responses To Political Mass Shootings In The United States And Norway, Kimberlee G. Waggoner

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Highlighting the culturally contingent nature of state reactions to crime, the present work focuses on state talk issued by the U.S. and Norwegian governments in the aftermath of politically motivated mass shootings. The research is guided by the question: how does state talk—conditioned by economic, political, and cultural forces—facilitate or constrain punitive responses to political mass shootings? Here, the focus is on the January 8th 2011 shooting of U.S. representative Gabrielle Giffords and her constituents and the July 22nd 2011 bombing of a government building and shooting of a youth political camp in Norway. These two cases illustrate how state …

Law Enforcement As A Form Of Development: Community Policing In The United States, Michael Reynolds

MA IDS Thesis Projects

The evolution of crime throughout time has required a development of alternative policing methodologies in the United States. One result of this is community policing, where problem solving became foundational to solving crime, transitioning from reactionary to prevention-based policing tactics. However, serious issues with community policing persist. This paper considers the role of police officers as development actors, introducing a foundational philosophy of development and formulating new principles and suggestions for modern police tactics.

A Historical Comparative Analysis Of Executions In The United States From 1608 To 2009, Emily Jean Abili

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The death penalty has been a contested issue throughout American history. The United States has been executing offenders since Jamestown became a colony in 1608 (Allen & Clubb, 2008). Since that time, many issues have been raised about the death penalty including whether or not it is moral, discriminatory, or a deterrent.

This study examines the history of executions, including lynchings, in the United States from 1608 to 2009 using a variety of sociological theories on law and society. Some of the research questions that guide this project are:

* What is the nature of change in the relative prevalence …

Reefer Madness To Marijuana And Legalization: Media Exposure And American Attitudes Towards Marijuana (1975-2010), Richard James Stringer

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

American attitudes toward marijuana have varied greatly from the time it was criminalized in the 1930's until 2010, and public opinion favoring the legalization of marijuana has steadily risen since 1990. Since the media is purported to have had an impact on the legislation rather than objective risk factors, it is possible that the marijuana epidemic could be the result of a socially constructed moral panic. As such, this study utilized General Social Survey data to examine the relationship between media exposure and attitudes toward the legalization of marijuana from 1975 through 2010, 1975 through 1990, and 1991 through 2010. …

Extra-Legal Characteristics And Sentencing Disparity Among Federal Drug Offenders, Justin D. Galasso

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The development of the federal sentencing guidelines was made as an attempt to provide a uniform standard of sentencing procedure for defendants convicted within the federal legal system. Unfortunately, such unvarying policy has over the years birthed a system of sentencing that lacks equality among like defendants. The Supreme Court, in 2005, ruled that the sentencing guidelines were no longer to be compulsory during sentencing procedures, but rather act as an ancillary tool. The present study examines multiple legal and extra-legal variables and their influence on two aspects of imprisonment probability for federal drug offenders for the years of 1999-2006: …

From The Lucky Land To The Beautiful Country: Illegal Immigration Of Fujianese To The United States, Miao Lin

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

It is puzzling why Fujianese are willing to pay seventy thousand dollars, which could entitle them to a comfortable life in China, to be smuggled to the United States. Despite the voluminous body of research, the life of Fujianese illegal immigrants has not been systematically explored. This study confirmed that people smuggling is a phenomenon that combines cultural, economic, and political factors. Furthermore, Fujianese who came to seek an American dream have lost something much more valuable than what they have gained, such as their youth and family connections.

In addressing the smuggling strategies, causes, and experiences of Fujianese immigrants, …

Crossing The Line: Juvenile Transfer And Prison Violence, Jessica M. Huffman

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The juvenile court has long held caring and rehabilitation as it's objective for those persons who commit crimes while under age 18. However, arguably, that goal has been compromised with the use of juvenile transfers. Some research has been done on the use of transfers, but little has studied the effects of incarcerating juveniles with adult prisoners at the state level. This thesis examines the use of the juvenile transfer and the effects it has with respect to prison violence using states in the U.S. as the unit of analysis. It was hypothesized that prison violence would increase with an …

Television, Low Self-Control, And Deviance: Examining Basic Elements Of Gottfredson And Hirschi's General Theory Of Crime, Moises O. Mina Jr.

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

In a secondary analysis of data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), this study examines the basic concepts of Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory of crime. A set of variables measured at ages 6-9 was used to operationally define the concepts of self-control, parenting, and deviance. The study tests for empirical associations between self-control, deviance, and parenting. Also, television viewing is introduced as a possible cause of low self-control. Age, race, and gender are included as statistical controls. Models of self-control and deviance were developed to analyze these relationships. Results found qualified support for the existence of significant …

The Rape Victim's Response An Examination Of The Impact Of Situational Factors On Self-Protective Strategies Utilized By Sexual Assault Victims, Sharon K. Flax

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

This study explores the impact of several factors on a victims' responses during sexual assault and/or rape. Specifically, the relationship between self-protective measures taken and the victims age, race, social economic status and the victim-offender relationship were examined. The study utilized the 1995 rape subset of the 1992-1995 redesigned National Crime Victimization Survey. The sample consisted of 350 female rape and/or sexual assault victims. Findings suggest that the victim-offender relationship significantly effects victims' self-protective strategies. Victims of intimate-perpetrated assaults utilize more passive-verbal self-protective tactics. Implications for law enforcement efforts and future research are discussed.

Racial Differences In Rape Myth Acceptance Among College Women, Lekeshia M. Washington

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

This study investigates the racial differences in rape myth acceptance among college women. There has been little research on the topic of rape which examines solely the opinions of women. Black and white college women {N=623) completed a survey which measured the degree of acceptance or rejection of false beliefs about rape, rape victims, or rapists. These false beliefs were termed rape myths. The myths demean the victim and support stereotypes about rape. Past research suggests that blacks accept rape myths more than whites, and that victims accept rape myths more than nonvictims. This study's analyses suggest that women as …