Showing papers in "Criminology in 1984"

Poverty, Inequality, and City Homicide Rates: Some Not So Unexpected Findings

Abstract: Messner's recent investigation of homicide and relative and absolute economic deprivation is replicated here, but cities rather than SMSA's and three years (1950, 1960, 1970) rather than one (1970) are considered. Because of tremendous intra-unit variation for SMSAs with respect to homicides and sociodemographic characteristics (an important variation that is masked when data are aggregated on a SMSA level), cities are a preferable unit of analysis in cross-sectional investigations of homicide. Where M e s m found a significant negative relationship between percentage of poverty (absolute deprivation) and homicides, I consistently find the opposite pattern as predicted. In both studies, however, there is only a slight and nonsignificant relationship between relative economic deprivation (income inequality) and homicides. Unlike Messner, however, I do not consider this finding surprising. At best, there is only a weak theoretical linkage between homicide and relative economic deprivation. Accordingly, the results of this investigation for both absolute and relative deprivation are neither “perplexing” nor do they warrant the “serious reconsideration of the linkages between poverty, inequality and the homicide rate” that Messner (1982: 112) calls for.

Victimization Rates, Exposure to Risk, and Fear of Crime

Abstract: Studies of fear of crime repeatedly point to an apparent paradox: fear of crime and risk of victimization are related inversely among demographic groups (i.e., age, race, and sex groups). However, data from surveys of Chicago residents show that fear of crime is related positively to victimization rates once they are adjusted for exposure to risk. When demographic variables are included with the adjusted rates as predictors of fear of crime, age and sex effects persist. Even so the present findings indicate that fear of crime should not be interpreted as an irrational or unjustified response and that fear can be reduced by lowering victimization rates.

The Organizational Context of Legal Control

Abstract: This article examines interorganizational variation in determinants of police arrest decisions. Drawing on Wilson, we identify four types of police agencies by cross-classifying levels of bureaucratization with professionalism. Evidence from the analysis indicates that factors influencing arrest decisions are conditional on the organizational contexts in which such decisions occur. In different types of police agencies, officers respond to similar situations differently. Hence, “global” decision-making models are we incomplete than incorrect. We argue that consideration of the contexts within which discretion is exercised is necessary for advancing our understanding of decision-making in justice system agencies.

Race, ethnicity, and determinate sentencing: A new dimension to an old controversy.

Abstract: A study of 4729 sentences handed out during the first year of determinate sentencing in California shows subtle differences in the sentencing of Whites, Blacks, and Chicanos. As expected, main effects of race/ethnicity are not found. However, the type of offense, mode of disposition, and the defendant's prior record do affect sentencing differently, even with determinate sentencing, depending on the defendant's race/ethnicity. The detrimental effect of a prior record for Chicanos is especially interesting as it can be invoked legally as a sentence enhancement. The findings reported here demonstrate that Chicanos constitute a separate group, distinct from both Blacks and Whites, and must be treated accordingly in criminological research. So doing clarifies many of the inconsistencies in prior sentencing research.

Income Inequality and Property Crime. A Cross-National Analysis of Relative Deprivation Theory

Abstract: Cultural issues that act as intervening variables in the inequality-crime relationship have been neglected in the literature on inequality and crime. The present article explores the interaction between inequality and variables thought to be associated with a perception that inequality is illegitimate. The central argument is that the strength of inequality-crime relationship is dependent on a contextual factor, a radical egalitarian culture promoting the view that inequality is illegitimate. Data on property crime from 62 nations are analyzed. The results generally indicate that neither inequality nor the interaction between inequality and egalitarian culture exerts independent effects on property crime.

Personal Control and Inmate Adjustment to Prison

Abstract: Although this concept has rarely been investigated systematically, the prison is an environment that severely limits inmates’personal control This article applies theoretical and empirical advances in the area of personal control to the issue of inmate adjustment to prison Personal control has three components: outcome control, choice, and predictability of future events Research findings suggesting adverse impacts of limited control are discussed in light of their implications for prisoner adjustment Several models of personal control, including the environmental/learned helplessness, individual difference/self-efficacy, and incongruency/reactance models, are applied to the process of prisoner adjustment Using these models, a conceptual framework for integrating past research in the sociology and social psychology of corrections is proposed, and directions for future research are discussed

Liberation/Emancipation, Economic Marginalization, or Less Chivalry

Abstract: The alleged criminogenic nature of female liberation/emancipation has been tested recently by numerous North American researchers. Not only did the results lead them to different conclusions, but they did not test simultaneously for the effects on female conviction rates of increasing economic marginalization or less chivalrous treatment by the public, police, or courts toward female suspects. Data relating to England and Wales for 1951-1980 are used to test these competing explanations for changes in female criminality. The results give little support to the emancipation/liberation causes female crime hypothesis, but do provide limited support for the marginalization thesis. However, changes in social labelling appear to have a significant impact on female conviction rates, suggesting that previous researches omitting this possibility were seriously deficient. The authors suggest further research on actual women's lives and behavioral responses as a means of testing the effects of liberation/emancipation and marginalization on female criminal behavior.

Social Class, Child Maltreatment, and Delinquent Behavior

Abstract: The relationship between social class and child maltreatment and between maltreatment and delinquency were examined, particular attention being paid to previous deficiencies in the operationalization of maltreatment and class. Maltreatment was operationalized with subscales for physical abuse, emotional abuse, and neglect, while social class was operationalized with multiple indicators. Survey data from 110 high school freshmen were analyzed and revealed the following: (a) a weak but consistent inverse correlation between social class and all forms of child maltreatment, (b) a stronger relationship between social class and maltreatment when lower-class membership was operationalized in a manner consistent with the concept of an underclass, (c) that emotional abuse and neglect were correlated positively with all forms of delinquent behavior examined, and (d) that physical abuse was not correlated appreciably and positively with any form of delinquency.

Determining Patrol Officer Job Satisfaction

Abstract: The central issue of this study involves determining the importance of various demographic and job specific attitudes in predicting job satisfaction among patrol officers. Findings contradict much of the previous literature that suggested a predictable association between specific factors and officer attitudes. Instead this study supports a Situational approach to predicting job satisfaction. In addition, the impact of affirmative actions was shown to be highly associated with job satisfaction under certain circumstances.

The Seriousness of Crime Cross‐Culturally:

Abstract: This study examines the perceptions of the seriousness of offenses: first, by examining perceptions of a wide range of offenses for respondents from two very divergent cultures, the United States and the Middle East, second, by assessing the perceived severity of some 17 sanctions for respondents from these two cultures and finally, by assessing the impact of religiosity on the perceived seriousness of Crime. In addition, both the magnitude estimation and category techniques for measuring the seriousness of crime are utilized and the results from using these two techniques are compared.

Universal Applicability of Probation Risk‐Assessment Instruments

Abstract: A probation risk-assessment instrument developed by the State of Wisconsin is receiving wide use throughout the nation and has been recognized by the National Institute of Corrections as part of a “model system.” However, this has been done without extensive validation on populations other than Wisconsin probationers and parolees. The validity of the instrument for a population of City of New York probationers is assessed in this study. It was found that many of the variables contained in the instrument did not predict risk for the sample. On this basis. the validation of risk instruments before they are fully adopted is recommended. In addition, based on an analysis of split halves of our sample, the general weakness of statistically derived models is noted.

Attitude and behavior change of correctional clientele: A three year follow-up.

Abstract: Fifty offenders incarcerated in a minimum security provincial institution participated in a variety of group programs with community volunteers. Inmates were randomly assigned to one of four treatment regimes or to a control group condition. The experiment subjects participated in community group discussions with either trained or untrained volunteers, and a concurrent activity, either a self-control program or a recreational group. A test battery was administered in a pre/post fashion and follow-up recidivism was monitored. Two-by-two factorial analyses of the treatment programs revealed a significant interaction between activities. Inmates who had participated in discussion groups with trained volunteers and in a self-control program showed the most improvement on the test battery variables. This treatment effect generalized to inmates’institutional behavior, as measured by staff ratings and disciplinary offences. However, program participation was not related to postrelease success. Nonetheless, correlations between attitude change during the period of incarceration and recidivism were found. Among offenders who increased in their identification with the delinquent subculture, those who also increased in self-esteem experienced less follow-up success than those who decreased in self-esteem. These results are discussed in terms of the complex relation between client characteristics, treatment, and other program services that must be considered in evaluating correctional programs.

Legal and Extralegal Barriers to Delinquency

Abstract: Recent research on deterrence has begun to couch discussions of legal sanctions in the context of broader perspectives that take account of other factors that may inhibit law violation. Such an approach can answer significant questions about the importance of legal sanctions relative to other variables. In this research, a three-variable inhibitory model suggested by Grasmick and Green (1980) was tested using panel data from a large sample of adolescents. Internalized normative constraint was found to be the strongest predictor of subsequent delinquency. However, perceptions of the risk of both formal and informal sanctions add significantly to the model's explanatory power. Interaction effects were noted that suggest sanction threats may have a compensatory effect where internal constraints are weak.

Self Reports of Violence

Abstract: Self-report data are used to compare the relative incidence of aggression and violence among ex-mental patients, ex-offenders, and the general population and to examine the effect of socio-demographic variables on the frequency of these behaviors. Frequency was measured by reported frequencies of aggressive behaviors during the preceding year, by whether respondents could recall serious disputes, and by the recency of the disputes they recalled. In support of studies that have relied on official arrest statistics, the evidence suggests that ex-offenders engage in violence with greater frequency than the other two groups and that they have a greater tendency to physically attack and injure their antagonists when involved in violent disputes. Ex-mental patients appear to use weapons more frequently than the general population, but they are no more likely to injure antagonists. In contrast to labeling theory, police were no more likely to become involved or to make an arrest in incidents involving ex-patients or ex-offenders.

Establishment of a Juvenile Police Record: The Influence of Individual and Peer Group Characteristics

Abstract: According to the symbolic interactionist perspective, the juveniles who are most likely to have a police record of arrest are those who conform to police preconceptions about delinquent types, who are perceived as a threat to others, and who are most visible to the police. Several individual and peer group characteristics can serve as cues that youths are delinquent or that they pose a threat and can increase visibility. The present study uses a survey approach to determine the relative association of these individual and peer group characteristics with the establishment of a police record. The analysis reveals that in addition to delinquent activities, fitting the common image of a delinquent and dangerous person–that is, being a male in a predominantly, male, delinquent peer group–increases a youth's chances of arrest. Moreover, committing a high proportion of offenses with a group of peers, which results in high visibility, also increases the chances of arrest.

Discrepancies Between Crime Reports and Crime Surveys

Abstract: The absence of strong zero-order associations between victimization and official crime rates for cities has been a puzzle for social scientists since the data for making such comparisons became available. Using the 26 large central cities for which data on both types of rates are available, we analyze the extent to which discrepancies between the rates can be accounted for by aspects of urban social structure that differ from city to city. After introducing such structural controls, we find a much closer correspondence between the two types of rates for motor vehicle theft, robbery, burglary, and forcible rape, but not for aggravated assault and larceny-theft. These results are explained by citing evidence that we have identified some critical “suppressor” variables for the former crimes (i.e., variables that are positively associated with one type of rate and negatively associated with the other). By contrast, the heterogeneous nature of the phenomena subsumed by the latter two crime categories may preclude identification of a similarly parsimonious list of suppressors. One implication of these conclusions is that cross-sectional analyses of intercity variation in official rates may produce results that are in reasonably close correspondence with what would be obtained with victimization rates for certain index crimes, provided that sufficient structural control variables are utilized.

The Fall from Grace

Abstract: The processing of white collar offenders by the criminal justice system has been a subject of much controversy in criminology and criminal justice studies. In particular, debate has centered on whether these offenders are more or less stigmatized by indictment, conviction, and sentencing than ordinary offenders. Utilizing a sample of white collar offenders, the effects of conviction and sentencing on the loss of occupational status by offenders are explored. The data indicate that loss of occupational status, as a nonlegal consequence of conviction, is not spread evenly through the offender population. Professionals and those employed in the public sector or in licensed occupations are much more likely to lose occupational status than private businessmen or those employed by private businesses.

Gender‐Based Differences

Abstract: One of the most pressing concerns of women's rights groups is the reform of sexist attitudes and practices within the criminal justice system One method of redressing the problem would be a major increase in the number of women in positions of power within the criminal justice system This study casts doubt on the effectiveness of this strategy to meliorate the sexist attitudes and practices Not only were the attitudes of female probation officers regarding sexual assault more benign than those of their male colleagues, but also sex offenders processed by female officers received significantly more lenient sentences

The Needs of the Judiciary and Misapplications of Social Research The Case of Female Guards in Men's Prisons

Abstract: Social scientists have a unique opportunity to generate empirical data to assist legal arguments in a court of law. Unfortunately, most researchers seldom take the initiative to research specific issues that may guide a legal question. Instead, they research issues that may interest them but have no real-world application. This study demonstrates this problem using the example of female guards in male prism. Several suggestions are made that can put the social sciences in a leadership role.

Prosecuting juveniles as adults: The quest for "objective" decisions

Abstract: VioLit summary: OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study by Osbun and Rode was to evaluate the effect of Minnesota's revised waiver statute. The intent of the statute was to limit judicial discretion by defining a class of juvenile offenders presumed on the basis of age, alleged offense, and record of prior felony to be unfit for treatment in the juvenile court. METHODOLOGY: A quasi-experimental design was employed to assess the statute. Demographic and case history data were obtained from juvenile court files in Hennepin, an urban county located near Minneapolis, Minnesota. According to the authors, Hennepin is the most populous county in the state, has the largest juvenile court caseload, and transfers more juveniles to adult court than any other county in Minnesota. Data were collected according to two categories: (1) cases in which the juvenile's age, alleged offense, and prior record were sufficient to satisfy the presumptive criteria of the statute and (2) cases where the waiver procedure was actually initiated by the prosecutor. Each case was followed from initial court petition through final disposition because, according to the authors, it was the judge who ultimately had the decision of whether or not to transfer the juvenile to adult court. Data on the date of birth, sex, race, date, type and outcome of all prior and present offenses as well as all previous dispositions received by the juvenile court were obtained by court records. Data were obtained from three six-month time periods: 1/1/79 to 6/30/79; 1/1/80 to 6/30/80; and 1/1/81 to 6/30/81. The last six-month period of data collection occurred after the implementation of the statute. Tables were constructed to examine the data, however, no statistical analyses were performed. FINDINGS/DISCUSSION: The authors reported that the number of waiver motions filed remained fairly constant over the 18-month period. However, the percentage of waivers granted increased during the first six months of 1991, the period immediately following the implementation of the statute. The authors stated that the increase in transfers granted could not be attributed primarily to the implementation of the statute because the percentage of waiver motions granted was the same for cases that did not satisfy the presumptive criteria as it was for cases that did. The authors also found that most juveniles transferred to adult court as well as those for whom waivers were requested did not belong to the class offenders who were presumed by law to be unfit for juvenile court. It was also found that about two-thirds of the juveniles transferred to adult court did not have records sufficient enough to warrant transfer. Additionally, the authors reported many juveniles who met the statutory requirements for transfer were not considered for transfer. Similarly, it was found that after the implementation of the statue, prosecutors had chosen to file waiver motions for only about half of the juveniles who met the statutory criteria. It was also reported that about 33% of the cases that had waiver requests filed failed to satisfy the objective, statutory criteria. The authors claimed that the above findings indicate that prosecutors and judges were not provided with clear-cut, objective, criteria for considering motions of waiver. The authors also reported that juveniles who satisfied the presumptive criteria for waiver, had less serious records than those who became involved in the waiver process. Less than half of those identified by the objective criteria had been charged with violent or multiple felonies. The authors also reported that cases that had been accepted for waiver were more serious than cases that were rejected. The authors concluded that objective criteria laid out by the statute failed to provide an adequate means for selecting juveniles for transfer to adult court. Similarly, the authors stated that the traditional discretionary process used by criminal justice agents for making waiver decisions may be more successful than the objective criteria. The authors noted that discretionary tactics may take into account a more complete profile of the juvenile than the statute allows. The authors concluded by stating that the objective selection formulas offer no simple solution to the complex problem of discretion in waiver decisions. (CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado) 1970s 1980s Juvenile Violence Juvenile Offender Legislation Juvenile Court Juvenile Justice System Criminal Justice System Judicial Transfer-Waiver Correctional Decision Making Juvenile In Adult Court Minnesota Offender Prosecution Justice System Evaluation 12-04

The Historical Development of Corporate Criminal Liability

Abstract: The application of criminal liability to corporations grew out of a minor common law doctrine that masters were criminally liable if their servants created a public nuisance by throwing something out of the house onto the street. The expansion of that doctrine to full corporate criminal liability was primarily the result of judicial interpretation of common law and existing statutory laws, rather than the result of any-deliberate legislative action Civil law countries, lacking the tradition of judicial interpretation, have never developed the concept of corporate criminality. Corporate criminal liability will probably continue to expand in common law countries, regardless of its merits.

Urban Environment, Genetics, and Crime

Abstract: Gene-environment interactions are important for the development of much human behavior. We examined the possibility that a genetic propensity to criminal behavior interacts with the type of environment in which an individual is raised. Using a cohort of adoptees, we found evidence for independent contributions of biological parent criminality (genetic influence) and urban environment rearing to prediction of adoptee criminality, but no evidence for a gene-environment interaction involving these factors.

Appearance and Delinquency

Abstract: This article examines the relationship between appearance and self-reported delinquency. Based on prior research, it is hypothesized that (1) unattractive individuals will be more delinquent, and (2) strain, labeling, and social control variables will mediate the relationship between appearance and delinquency Data from a national sample of adolescent boys support the first hypothesis. Only partial support is provided for the second hypothesis, with social control variables explaining from 9% to 31% of the association between appearance and delinquency. Theoretical and methodological reasons for the limited support of the second hypothesis are discussed.

Insulation from Labelling: Deviant Defenses in Treatment

Abstract: Deviants have been shown to vary in their reaction to labeling. Some accept societal rejection and proceed to self-label, while others are seemingly reconciled to their behavior. In this study, 72 heroin addicts in treatment were interviewed to determine their reaction to labeling. It was argued that their acceptance or rejection of labels would be affected by the defense mechanisms that they employed, the degree of formal/informal labelling that they experienced, and their background characteristics. The data were analyzed using multiple regression. Neutralization (externalization of blame) and politicization of the drug problem were found to be effective defenses in minimizing respondent self-rejection. There was also evidence that formal labelling was less severe in certain treatment environments. Those enrolled in the more medicalized treatment programs (methadone maintenance) were less inclined to self-rejection. Finally, black users were found to be better able to resist self-labelling than whites; however, no gender differences emerged.

Administration and Justice

Abstract: Although the existence of plea negotiation as an operative mode of disposition in most criminal court systems has been firmly established, its role in the administration of justice remains a topic of considerable debate. It has been claimed that plea negotiation subverts ideal principles of justice while attending to administrative needs for speedy case settlement. More recent research indicates that disposition by guilty plea is a complex process that incorporates system needs as well as principles of justice. Findings from an exploratory study of the felony disposition guilty plea is a complex process that incorporates system needs as well as principles of justice. Findings from an exploratory study of the felony disposition process in the Multnomah County court system in Portland, Oregon suggest that, under certain conditions, plea negotiation can effect a balance between competing but interdependent domains of action in the criminal disposition process.

Justice, Sanctioning, and the Justice Model

Abstract: The justice model has emerged as an alternative to the discredited rehabilitative ideal as a basis for sanctioning policy. Retributivism or just deserts is offered as the primary justification for the criminal sanction in this model, although sometimes in combination with incapacitation and deterrence as companion rationales for sanctioning. Desert is, additionally, an integral component of a sense of justice that is presented as an attribute of the justice model. Desert, both as a rationale for sanctions and as the basis for justice, is drawn from the philosophical models of Immanuel Kant and John Rawis. However, these models have some rather disturbing implications that have not been addressed by proponents of the justice model. A critical examination of them and their implications for criminology is therefore in order. (Abstract Adapted from Source: Criminology, 1984. Copyright © 1984 by the American Society of Criminology) Correctional Decision Making Criminal Justice System Offender Sentencing Offender Rehabilitation Offender Treatment Offender Punishment Justice System Model Adult Crime Adult Offender 12-04

Criminal Appeals Over the Last 100 Years

Abstract: Among the more popular “political” explanations of increased crime have been the charges that courts have been coddling criminals and handcuffing the police. These accusaticms are often coupled with the general perception that if criminal defendants appeal they will usually win. During the past 20 years there clearly has been an increase in criminal defendant due process rights that have been created largely by the courts. Notwithstanding these developments, are criminal defendants more likely to win than lose on appeal, and has the probability of winning been increasing? This article examines state courts of last resort from 1870 to 1970 to determine both the odds of winning and how they have changed. It also investigates whether these trends are different for the traditional South than for the more liberal states of the Northeast. The data indicate that, in fact, defendants today are far more likely to lose on appeal than they were 100 years ago. In addition, there appears to be little regional variation in criminal appellate outcomes over the last 100 years.

Police Response to Residential Burglaries

Abstract: Residential burglaries are important disruptions of the social order and may require special work on the part of the responding law enforcement officer. This study suggests that officers in some departments use crime scene processing as a form of remedial work or negative rite after especially serious breaches of the home as a private place and territory of the self. Controlling for the dollar value of the property loss, presence of suspect leads, and victim's race and insurance coverage, we found that officers in a southern sheriff's department were we likely to call in an evidence technician to dust for prints when victims lost objects typically regarded as markers of the self and when entry involved the use of force.

Scaling Delinquent Careers Over Time

Abstract: Guttman scales, especially those produced from data collected over time, and the properties of Guttman scales–unidimensionality and cumulativeness–have been underutilized in the description and analysis of certain constructs in sociology that are dynamic, and of certain processes that are reversible. The Guttman scale reported here was produced from delinquency self report data gathered on 581 students at two different points in time. Two purposes are served by the scale: first, it illuminates the construct delinquent career by presenting delinquent acts over time, along a unidimensional normative gradient marked by increasing severity; and second, it operationalizes change in a student's delinquent commitment as change in that student's scale type (or scale location).