Digital Commons Network^™

Person-Based Proactivity And Community Relations: Examining Police Perspectives In Troubled Times, Vaughn J. Crichlow, Ross Deuchar, Seth Wyatt Fallik

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"Deadly encounters between police and Black men have led to public outrage and increasing scrutiny of law enforcement. In response, some law enforcement leaders have called for more proactive strategies in high-crime areas. While many have criticized oppressive examples of proactivity, such as stopquestion- and-frisk, others have suggested that proactive approaches could be more effective if tailored to the needs of racial and ethnic minority residents. In this qualitative study, we explore these issues using data collected from interviews and participant observation with police officers at a Southern Police Department located near several low-income ethnic minority neighborhoods. The aim of …

Policing Internet Sex Trafficking, Johnny Nhan, Kendra N. Bowen

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"Few studies have examined Internet sex trafficking through the lens of law enforcement working these cases. The purpose of this research is to explore the dynamic nature of policing sex trafficking in the online environment. The qualitative data was drawn from interviews with police investigators and detectives who work sex trafficking cases in two urban cities in Texas. The results suggest that the nature of sex trafficking has significantly evolved since the advent of social media, including the strategies for recruitment of workers and clients, making enforcement easier with some aspects and much more difficult with others. Additionally, law enforcement …

The Inluence Of Traditional Police Culture On The Activities Of School Resource O��Cers, Benjamin W. Fisher, F. Chris Curran, Samantha Viano, John Skinner

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"School resource officers (SROs) have become increasingly prevalent in U.S. public schools, yet critics suggest that there is an inherent incompatibility between the cultures of police and education. However, research has not examined the extent to which some of the potentially incompatible elements of police culture exist among SROs. This study examines three elements of traditional police culture that are likely to be particularly incompatible with school settings— suspicion, danger anticipation, and unpredictability. Given SROs’ involvement in roles such as teaching and informal counseling that extend beyond the typical duties of police officers, it is unclear whether these elements of …

“I’Ve Never Been Straight Up Robbed Like That”: Resident Perceptions And Experiences Of Inner-City Police Raids, Marta-Marika Urbanik, Carolyn Greene

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"Empirical research has consistently demonstrated that residents of disadvantaged and racialized inner-city neighborhoods across North America are subjected to disproportionate and omnipresent policing. Consequently, relationships between law enforcement officials and marginalized community members are often strained. Whilst a robust body of literature has examined how citizens perceive “every day” policing practices such as “carding,” stop and search, etc., it remains unclear how citizens perceive more invasive policing encounters—such as police raids. Drawing upon 35 interviews with residents of Toronto’s inner-city, this paper explores how community members experience, make sense of, and talk about police raids. Our data uncover widespread perceptions …

Sometimes A Joke Is Not Just A Joke: Examining The Role Of Humor On Police Officers’ Workplace Experiences, Rachael Rief

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Masculinity is pervasive in the field of policing, present in both the culture and organizational structure. As women continue to represent a low number of all sworn law enforcement officers, research has begun considering how culture and structural conditions interact with gender to affect women’s experiences in policing. This research suggests that many informal and formal practices in police culture, including the use of gendered jokes or sexist humor, work to exclude women and highlight the importance of gendered aspects of the job. However, little research has explored the extent to which humor and joking behavior explicitly interacts with women’s …

Wait, There’S Torture In Zootopia? Examining The Prevalence Of Torture In Popular Movies, Casey Delehanty, Erin M. Kearns

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Roughly half of the U.S. public thinks that torture can be acceptable in counterterrorism. According to recent research, dramatic depictions of torture increase public support for the practice. Yet we do not know how frequently—and in what context—torture is depicted across popular media. What messages about the acceptability and effectiveness of torture do Americans receive when they watch popular films? To address this question, we coded each incident of torture in the twenty top-grossing films each year from 2008 to 2017 to analyze how torture is portrayed in terms of its frequency, efficacy, and social acceptability. Results show that the …

Review Of Fundamental To Know About The Future, Hannarae Lee

International Journal of Cybersecurity Intelligence & Cybercrime

What we consider fundamental elements can be easily overlooked or perceived as facts without the process of empirical testing. Especially in the field of cybercrime and cybersecurity, there are more speculations regarding the prevalence and the scope of harm carried out by wrongdoers than empirically tested studies. To fill the void, three articles included in the current issue addresses empirical findings of fundamental concerns and knowledge in the field of cybercrime and cybersecurity.

Illegal Gambling And Its Operation Via The Darknet And Bitcoin: An Application Of Routine Activity Theory, Sinyong Choi, Kyung-Shick Choi, Yesim Sungu-Eryilmaz, Hee-Kyung Park

International Journal of Cybersecurity Intelligence & Cybercrime

The Darknet and Bitcoins have been widely utilized by those who wish to anonymously perform illegal activities in cyberspace. Restricted in many countries, gambling websites utilize Bitcoin payments that allow users to freely engage in illegal gambling activities with the absence of a formal capable guardian. Despite the urgency and limited knowledge available to law enforcement regarding this issue, few empirical studies have focused on illegal gambling websites. The current study attempts to examine the characteristics and operations of online gambling websites on both the Darknet and Surface Web, which allow Bitcoin payments. The findings suggest that both websites on …

An Empirical Study To Determine The Role Of File-System In Modification Of Hash Value, Kumarshankar Raychaudhuri, M. George Christopher

International Journal of Cybersecurity Intelligence & Cybercrime

In digital forensics, maintaining the integrity of digital exhibits is an essential aspect of the entire investigation and examination process, which is established using the technique of hashing. Lack of knowledge, while handling digital exhibits, might lead to unintentional alteration of computed hash, rendering the exhibit unacceptable in the court of Law. The hash value of a physical drive does not solely depend upon the data files present in it but also its file-system. Therefore, any change to the file-system might result in the change of the disk hash, even when the data files within it remain untouched. In this …

A Reverse Digital Divide: Comparing Information Security Behaviors Of Generation Y And Generation Z Adults, Scott M. Debb, Daniel R. Schaffer, Darlene G. Colson

International Journal of Cybersecurity Intelligence & Cybercrime

How individuals conceptualize their accountability related to digital technology. There may also be age-based vulnerabilities resulting from personal perceptions about the importance of engaging in best-practices. However, age may not be as critical as experience when it comes to implementation of these behaviors. Using the Cybersecurity Behaviors subscale of the Online Security Behaviors and Beliefs Questionnaire (OSBBQ), this study compared the self-reported cybersecurity attitudes and behaviors across college-aged individuals from Generation Y and Generation Z. Data were derived from a convenience sample of predominantly African-American and Caucasian respondents (N=593) recruited from two public universities in Virginia, USA. Four of the …

Book Review: The Cyber Risk Handbook By Domenic Antonucci, Stanley Mierzwa

International Journal of Cybersecurity Intelligence & Cybercrime

No abstract provided.

The Crime Control Effects Of A Police Sub-Station Within A Business-Improvement District: A Quasi-Experimental Synthetic Control Evaluation, Eric L. Piza, Andrew P. Wheeler, Nathan T. Connealy, Shun Q. Feng

Publications and Research

Research Summary:

The current study analyzes the crime reduction effect of a police sub-station operating within a business improvement district in Newark, NJ. Synthetic control methods were used to create a control group that was statistically equivalent to the cumulative street units in the target area. Significant reductions of burglary and motor vehicle theft were observed in the target area as compared to a synthetic control area over the post-intervention period. Robbery and theft from auto, conversely, suffered from spatial displacement. Of the six police actions included in the process evaluation, quality-of-life summonses and directed patrols increased in the post-intervention …

Why Do Some Terrorist Attacks Receive More Media Attention Than Others?, Erin M. Kearns, Allison E. Betus, Anthony F. Lemieux

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Terrorist attacks often dominate news coverage as reporters seek to provide the public with information. Yet, not all incidents receive equal attention. Why do some terrorist attacks receive more media coverage than others? We argue that perpetrator religion is the largest predictor of news coverage, while target type, being arrested, and fatalities will also impact coverage. We examined news coverage from LexisNexis Academic and CNN.com for all terrorist attacks in the United States between 2006 and 2015 (N=136). Controlling for target type, fatalities, and being arrested, attacks by Muslim perpetrators received, on average, 357% more coverage than other attacks. Our …

Collective Healing: A Restorative Justice-Based Response To Sexual Abuse, Delene Bromirski

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

For much of the last 20 years, the United States has been at the center of the sexual abuse crisis within the Roman Catholic Church. Victim-survivors of clergy-perpetrated sexual abuse have long been waiting for the Church to acknowledge them and respond to their needs. This study sought to answer two important research questions: (1) whether restorative justice can be used to redress harms stemming from clergy-perpetrated sexual abuse and promote healing, and (2) whether there are common characteristics among victims who benefit from restorative events. The study employed a mixed-method research design consisting of both a quantitative and qualitative …

Investigations Of Fraud, Waste, Abuse, And Corruption In The Public Sector: A Survey Of Organizational And Software-Based Aids And Obstructions, Lawrence Kom

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Fraud, Waste, Abuse, and Corruption present significant challenges to the efficient use of public resources and stifle government service improvement by detracting from policy development and undercutting funding for important initiatives. The purpose of this study is to better understand the aids and impediments to investigations of these offenses and provide a generalizable definition for the mission of Inspectors General, the group tasked with monitoring and addressing these offenses. This study also sought to identify the material role of software in investigations of Fraud, Waste, Abuse, and Corruption. Through a purposive sampling, 18 Inspectors General from the federal, state, and …

Why Do Officers Support Community Policing? A Cross-Departmental And Cross-Temporal Comparison, Mary Shupard, Erin M. Kearns

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Community policing is often seen as a way to repair fractured relationships between law enforcement and the public. Despite its relationship-building promise and widespread department-level adoption, individual officers show varying levels of support for community policing which can harm policy implementation. Why are some officers more supportive of community policing than others? Prior research suggests that demographic factors such as the officer's gender, race, age, and education can explain this variance. Across these studies, however, there are several contradicting or non-replicating findings. Conflicting findings may result from differences by department or differences in methodology or temporal variance – but most …

Revisiting Rural Crime: The Contributions Of Labor Markets And Interdependency, Kristina J. Thompson

Dissertations

Although rural communities – which are home to nearly 20 percent of the U.S. – have experienced disruptive labor market restructuring, few studies examine how such events influence rural crime. Moreover, general methodological approaches to rural crime treat rural places as isolated and unaffected by the broader labor market conditions around them, despite a growing body of sociological literature which suggests that urban and rural communities have varying degrees of interdependence. Drawing from urban crime theories emphasizing the importance of place and systemic relations, this dissertation explores how shifting labor market conditions and extra-local labor market opportunities influenced crime in …

Acue Certificate In Effective College Instruction Reflections, Zachary A. Powell

Q2S Enhancing Pedagogy

Pursuant to the university’s mission to enhance pedagogy for the upcoming Q2S transition, I decided to enroll in the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE) program to pursue a Certificate in Effective Teaching Practices. This program was offered through the Teaching Resource Center and entailed 25 online modules of 50-75 hours of online coursework. The program requires participants to implement lessons from the modules in the classroom, reflect upon the successes and challenges of implementation, and outline plans for future refinement.

Participation in the course focused on five content areas: Designing an Effective Course and Class, Establishing a Productive …

Understanding Prisoner Reentry: Public Perceptions Of Reentry Barriers Among College Students, Theresa D. Lee

2020 Symposium Posters

The United States has experienced an enormous rise and fall in crime rates, while incarceration rates have continued to soar. One of the many pressing concerns about the era of mass incarceration, especially in times where decriminalization of drug offenses occurs, communities are faced with increases in returning inmates and resources needed for successful reentry. This study is focused on community perceptions of college students toward barriers faced regarding incarceration, prisoner reentry, and improving recidivism rates in communities. Qualitative data are collected from interviews and focus groups conducted in an Inland Northwest community, to shed light on the community's perception …

Post-Military Service Coping Behaviors Of Student Veterans, Benjamin Wilson

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this paper was to examine the relationship between post-military service stress reactions and subsequent coping behaviors among military veterans at Eastern Michigan University (EMU). The analytical approach was based on Agnew’s general strain theory, which contends that individuals turn to unhealthy or illegitimate coping mechanisms to deal with pain, whether that be physical or psychological. Data was gathered in the form of a survey of student veterans using both dichotomous and Likert-scale questions designed to assess both their level of post-service stress and coping mechanisms with emphasis on identifying post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) type conditions. PTSD assessment …

Ua12/8 Annual Campus Safety & Security Report, Wku Police

WKU Administration Documents

This report is designed to provide students, potential students, parents, facility and staff with crime statistics and information on university services and crime prevention programs.

The Broad Scope And Variation Of Monetary Sanctions: Evidence From Eight States, Sarah Shannon, Beth Huebner, Alexes Harris, Karin Martin, Mary Patillo, Becky Pettit, Bryan Sykes, Christopher Uggen

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Works

Monetary sanctions have long been a part of the U.S. criminal justice system but have received increasing attention from the public as well as legal scholars and social science research in recent years. This essay describes initial findings from the Multi-State Study of Monetary Sanctions, a multi-method study designed to build on the prior research on legal financial obligations (LFOs) by examining the multi-tiered systems of monetary sanctions operating within eight states representing key regions of the United States (California, Georgia, Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Texas and Washington). Our research explores the constantly changing legal environment and documents how …

Revenue Policing, Social Control, And Neoliberalism, Nathaniel Graulich

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

A variety of studies have examined the role of economic structures in policing. These inquiries offer insight into revenue-based law enforcement activities but are simultaneously limited by blind spots in theorization. Reviewing these studies, it is apparent the criminal justice system can and is used to gain revenue for a multitude of public and private organizations. Furthermore, it is clear this is not a new phenomenon in the United States. Nor is the disparate impact of criminal justice activity on segments of U.S. society such as poor or homeless citizens, minority populations including black and latinx populations, and LGBTQ+ communities. …

Judicial Elections, Public Opinion, And Their Impact On State Criminal Justice Policy, Travis N. Taylor

Theses and Dissertations--Political Science

This dissertation explores whether and how the re-election prospects faced by trial court judges in many American states influence criminal justice policy, specifically, state levels of incarceration, as well as the disparity in rates of incarceration for Whites and Blacks. Do states where trial court judges must worry about facing reelection tend to encourage judicial behavior that results in higher incarceration rates? And are levels of incarceration and racial disparities in the states influenced by the proportion of the state publics who want more punitive policies? These are clearly important questions because they speak directly to several normative and empirical …

An Elite Squad?: Intimate Partner Violence Myths In "Law & Order: Special Victim Unit", Katelyn Ahern

Capstone Showcase

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is a long-running fictional crime drama centering on “an elite squad” (NBCUniversal 2019) of detectives. While the show touts a progressive image, it has been previously found to victim-blame, stereotype, and contain rape myths (Brinson 1992; Rader and Rhineberger-Dunn 2010; Rader, Rhineerger-Dunn, and Vasquez 2016). For the present study, I examined how intimate partner violence (IPV) myths are represented in episodes of Law & Order: SVU. I conceptualized IPV myths for use in this study using Peter’s (2008) Domestic Violence Myth Scale. It was found that characters on SVU overwhelmingly support myths more often …

What Epidemic? Rural, Suburban, And Urban Community Members' Perceptions Of Opioid Use In The Current Epidemic, Carly A. Besler

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The opioid epidemic in the United States does not discriminate. With previous research showing the rise of the opioid epidemic and how it is impacting all communities, there is a lack of research addressing perceptions towards the opioid epidemic on a national level and in local communities. Thus, my proposed thesis asks, what are the perceptions rural, suburban, and urban community members have towards opioid use within their community? More specifically, does institutional anomie on the national level, and social disorganization on the community level, influence perceptions of opioid use. Administered through a survey, via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, I will …

Legal Complexities Of The Sex Trafficking Of Minors, Christie Mccormick

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Among human rights abuses in modern society, the trafficking of women and children for labor, prostitution, and other forms of sexual exploitation is one of the greatest. While a large amount of time and financial support has gone into efforts to suppress trafficking and shelter its victims, there has not been enough done to tackle this problem. Before reaching the age of 18, it is predicted that 80% of adolescents in the United States will have traded money for sex. Many adolescent girls who have been trafficked in the commercial sex industries are subject to serious criminal penalties for prostitution-related …

When Life Gives You Diversity... : A History Of Racial Diversity And Conflict In Four Philadelphia Neighborhoods, 1960 - 2015, Jeaneé C. Miller

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The U.S. population has changed significantly since the 1950s, becoming markedly more racially diverse. Still, a large portion of America’s neighborhoods remain racially segregated – even in large, racially diverse cities, such as Philadelphia (Logan & Stults, 2011). As a result, there is a well-established body of research that has shown that residential segregation consistently produces negative effects for neighborhoods (Massey & Denton, 1993). In response, many scholars and policymakers have suggested that the most promising response to inequality due to segregation is racial residential integration (Denton, 2010; Ellen, 2000; Galster, 1992; Roisman, 2008). However, social science research has produced …

Public Perceptions Of Crime Trends : Measurement, Perceived Causes, And Behavioral Consequences, Luzi Shi

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

In the U.S. the public is persistent in believing in worsening crime trends, despite the fact that the crime rate has been falling since the early 1990s. This dissertation is a comprehensive examination of the measurement, perceived causes, and behavioral consequences of crime trend perceptions. It is composed of three interrelated studies. The first step to understanding crime trend perceptions is to have accurate measurement. In the first study, I identify the limitations of existing measurement of crime trend perceptions and argue that it is important to measure perceptions of short-term and long-term crime trends separately. Using three samples, I …

What's Your Plea (Culture)? : Processes And Rationales Underlying And Shaping Plea Decision-Making : A "Courtnography" And Interviews With Defendants, Defense Attorneys, And Prosecutors, Reveka Vladimirovna Shteynberg

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The reality is that “criminal justice today is for the most part a system of pleas, not a system of trials,” as Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for the majority in Lafler v. Cooper (2012). Despite this heavy reliance on plea bargaining in the U.S. criminal justice system, the nature of plea bargain decisions remains elusive. Although there has been influential and important research in which defendants and court actors were interviewed about the plea decision process, this research was mostly conducted 40 to 50 years ago about a different court system than the one that exists today; a nation …