The Waxing and Waning of Criminological Citation Careers of Scholars and Works, 1986-2020

Abstract

This article presents detailed information on criminological citation careers of scholars and works. The most-cited scholars and their most-cited works in nine international and American criminology and criminal justice journals in 1986-90 and in 2016-20 are identified. Yearly citation counts are shown for scholars over 35 years (1986-2020) and for works over 30 years (1991-2020). The study focuses on peak years of citations, as well as attempting to identify ascending/descending half-peaks. The results show considerable year-to-year variation in citation counts for both scholars and works. When they were identified, descending half-peaks of both scholars and works tended to be within five years or less of the peak year. The time between the ascending half-peak and peak was much greater. The results also show that all of the scholars in this analysis who have died are still highly-cited, often many years after their deaths.