The Influence of Demographic Factors on the Experience of House Arrest

A great deal of research has focused on how various groups perceive and experience incarceration. Research into this area is justified on the grounds that understanding will yield information about appropriate strategies to effectively and efficiently supervise, protect, and treat incarcerated offenders. Groups whose incarceration experiences have been considered by criminologists include female prisoners (Enos, 2001; Kruttschnitt, Gartner, & Miller, 2000; Loucks & Zamble, 2000), older prisoners (Edwards, 1998; Fry & Frese, 1992; King & Bass, 2000), and minority prisoners (Frazier, 1995; Wright, 1989). Researchers have also considered the influence that length of sentence has on the incarceration experience. Together, research suggests that different kinds of offenders will experience incarceration differently and length of sentence will have a significant influence on the offender’s adaptation (Curran, 2000; Casey & Bakken, 2001; Moyer, 1984). While a great deal of research has considered the role of demographic factors in the adaptation to incarceration, much less research has considered how various groups adapt and respond to certain alternative sanctions. The current study examines the way that different types of offenders respond to the experience of being placed on house arrest with electronic monitoring. Four questions guide this research: 1) Do male and female offenders perceive and respond to house arrest with electronic monitoring differently? 2) Do black and white offenders perceive and respond to house arrest with electronic monitoring differently? 3) Do older offenders perceive and respond to house arrest with electronic monitoring differently than younger offenders? And 4) How does length of sentence influence offenders’ perceptions about, and experiences with, house arrest with electronic monitoring? In the review of literature, research on the incarceration experiences of different offenders will be considered to set the framework for research on the way offenders experience house arrest with electronic monitoring. The results of this study will aid in understanding strategies that would be most useful in supervising and treating different types of monitored offenders

The Criminal Justice Response to Elder Abuse in Nursing Homes: A Routine Activities Perspective

Politicians and researchers have begun to pay more attention to elder abuse in recent times. Most of the research on elder abuse has focused on cases of abuse perpetrated by family members, treating the phenomenon as a social problem, but it is increasingly being conceptualized as a crime problem. The current study examines elder abuse in nursing homes from a criminological perspective. Using routine activities theory as a guide, particular attention is given to the criminal justice system\u27s response to abusive activities committed by nursing home employees. In all, 801 cases of abuse investigated by Medicaid Fraud Control Units are examined. Results suggest that past research has mischaracterized the motivated offender and that legislative policies fall short of providing capable guardianship. In addition, increases in vulnerability are related to abuse type. Implications are provided

Life in Hampton Roads Report: The Ninth Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From the Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the ninth annual Life in Hampton Roads telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. The project also investigated attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, local and state government, perceptions of police, health, community, education, and other issues. This year, the SSRC also partnered with the Virginia Beach Department of Public Health and they provided additional health-related questions for the survey. The SSRC completed interviews with 687 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones

Social Disorganization and the Ability and Willingness to Enact Control: A Preliminary Test

Dominant models in the social disorganization literature differentially focus on the ability of neighborhoods to enact social control and the willingness to do so. Despite the interest in both concepts, often no clear definition of either is provided, and there is little discussion of their relationship or how they interact to affect neighborhood crime rates. This paper begins to explore the relationship between ability and willingness to enact social control. The findings suggest that, for formal control, ability and willingness are closely related. Furthermore, at the aggregate level, concentrated disadvantage combined with perceived inability has a strong impact on neighborhood crime rates

Neighborhood Characteristics and Crime: A Test of Sampson and Groves\u27 Model of Social Disorganization

In 1989 Sampson and Groves proposed a model of social disorganization. In this model, neighborhoods with low socioeconomic status, high residential mobility, racial heterogeneity, and family disruption were predicted to have sparse local friendship networks\u27, low organizational participation, and unsupervised youth groups. These, in turn, were predicted to increase neighborhood crime rates. Although Sampson and Groves\u27 work represents the most complete model of social disorganization to date, it has only been tested twice and then on the same data set. Using data from 36 neighborhoods from 7 U.S. cities, this study examines extensions of Sampson and Groves\u27 model suggested by past research findings. The results indicate that Sampson and Groves\u27 model is modestly supported by the data. Social disorganization variables are more effective in transmitting the effects of neighborhood structural characteristics on assault than on robbery. Implications of the study and directions for future research are discussed

Teaching Parenting Skills in a Methadone Treatment Setting

Family factors significantly affect children’s risk of substance abuse, delinquency, and other problem behaviors (Arthur, Hawkins, Pollard, Catalano, & Baglioni, 2002). Children of substance abusers represent a particularly high-risk population. Prenatal exposure to addictive substances and the medical complications that may arise are important factors that, from conception, place this population at high risk of drug abuse and other problem behaviors (Griffith, Azuma, & Chasnoff, 1994). As children of substance abusers mature, their lives are characterized by exposure to continued drug and alcohol abuse by family members, recurrent or chronic illnesses, frequent moves, financial troubles, legal conflicts, family disorganization, and family conflict (Keller, Catalano, Haggerty, & Fleming, 2002; Kolar, Brown, Haertzen, & Michaelson, 1994). Furthermore, substance-abusing parents tend to have poorer family management practices than nonabusers (Kolar et al.). Substance-abusing parents in treatment are dealing not only with their addiction, the possibility of relapse, and struggles with employment and living arrangements, but also with their role as parents and the influence of their addiction on their children (Greif, 2005)

Justifications for the Probation Sanction Among Residents of Virginia--Cool or Un-Cool?

Perhaps as evidence of a growing cultural gap between our students and ourselves, one of the authors was recently amused when a student asked whether probation was a cool sanction. In this study, we begin an investigation into how cool the probation sanction is in the eyes of residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Specifically, we use data from a telephone survey of 840 registered voters to explore three questions. First, how often would they recommend the probation sanction in comparison to other sanctions? Second, how do they justify the sanction relative to justifications for other sanctions? Finally, are their justifications and sentencing recommendations consistent across crimes? We address these questions in this study to see whether the sanction is cool or uncool. In the review of literature, we discuss punishment justifications in general and probation as a punitive experience

Life in Hampton Roads Report: The Tenth Annual Life in Hampton Roads Survey

[From the Executive Summary] The Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Old Dominion University recently completed data collection for the tenth annual Life in Hampton Roads (LIHR) telephone survey. The purpose of the survey was to gain insight into residents’ perceptions of the quality of life in Hampton Roads. As in previous years, the project also investigated attitudes and perceptions of citizens regarding topics of local interest such as transportation and traffic, perceptions of police, health, community, education, work, experiences with flooding, and other issues. These are presented independently or as trending with previous years when appropriate. This year, the SSRC also partnered with the city of Chesapeake who provided additional questions for the survey. The SSRC completed interviews with 882 Hampton Roads residents via landline and cell phones

Effectiveness of Prevention Interventions with Youth at High Risk of Drug Abuse

A recent report describes three types of prevention programs: universal, selected, and indicated (Institute of Medicine 1994). Universal prevention approaches are those that serve the entire population who share a general risk to the disorder without regard to specific risk status. Selected prevention approaches serve those whose precursors of problem behaviors are elevated but who have not yet manifested the problem behavior to be prevented. Indicated prevention approaches serve those who have initiated the problem behavior to be prevented but have not yet developed a serious or chronic behavior problem and do not warrant at that time a clinical diagnosis of the disorder according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III-R or DSM-IV). The effects of universally applied prevention approaches for substance abuse and other problems are well documented in the literature (Hansen et al. 1990; Hawkins et al. 1992; Moskowitz 1989). Less attention has been given to the effects of prevention approaches with selected youth whose specific characteristics put them at higher risk. This chapter first examines several definitions of high-risk youth and chooses one based on youths’ exposure to consistently identified, longitudinal correlates or risk factors for substance abuse. This discussion is followed by a selective review of prevention program research studies chosen for their demonstrated effectiveness of program promise for reducing risk among high-risk populations