Kristy Holtfreter

Assessing Recidivism Risk Across Female Pathways to Crime

Actuarial tools, such as the Level of Supervision Inventory—Revised (LSI‐R), are regularly used to classify offenders as “high,” “medium,” and “low” recidivism risks. Its supporters argue the theory upon which the LSI‐R rests (i.e., social learning theory) accounts for criminal behavior among men and women. In short, the LSI‐R is gender‐neutral. Feminist criminologists question the LSI‐R’s validity for female offender populations, especially women under community supervision. Guided by Daly’s (1992, 1994) pathways to crime framework, we use a sample of women under community supervision in Minnesota and Oregon to evaluate the LSI‐R’s performance across offender subgroups. The results show that the LSI‐R misclassifies a significant portion of socially and economically marginalized women with gendered offending contexts. Predictive accuracy was observed for women who did not follow gendered pathways into criminality, whose offending context was similar to males, and who occupied a relatively advantaged social location.

Gender and Risk Assessment: The Empirical Status of the LSI-R for Women

The developers of the Level of Service Inventory—Revised (LSI-R) argue that actuarial risk instruments, and the theoretical framework on which they are based, are “gender neutral” and apply to all offenders in a variety of correctional settings. Although there is empirical support for this perspective, recent research using more representative female offender samples suggests that the LSI-R “works” differently for various offender groups (e.g., women who follow “gendered” pathways to crime). The bulk of research used to support claims of gender neutrality is based on males. This research evaluates these claims by reviewing the empirical research on the LSI-R for female offenders published over a 20-year period (1986 — 2006). Based on the evidence, the authors identify directions for future research on gender and risk assessment and also discuss implications for correctional classification and treatment.

Risk Factors for Abusive Relationships A Study of Vietnamese American Immigrant Women

This study identifies risk factors for Vietnamese American womens abuse. Intensive interviews with 129 Vietnamese women immigrants in a northeastern metropolitan area provided data to examine risk factors for sexual, physical, and verbal abuse. Patriarchal gender arrangements in the family, arguments about fulfilling gender and family roles, and partners threat that divorce would compromise the participants immigration status put women at risk for each type of abuse. “Picture brides” were at heightened risk for sexual abuse. For women with limited resources, education and interventions within the ethnic immigrant community are critical to addressing wife abuse.

Fraud in US organisations: an examination of control mechanisms

Focuses on a type of white‐collar crime known as occupational fraud, which is estimated to amount to 6% of total revenues in the USA. Describes the control mechanisms that US organisations use to control and prevent this crime, including background checks, internal and external audits, and more recently, the use of anonymous reporting aimed to make employees turn in fraudulent co‐workers. Reviews the literature on this topic and describes the methodology used in the research, which examines the four types of control mechanism. Concludes that the study validates previous research in finding that the direct costs of occupational fraud are extensive, that there exist related societal effects which are however unmeasurable with any accuracy, that virtually no US organisational setting is immune from internal fraud, and that a variety of measures are needed to control this crime.

Fraud victimization and confidence in Florida's legal authorities

Purpose – This study seeks to identify personal characteristics that help to explain variation in consumer confidence in legal authorities ability to effectively deal with fraud victimization in the State of Florida.Design/methodology/approach – The study uses cross‐sectional survey data from 918 adults who participated in a telephone interview in 2004 and 2005. Univariate statistics are used to describe the distribution of the dependent variable (i.e. consumer confidence in legal authorities). Hypotheses are tested using bivariate and multivariate statistical techniques.Findings – Results show that less than one‐half of respondents (48.2 percent) report that they have either “a great deal” or “quite a bit” of confidence in the ability of legal authorities to respond to consumer fraud victimization. Bivariate correlations show that younger respondents, those with more formal education, recent fraud victims, and individuals inclined to take risks with their financial assets report lower levels of confiden...

Gauging the effectiveness of US identity theft legislation

Purpose – To examine identity theft in the United States and to provide an overview and assessment of recent legislation designed to assist identity theft victims and punish offenders.Design/methodology/approach – Statistics on the prevalence of identity theft are included, as well as details from a fact‐based, fairly typical case of identify theft. An overview of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) and the Identity Theft Penalty Act (ITPEA) are provided, and the provisions of each act are analyzed.Findings – It will take time to determine to what extent the provisions in FACTA and ITPEA will prevent or reduce identity theft. No doubt, in the future, there will amendments to both acts.Research limitations/implications – Future empirical studies could inform all interested parties by examining the impact of the FACTA and ITPEA over a multi‐year time frame. Moreover, cross‐cultural comparisons focusing on the ways in which other nations address identity theft will also shed light on the is...

A Coordinated Community Response to Intimate Partner Violence on the College Campus

Abstract Recent statistics indicate that intimate partner violence is magnified on college campuses. In the university setting, victims of intimate partner violence may encounter numerous agencies (e.g., campus police, local courts, victim advocates) following reporting of victimization. The need for a coordinated community response to intimate partner violence of college students has been emphasized in recent years, yet little research has been conducted. This qualitative, exploratory study examines perceptions of 15 service providers in a recently implemented, campus-based, coordinated community response. Narrative data from semistructured interviews indicate that service providers are generally satisfied with the current response, but report a need for increased training and resources. Implications for future research, education, and public policy are discussed. The authors would like to thank Merry Morash and the anonymous reviewers of Victims & Offenders for their helpful comments on earlier versions of this manuscript.