Alex Alvarez

Predicting the fear of assault at school and while going to and from school in an adolescent population

Recent research investigating the fear of crime has shown that when crime and behavior-specific measures of fear are utilized, the young are more likely than the elderly to be the most fearful. Research investigating the etiology of fear within adolescent populations, however, remains very limited. Using a sample of over 10,000 junior high and high school students from a supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, this paper examines the factors contributing to students’ fear of assault both at school and while going to and from school. Results indicate that recent victimization experiences, the presence of a violent subculture at the school (e.g., gang presence and attacks on teachers) and availability of drugs/alcohol were related to fear in both contexts. The predictability of fear from individual characteristics, however, was context specific. Contrary to findings from earlier research, it was found that young females were not more fearful than their male counterparts in all contexts. While they were more fearful of an attack while going to and from school, there were no differences in fear levels while at school between males and females after controlling for other environmental and experiential factors. Conclusions largely support the contention that fear is a rational calculation based on objective criteria. Moreover, results underscore the need for more specificity when operationalizing the context and content of fearfulness.

Adjusting to Genocide: The Techniques of Neutralization and the Holocaust

In recent years, as social scientists questioned the intellectual boundaries set by customary perceptions of criminality, their discourse expanded to incorporate more than purely legalistic definitions of crime. In addition to conventional street crimes, some scholars began examining both interpersonal and collective actions and behaviors that were once considered to be outside the scope of commonly accepted definitions of criminality. For example, criminologists now study crime categorized as occupational (Albanese 1987; Cressey 1953; Green 1990; Hollinger and Clark 1983; Horning 1979; Nettler 1974; Tracy and Fox 1989), environmental (Block and Bernard 1988; Brady 1987; Stone 1987; Tallmer 1987), political (Barak 1994; Block 1989; Block and Chambliss 1981; Chambliss 1993; Quinney 1970; Schwendinger and Schwendinger 1970; Tunnell 1993; Turk 1969), and corporate (Clinard and Yeager 1980; Clinard et al. 1979; Coleman 1994; Reiman 1979; Sutherland 1949), using methodology and terminology once reserved for predatory street crime. This trend can be traced to the pioneering work of Thorsten Sellin (1938) and Edwin Sutherland (1940, 1949), who argued for broader, more inclusive definitions of criminality and less conventional approaches to the study of crime.

American Indians and sentencing disparity: An Arizona test

Although a proliferation of research exists examining the extent to which African American criminal defendants receive more harsh sentences relative to Caucasians, comparatively little research has examined the issue of discrimination in relation to other minority groups. This article examines disparities in sentence length received between American Indian and Caucasian inmates incarcerated in Arizona state correctional facilities. Regression analyses were used to predict the sentences received by American Indian and Caucasian inmates convicted of six crimes (homicide, sexual assault, robbery, assault, burglary, and larceny). After prior felony record and other demographic variables were controlled in these crime-specific models, the crimes of robbery and burglary were the only crimes in which American Indians received longer sentences than Caucasians convicted of the same offense. Caucasian defendants received significantly longer sentences than American Indians for cases of homicide. A defendants prior felony record was the only variable that consistently increased the length of sentence received by defendants across all types of crime. These findings are discussed and interpreted using various theoretical arguments.

Trends and patterns of justifiable homicide: a comparative analysis

This paper reports the first national level analysis of police and citizen justifiable homicides for a twelve year period. Utilizing data from the Comparative Homicide File, trends and characteristics of police and citizen justifiable homicides are described and reviewed. Particular emphasis is given to comparing justifiable homicides to criminal homicides. The results establish that while similar to criminal homicide, police and citizen justifiable homicides differ significantly in terms of factors such as circumstance, relationship, weapons, and racial characteristics.

Policing and Human Rights in the Post‐Holocaust 21st Century

In recent years, violations of human rights law have increasingly been perceived in a new light as perpetrators of war crimes and genocide are more often held accountable for their crimes. Influenced by precedents set at the Nuremberg trials, the development of International Criminal Tribunals, and by the recent approval of the International Criminal Court, law enforcement officials are under increasing pressure to identify and arrest human rights violators. This is an important development since the success of these recent international initiatives depends upon the ability to effectively enforce these statutes. International human rights law will ultimately fail unless appropriate and effective means of apprehending violators are implemented. Given the fact that law enforcement agencies have often been the worst perpetrators of genocide and other violations, it is increasingly clear that police are crucial to the success or failure of many post‐Holocaust legal developments. This paper explores historical, legal, and ethical issues behind some of the important changes in the process and practice of human rights law and the role that law enforcement officers play in this changing legal landscape.

Genocide in the Context of War

The focus of this chapter is on exploring the connections between war and genocide. Since genocide tends to be perpetrated during wartime, I examine the conceptual and behavioral overlap between these two forms of collective violence, before defining and reviewing the concept of genocide. I then discuss the various ways in which war facilitates the perpetration of genocide because of the nature of military conflict and its impact on the communities and nations affected by the fighting, paying particular attention to the role of the state in perpetrating both war and genocide. I also examine the continuities between warfare and the creation of genocidal ideologies and policies, scapegoating, especially where groups defined as outsiders are concerned, and the targeting of civilians.

The many faces of violence: A theoretical and statistical comparison of homicides, suicides, and motor vehicle fatalities

Homicide as a form of lethal violence has occupied a dominant place in criminological research over several decades. Researchers have explained the causes of homicide from various theoretical frameworks. Two other forms of lethal violence, namely suicide and motor vehicle fatalities, have been largely ignored. This study explores the trends in three forms of violent deaths namely, homicide, suicide, and motor vehicle fatalities in Phoenix, Arizona for the period 1950–1988. These three forms of violence have been tested from two dominant theoretical perspectives, namely social disorganization and social conflict. The findings from our study suggest that the social conditions which influence homicide are the same as those that influence other forms of lethal violence.

Vocabularies of Legitimation: Understanding Normative Killings

This paper argues that while criminal forms of homicide have been the focus of extant research, little attention has been given to normative forms of killing. We argue that this omission is unfortunate and precludes a complete understanding of the contexts and consequences of killing. In this paper, we refer to three metaphors that are called into play when legitimizing certain forms of killing: Differential Life Value, Conservatism, and Justification. We call these “vocabularies of legitimation” and suggest that such normalization may serve to increase the prevalence of violence within society. Finally, we recommend some promising avenues for continuing research and possible directions for public policy.

Mexican‐American homicide in phoenix, 1980–1991: A comparative and descriptive analysis

Race and ethnicity has emerged as one of the most important variables in explaining differences in homicide perpetration and victimization patterns in the U.S. Most research on minorities and homicide has tended to focus exclusively on African‐Americans, while excluding other minority groups such as Native Americans, and Latinos. In this study we examine patterns of homicide among Mexican Americans in Phoenix from 1980 through June 1991. These patterns are compared to those displayed by non‐Latino African Americans, and non‐Latino whites in Phoenix for the same time period.