David Shichor

An analysis of citations in introductory criminology textbooks: A research note

Abstract Introductory textbooks have an important role in familiarizing people with the subject matter, scope, accumulated knowledge, and general problems of a professional discipline. Therefore, they perform a socializing function for a substantive area of study. A study was conducted to find out which social scientists are most cited in 20 recently published criminology textbooks. The study resulted in a list of 19 names of influential criminologists and some additional findings concerning the “criminological enterprise.”

Crime Patterns and Socioeconomic Development: A Cross-National Analysis:

This study explores the relationship between the rates and patterns of crime and various socioeconomic factors in a cross-national context. Using Interpol crime data and socioeconomic statistics of 44 countries, multivariate analyses were conducted for three separate time periods. The findings indicate that larceny and murder rates relate differently to socioeconomic variables, indicating that modernization does not have a uniform effect on the various offense patterns. Across time, however, some of the relationships and predictive powers of the various socioeconomic factors concerning crime may change.

Private Prisons, Criminological Research, and Conflict of Interest: A Case Study

Possible conflicts of interest appear to be increasing in social science, medical, and legal scholarship. This article uses a case study of an alleged conflict of interest in regard to the privatization of prisons to call attention to what may be a need for criminologists and their professional journals to try to deal in an even-handed manner with the possibility of such conflicts.

Community Restitution for Juveniles: An Approach and Preliminary Evaluation

Restitution to victims ofjuvenile offenders is based upon the principle of holding an individual responsiblefor his or her actions. Recently several juvenile restitution projects have been established as a result of disenchantment with traditional rehabilitation programs and the increasing interest in victims of crimes. This article reviews the major theoretical premises of this kind of program and concentrates on a description and preliminary evaluation of the Community Restitution Project in Orange County, California. The evaluation shows several promising features of this project in handling nonviolent juvenile offenders. Finally, several suggestions for increasing the effectiveness of the restitution program are presented.

Quick Fixes in Corrections: Reconsidering Private and Public For-Profit Facilities

This article focuses on some of the theoretical and practical issues involved with public proprietary correctional facilities as compared to private proprietary facilities as they are operated in California. Questions are raised about whose interests are served by public proprietary facilities and what some of the problems are. The California experience with contracting for public proprietary facilities is analyzed based on an audit done by the State Controllers Office that showed expenditures viewed as outside contract agreements. Six public proprietary facilities are in court with the California Department of Corrections to retain these funds. It appears that the process for contracting with public proprietary facilities in California was flawed. The fact that the experiment with public proprietary facilities in California had some problems may contain some lessons for the future operation of both public and private proprietary operations.

The relationship of criminal victimization, police per capita and population density in twenty-six cities

This study examines the relationship between indicators of environmental control and criminal victimization rates in twenty-six large American central cities. Using a typology of criminal victimization that classifies crimes as property crimes with contact, property crimes without contact, and nonproperty assaultive crimes, it is found that both the number of police per capita and population density are negatively related to property crimes without contact and nonproperty assaultive crimes. However, the number of police per capita (controlling for population density) is not related to property crimes with contact, while population density (controlling for number of police per capita) is positively related to these crimes. Possible explanations for these patterns of relationships are discussed.

Privatization and Flexibility: Legal and Practical Aspects of Interjurisdictional Transfer of Prisoners

One of the current issues in punishment and corrections is the privatization of confinement facilities (prisons and jails). Because private, for-profit correctional companies try to achieve maximum efficiency in filling beds to ensure profits, they are likely to use the transfer of prisoners from one jurisdiction to another more often than do public agencies. In many cases, this may occur without the agreement or the knowledge of government authorities, local officials, and citizens. This article reviews some of the legal and practical issues involved with transfer policies and looks into some of the recent cases of interjurisdictional transfers by private corrections companies and their implications for prisoners, their families, government authorities, monitors, and host communities.

Thinking about Terrorism and Its Victims

Abstract This article deals with the victims of and victimization by terrorism. Using criminological and victimological analysis it reviews the numerous definitions of terrorism that are relevant for studying the victims of terrorist attacks. It also explores the similarities and differences between the personal and institutional experiences of victims of mass terrorist acts and those of the victims of other crimes, especially hate crimes. The analysis indicates that while victims of mass terrorism experience many of the same physical and psychological effects as other crime victims do, they are viewed and treated differently by government agencies and the public. The article also explores the use of victimization claims as an explanatory concept for understanding perpetrators of mass terrorist acts.

Privatizing Correctional Institutions: An Organizational Perspective

The privatization of jails and prisons became a growth industry during the second half of the 1980s and the 1990s. Although the private sector has provided diverse services for adult correctional institutions for a long time during the 20th century, the operation and management of entire facilities is a relatively new phenomenon. This article analyzes, on a theoretical level, the organizational changes that occur when private corporations are contracted to operate adult correctional facilities. The major theoretical concepts reviewed are goal orientation, cui bono—who are the primary beneficiaries of the organization, the organization-set, and “steering versus rowing.” This article concludes with some suggestions that should be taken into consideration when correctional privatization decisions are being made.

A comparative exploration of prison discipline

The maintenance of a sufficient level of discipline in correctional institutions, without abandoning the due process principle, is an important organizational problem that warrants theoretical and empirical research. In this study, the formal disciplinary procedures of the Ramle prison in Israel were explored, described, and compared with those of the Rhode Island State Prison. Generally, it was found that the disciplinary process in Ramle was more flexible and relaxed than the similar process in Rhode Island. The possible advantages and disadvantages of the two systems are compared and reviewed.