Kevin E. Courtright

Assessing punitiveness among college students: A comparison of criminal justice majors with other majors∗

This paper examines attitudes toward punishment among a purposive sample of college students in the Northeast. The hypothesis that attitudes toward criminal sanctioning held by criminal justice majors are more punitive than those held by other majors was supported. Evidence of the effect of education as a tempering agent was found among grade levels. A multiple regression analysis revealed significant predictors of increased punitiveness among the entire sample. Possible reasons for differences in punitiveness among majors are offered and the practical and pedagogical implications of the findings are discussed.

Empathy among college students and criminal justice majors: Identifying predispositional traits and the role of education

This paper examines empathy among a purposive sample (N = 633) of college and university students in the northeastern United States. Mehrabian’s Balanced Emotional Empathy Scale (BEES) was used to measure empathy levels among criminal justice (CJ) and other majors. Descriptive and inferential statistics are used to compare scale and item means across gender, school size and type, grade level, age, and other variables. The authors also examine the relationship in the sample between empathy and attitudes toward punitiveness. Results indicate that male CJ majors possess the lowest levels of empathy, followed by males of other majors, female CJ majors and females majoring in other disciplines. Gender, major, and grade/class level were found to be important in predicting or influencing empathy. Possible explanations for these differences in empathy are offered and the pedagogical implications of the findings are discussed.

Testing the Rehabilitative Ideal among College Students

This study examines where future practitioners and policymakers (i.e., students majoring in criminal justice) fall on the punishment–rehabilitation continuum. A scale comprised of global measures of rehabilitation was administered to a purposive/convenience sample (N = 633) of college students at five colleges/universities in the northeastern USA. Descriptive and inferential statistics are used to compare scale and item means across gender, academic year, age, major, and other variables. Results indicate that support for the rehabilitation of offenders tends to be present across a number of demographic indicators. The policy and pedagogical implications of such attitudes are discussed.

Rehabilitation in the New Machine? Exploring Drug and Alcohol Use and Variables Related to Success among DUI Offenders Under Electronic Monitoring—Some Preliminary Outcome Results

When the “Western County” (Penn.) Probation Department implemented a house arrest with electronic monitoring (EM) program in the fall of 1992, offenders convicted under the commonwealth’s mandatory driving under the influence (DUI) act were divided into two groups: One group went to jail and the other group served their sentence under house arrest with EM. Using descriptive and inferential statistics, this article examines differences in drug and alcohol consumption between the two groups and variables related to success for those in the EM program. With regard to drug and alcohol consumption, although differences did exist, they were not significant. However, using cross-tabulation tables and chi-squares, it was determined that two variables—successful attendance at treatment and employment—were significantly related to success while on EM. Such findings indicate the importance of both variables in the selection and supervision process.

Prisons and Rural Pennsylvania Communities: Exploring the Health of the Relationship and the Possibility of Improvement

This article is part of a larger study that sought to measure community satisfaction with and perceptions about the economic impact of state correctional facilities located within four rural communities in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.The project culminated in the development of recommendations for policies that could benefit rural communities presently hosting, or considering hosting, a correctional institution. This article briefly discusses the relevant literature and the methodology used in the study and then presents and discusses policy recommendations in a rank ordering based on their relative importance. The goal of this research is to recommend policies that may improve the sometimes strained relationships between correctional institutions and their host communities.

Connecting Academic Criminal Justice to the Practitioner Perspective: The Efficacy of the Professional Interview

This paper details the use of the professional interview as an active learning assignment for students enrolled in criminal justice and social science classes. Numerous ways in which the professional interview enhances the advising and career selection process are identified. The authors present the results of a content analysis of the “summary and reflections” section of assignments from more than 100 professional interviews completed by students enrolled in several criminal justice classes. The results are used to illustrate students’ perceptions of the utility of the assignment. Lastly, the text includes a version of the interview instrument the authors have utilized with great success for a number of years.