Fear of Victimization Among Incarcerated Youths: Examining the Effects of Institutional “Neighborhood” Characteristics and Gang Membership

2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jodi Lane ◽  
Gaylene S. Armstrong ◽  
Kathleen A. Fox

This study examines whether neighborhood factors found to predict fear of crime among the general population can be adapted to explain inmate fear of victimization inside juvenile correctional institutions. We test (a) whether institutional physical disorder, resident trust, and formal social control can predict fear of victimization, and (b) whether the importance of these factors for fear of victimization varies based on preincarceration street gang status. Using data from a large national sample of incarcerated youths, findings indicate non-gang members are more afraid of institutional victimization than gang members, confirming findings about levels of fear between these groups on the street. “Neighborhood” (institutional) physical disorder and resident trust predicted fear for gang and non-gang youths, whereas formal social control was significant only among non-gang youths. We discuss policy implications and directions for future research.

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (12) ◽  
pp. 1936-1954 ◽  
Author(s):  
James D. Kelsay ◽  
Jordan Papp ◽  
Jennifer Wareham ◽  
Brad W. Smith

This study reexamines the collective security hypothesis of gun ownership using data collected from residents of the city of Detroit, Michigan. In addition, we seek to determine whether the effects of perceptions of police, fear of crime, and victimization on individual-level gun ownership are attenuated by neighborhood levels of informal social control. Our findings indicate that police satisfaction remains a robust predictor of gun ownership, in that those who are less satisfied with police are more likely to own a firearm for defensive purposes. Moreover, the effects of this variable remain unaffected by the inclusion of informal social control. These results confirm a number of previously identified correlates of gun ownership remain influential and suggest that improving perceptions of police among the public may lead to fewer firearms in circulation among the public.


2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (6) ◽  
pp. 844-864 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Hao ◽  
Jay L. Michaels ◽  
Shannon Elizabeth Bell

This study examines the ways in which social capital influences people’s environmental concern in China. Using data obtained from the 2010 Chinese General Social Survey, we measure social capital through social networks and trust. We find that the ways people think about and act toward others influence the ways they think about and act toward the environment. The structural equation modeling results suggest that one’s connections with others, including socializing with relatives and friends as well as general social networking, are significantly and positively related to various dimensions of environmental concern. Greater trust is positively related to one’s willingness to make sacrifices for the benefit of the environment but is also negatively related to perceived dangerousness of pollution. Our findings highlight the value of social capital in promoting environmental concern. We discuss these findings in the context of existing literature, and propose policy implications and suggest directions for future research.


1985 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 269-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Ladouceur ◽  
Mark Temple

The purpose of this article is to explore the relationship between substance use and sexual and violent crime, using data collected as part of the 1979 “Survey of Inmates in Correctional Institutions.” Specifically, the intent is to (1) assess the relationship between substance use and crime for rapists and compare this relationship with that for offenders whose crimes involve different levels of sex and violence; (2) examine the extent to which race, age, and social context modify this relationship; (3) compare substance use at the time of the offense with typical use patterns, in order to determine whether use is likely to be directly linked to the crimes in question; and (4) place the findings in a theoretical context in order to suggest directions for future research. The findings indicate that although there is a slight difference between offender types for drug use, no difference between offender types was found for alcohol use. In addition, these findings did not appear to be modified by race, age, or social context factors. Finally, it was found that use at the time of the offense does not differ markedly from typical use patterns.


2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 1272-1297 ◽  
Author(s):  
George E. Higgins ◽  
Nicole L. Piquero ◽  
Alex R. Piquero

The development of general strain theory (GST) has led to a renewed focus on the influence of negative life experiences on antisocial behavior. Although a number of studies have generated an impressive array of support for the theory, several avenues remain open for research. In this article, we examine how a specific noxious stimuli, peer rejection, relates to delinquency/crime, and the degree of shared relation among peer rejection and delinquency/crime. Using data from a national sample of 413 children and adolescents, analyses indicated two highly stable trajectories of peer rejection and three trajectories of delinquency/crime, that peer rejection and delinquency/crime were not strongly related in general, but a joint analysis of their relationship revealed that high peer rejection was related to high delinquency/crime among males but not among females. Implications and directions for future research are highlighted.


2012 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo Stewart ◽  
Felice Martinello

Using data from several introductory-level courses at one Canadian university, community college transfer students were compared to transfer students from other universities and to non-transfer students on a number of measures of academic success. The three groups did not differ significantly in terms of course withdrawal rates, and final course grades for college transfer students were not significantly different from those of non-transfer students. However, students who had transferred from other universities received higher final grades. Mid-course grades and gender comparisons are discussed, as are policy implications and suggestions for future research.  


Author(s):  
Seong-Sik Lee ◽  
Kyung-shick Choi ◽  
Sinyong Choi ◽  
Elizabeth Englander

This study constructed a structural model which consists of social demographic factors, experience of victimization, opportunity factors, and social context factors to explain the public’s fear of crime on social networking sites (SNS). The model is based on the risk interpretation model, which predicts that these factors influence users’ fear of crime victimization. Using data from 486 university students in South Korea, an empirically-tested model suggests that sex and age have direct and significant effects on fear of victimization, supporting the vulnerability hypothesis. Among opportunity factors, the level of personal information and the number of offending peers have significant effects on fear of victimization through the medium of the perceived victimization risk, although the effect of SNS usage time is not significant. In addition, it was revealed that experience of victimization has a direct effect on fear of victimization. Furthermore, findings indicate that bridging social network has a direct and indirect positive effect on fear of victimization, and collective efficacy has an indirect effect on fear of victimization. Results show that incidents in SNS have the strongest effect on fear of victimization among various factors in this model without being mediated by the perceived victimization risk. Overall, this study supports a structural model for the fear of victimization.


2021 ◽  
pp. 000486582199908
Author(s):  
Tarah Hodgkinson ◽  
Kate Lunney

Although fear of crime is well-researched in urban domains, the predictors of fear of crime in non-urban contexts are less established. Using a sample of 559 people, this study aims to address this gap by evaluating the role of individual and ecological-level predictors on fear of crime in a small Canadian municipality. Key findings of this study include support for the influence of social cohesion, informal social control and social and physical disorder on fear in a small municipality. However, no clear relationship is found between gender and fear of crime. Additionally, nuanced relationships between social predictors and fear emerge that may be uniquely explained by non-metropolitan context. The findings have implications for the use of urban-based criminological theories of fear and for the use of crime prevention and fear reduction strategies in non-metropolitan contexts.


2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 470-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly Welch ◽  
Leah Fikre Butler ◽  
Marc Gertz

Research shows that public preferences about justice system approaches to decreasing illegal behavior distinguish between adult and juvenile offending. We also know that fear of crime and perceived risk of victimization typically strengthen support for harsh punishments and reduce support for rehabilitation. What has yet to be demonstrated—and that we examine here—is whether there are youth-specific differences in the way that crime salience affects public support for punitive versus rehabilitative policies and to what extent confidence in the criminal and juvenile justice systems affects punishment orientations toward adults and juveniles. Essentially, we examine why some Americans support “child saving” yet condemn adults. This exploratory study’s findings indicate that while crime salience increases the likelihood that one will support harsh adult criminal measures, it is not associated with similar attitudes toward juvenile delinquents. Further, those for whom crime salience is lower have a greater probability of supporting rehabilitation for both juveniles and adults. Finally, results show that support for the rehabilitation of youth persists despite crime salience among those who are otherwise punitive toward adults. Justice ideology appears unaffected by confidence in the justice systems. Policy implications and recommendations for future research are offered.


2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele W. Covington ◽  
Lin Huff-Corzine ◽  
Jay Corzine

Although we hear more about violence committed by the police, violence against police officers is also a major problem in the United States. Using data collected from the Orlando, Florida Police Department files, this study examines situational variables, offender characteristics, and officer demographics that may correlate with violence directed at law enforcement officers. Logistic regression results indicate that battery against one or more police officers is significantly more likely when multiple officers are involved, when offenders are women, when offenders are larger than average as measured by body mass index (BMI), and when offenders are known to have recently consumed alcohol. We close with a discussion of policy implications and directions for future research.


Author(s):  
Maude Beaudry-Cyr ◽  
Wesley G. Jennings ◽  
Kristen M. Zgoba ◽  
Richard Tewksbury

Current sex offending legislation and public opinion present an image of sexual offenders as specialized predators who are likely to exhibit continued sexually deviant behavior over the life-course. Although sex offending continuity and post-release recidivism has been independently assessed in prior research, the potential link between sex offending continuity and post-release recidivism has yet to be investigated. Using data collected at two different time points from a sample of sex offenders who served a prison sentence for an adult sex offense, the present study examines the prevalence of sex offending continuity, and its potential linkages with subsequent sex and general recidivism as well as identifying risk factors related to these outcomes. The multivariate results indicate a low rate of sex offending continuity in general but suggest the presence of identifiable risk factors that predict sex offending continuity. Specifically, non-sexual juvenile offending is the most notable of the numerous risk factors found to be associated with those displaying sex offending continuity from adolescence into adulthood. Subsequent analyses also reveal a significant association between sex offending continuity and sexual recidivism but not general recidivism. Policy implications, study limitations, and directions for future research are also discussed.


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