Criminal Justice Majors Research Articles

A Replication of the Specter of Authoritarianism among Criminal Justice Majors: Does Race Matter?

Authoritarian personality types possess characteristics that are especially troubling if found among criminal justice (CJ) professionals. Recent research found significantly higher Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) scores in male college students majoring in CJ than in male nonmajors as well as significantly higher scores among lower division students than their upper division counterparts. However, the results of that study were limited because the sample was predominantly Caucasian. Given the growth in African-American CJ professionals and the special salience of race, it is important to examine whether the findings can be generalized to African-Americans. In order to explore that issue the current study replicates that research with a largely African-American sample drawn from a historically black college/university (HBCU). Results indicate that, unlike the findings in the original study, CJ majors at the HBCU did not have statistically higher RWA scores. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Perceptions of Science and Technology: A Comparison of Criminal Justice and Traditional Science and Technology Majors

Due to the increased demands for science and technology (S&T) in criminal justice (CJ) occupational preparation and in response to the growing interest of students in forensics, this study explores the attitudes of CJ majors towards S&T. Despite the acknowledgment that S&T skills are helpful in gaining employment, CJ majors reported less favorable attitudes than S&T majors, reporting: less interest in gaining S&T knowledge, fewer social benefits of S&T, and greater concerns that S&T are dangerous to society than traditional forensic science majors. While these findings raise some fundamental questions about the suitability of increased representation of S&T courses within CJ curriculum, authors argue that CJ curricular goals must continue to evolve to foster innovative students who are academically prepared to meet the twenty-first century challenges of their future careers.

Teaching restorative justice to education and criminal justice majors

In academia, departments in Education and Sociology/Criminal Justice are in different colleges, but professionals in these fields frequently interact, such as probation officers working in schools and teachers working in prisons. This paper describes a course that addressed a commonality of the two by focusing on Restorative Justice. The content of the course was multi-disciplinary and co-taught by two professors from these different disciplines, and students were from a wide range of majors. Not only did the course content focus on Restorative Justice, this perspective guided how the course was taught. All classes were conducted within a Circle, students participated in the creation of the syllabus, students contracted for grades, and students organized many of the discussions. Emphasis was on critical analysis of Restorative Justice practices and theories. Quantitative and qualitative evaluations were provided as well as reflections by the teachers.

Differences Across Majors in the Desire to Obtain a License to Carry a Concealed Handgun on Campus: Implications for Criminal Justice Education

The current study examines whether students' course of study is related to their desire to carry a concealed handgun on campus. This analysis is motivated by a growing number of studies that have explored differences between criminal justice (CJ) and other majors in the areas of personality, attitudes, values, and career expectations, and also by discussions of the issue of concealed handguns on campuses following recent shootings on college campuses. Using data from over 3,100 students who completed an online survey instrument, results revealed that CJ majors were in fact more interested in carrying a legally concealed handgun on campus, if it were allowed by university policies. These results held even when controlling for other significant predictors of the desire to carry a concealed handgun. Implications for CJ education and the wider debate about concealed weapons on university campuses are discussed.

Curriculum Implications of Anti-Gay Attitudes Among Undergraduate Criminal Justice Majors

To examine attitudes towards gays and lesbians in an undergraduate criminal justice sample and to test previous research suggesting that law enforcement students hold higher levels of homophobia, we surveyed 453 undergraduates. Results indicated higher levels of anti-gay attitudes in criminal justice majors compared to a small sample of non-criminal justice majors and similar levels of anti-gay attitudes between law enforcement and other criminal justice students. Gender, race, religion, gay/lesbian friends, patriarchal attitudes, and completing a social science minor outside of criminal justice were found to be significant predictors of attitudes toward gays and lesbians; while the number of courses in which homosexuality issues were included in discussion was not. These findings are discussed and we offer suggestions for criminal justice curriculum that may assist our students in maintaining and upholding a fair and just criminal justice system.

Mindfulness as a Potential Means of Attenuating Anger and Aggression for Prospective Criminal Justice Professionals

This study is the first to examine the potential role of mindfulness for attenuating anger and aggression in prospective criminal justice professionals. The Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, Aggression Questionnaire, Hostile Attribution Bias Scale, and Thought Recognition Inventory were administered to 272 undergraduate criminal justice majors. The results of a multivariate analysis of variance model indicated that dispositional mindfulness related negatively with self-reported aggression and hostile attribution bias and positively with thought recognition. A possible relationship between mindfulness and thought recognition may operate to influence other mechanisms to heighten mental health, as well as reduce anger and aggression. The potential benefits of mindfulness and thought recognition training for criminal justice professionals and prospective criminal justice professionals are discussed.

Identifying Factors that Influence the Successful Transition of Criminal Justice Transfer Students

Higher educational institutions place a priority on the retention and timely graduation of students. Previous literature has identified transfer students to have unique concerns and that these concerns vary by major. While previous retention research has reported factors that influence students’ decision to remain in college, many of these studies treated transfer status as a homogenous group. The university in this study enrolls a high percentage of transfer students, and a large percentage of these transfers students enroll in Criminal Justice classes and become Criminal Justice majors. To determine if there are unique risk factors among Criminal Justice transfer students, this study uses multiple measures of transfer status to identify factors that might impact a students’ (1) university involvement, (2) GPA, (3) satisfaction with and sense of belonging to their university and (4) thereby influence their decision to remain in school. The proposition that transfer students as compared to native (nontransfer) students differ on how they face university challenges was also examined. While several variables were found to be important to students’ adjustment to the University, transfer status does not appear to be significant risk factor. Implications of the results are discussed.

Drinking and drug use by college students: Comparing criminal justice majors and non-majors

The current research examined drinking and drug use among college students. Using a self-report survey of students from a midwestern university, the frequency of alcohol use, binge drinking, and drug use were explored. Particular attention was paid to drinking behaviors and drug use among Criminal Justice (CJ) students compared to students from other majors. Differences were found between CJ and non-CJ students especially in terms of drinking behavior; fewer differences were found between majors in terms of drug use. Issues of moral authority were examined as well as issues of employability. Implications for CJ students, faculty and advisors are discussed.

The death penalty attitudes of criminal justice students: are they different from other students?

Much research has explored why people support or oppose capital punishment. There has been little research on the death penalty views of criminal justice students and whether they differ from other students. It is important to know and understand the views of criminal justice majors. Based upon survey data from students at a public Midwestern university, the death penalty views of criminal justice majors and non‐criminal justice majors were examined along with why these two groups of students support or oppose the death penalty. Criminal justice students were more likely to feel that the death penalty deterred others and were more supportive of retributive reasons for capital punishment. Non‐criminal justice students were likely to agree with mercy/ethic of care issues and that the death penalty causes violence in society (i.e., the brutalization effect). In multi‐variate analysis, both deterrence and retributive reasons were the major reasons for supporting the death penalty and mercy/ethic of care and the brutalization effect were the major reasons to oppose capital punishment.

The Specter of Authoritarianism Among Criminal Justice Majors

Authoritarianism has been an influential concept in social science research. Furthermore, researchers have long been concerned about the potential dangers of authoritarianism within the criminal justice system. The current study uses Altemeyer’s RWA Scale to measure and compare levels of authoritarianism between criminal justice majors and non‐criminal justice majors in a sample of undergraduate students. Results indicate that criminal justice majors, males, and lower‐division students have higher mean RWA scores than non‐criminal justice majors, females, and upper‐division students. However, it is male criminal justice majors who demonstrate the highest levels of authoritarianism. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Causes of Wrongful Conviction: Looking at Student Knowledge

The current study investigates the impact of a criminal justice education on student knowledge about wrongful conviction. Past research has found fallibility of hard evidence (e.g., eyewitness misidentification), police and lawyer behaviors (e.g., tunnel vision), and social group discrimination to be underlying causes of wrongful conviction. We developed a survey to investigate student knowledge of these underlying causes, comparing participants in different years and programs of study. The findings suggest that criminal justice majors were at times more aware of the underlying causes of wrongful conviction than noncriminal justice majors, specifically in regards to the fallibility of hard evidence and social group discrimination. Criminal justice majors were not more knowledgeable in the areas of police and lawyer behavior. The implications of these findings are discussed in terms of the scope of criminal justice education and future careers in criminal justice.

A Preliminary Study of the Factors that Influence College Student Perceptions of the Nonmedical Use of Prescription Drugs: Criminal Justice versus Noncriminal Justice Students

There are continuing efforts to include student perception research in the field of criminal justice and criminology; few studies have addressed the nonmedical use of prescription drugs. Using data from 389 students enrolled at a Southeastern university, this study compares the perceptions of the nonmedical use of prescription drugs between criminal justice and noncriminal justice majors. The findings from this study indicate that no specific measure or factor consistently influences college student perceptions. However, when examining the role of self‐control, we found that for two drugs (opiates and stimulants), low self‐control had an important influence on the perceptions of nonmajors.

Psychopathic Traits in Nursing and Criminal Justice Majors: A Pilot Study

Prior findings suggest presence of psychopathic personality traits may be prevalent outside of the criminal sphere, such as in the business world. It is possible that particular work environments are attractive to individuals with higher psychopathic personality traits. To test this hypothesis, the current study investigated whether psychopathic personality scores could predict students' choices between two university majors, criminal justice or nursing (N= 174; 53 men, 121 women). Nursing education espouses nurturance and care, while criminal justice education teaches students informal and formal social control. Given these two educational mandates, it was predicted that students who scored higher on a scale of psychopathy would tend to enter criminal justice rather than nursing. Using logistic regression, results showed students with higher overall scores on the Psychopathic Personality Inventory, specifically higher scores on the subscale Machiavellian Egocentricity, were more likely to have chosen to major in criminal justice than nursing. Effects were generally weak but significant, accounting for between 5% to 25% of the variance in choice of major. Furthermore, this finding was not due to sex differences.

Academic Achievement and Statistical Knowledge: A Comparison of Criminal Justice and Noncriminal Justice Majors

This study examines the impact of college major (criminal justice versus noncriminal justice) on academic achievement as measured by several different dimensions of statistical knowledge. Students enrolled in two consecutive summer introductory statistics courses were used as the sample for this study. Analyses revealed that academic performance of criminal justice majors was less than that exhibited by noncriminal justice majors. Specifically, noncriminal justice majors scored higher on conceptual and computational knowledge and were more likely to earn an A/B grade than were criminal justice majors. Several methods for improving statistical knowledge for criminal justice majors are provided.

Goals, Expectations, and Satisfaction of Criminal Justice Majors: Implications for Faculty, Students, and Programs*

Students majoring in criminal justice present an “embarrassment of riches” for academic programs, so little attention has been given to these students and their perspectives on criminal justice programs. However, the assessment movement in higher education and the ACJS encourage self‐examination and program improvement. Further, student satisfaction has been recognized as an important element in the discussion of school and program quality and effectiveness. The present paper presents data from an outcome survey of graduating seniors from a Midwestern public university, with a focus on the reasons why students chose the major, career plans upon graduation, and program satisfaction. The paper explores possible predictors of these variables and discusses the implications of these results for criminal justice faculty, students, and programs. *This paper is a revision of one presented at the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences annual meeting, March 9–13, 2004, Las Vegas, Nevada. The author wishes to thank the reviewers for their helpful comments.

“Ain't no faggot gonna rob me!”: Anti‐gay attitudes of criminal justice undergraduate majors*

This study examines the attitudes of undergraduate criminal justice majors towards gays and lesbians. A sample of 1055 undergraduate students including both criminal justice majors and non‐majors were surveyed at four universities. The analysis indicates that criminal justice undergraduate students are unique in the degree to which they hold negative attitudes towards gays and lesbians

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.

Job desirability among criminal justice majors: Exploring relationships between personal characteristics and occupational attractiveness*

This paper examines the attractiveness of selected criminal justice (CJ)-related occupations among a purposive/convenience sample of students in the northeastern United States (N = 633). In a self-administered questionnaire, students rated the overall attractiveness of ten CJ-related occupations. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to compare means across gender, major, year in college (grade level), punitiveness levels, and other variables. Major, grade level, gender, attitudes of punitiveness, and ideology were associated with occupational attractiveness among the sample, particularly among law enforcement-related occupations. CJ majors were found to view law enforcement-related occupations as highly attractive and more attractive than a variety of corrections-related occupations. Students who rated law enforcement careers as attractive also reported higher levels of punitiveness. The pedagogical and advisement-related implications of the findings are discussed.

Reviewing criminal justice baccalaureate curricula: The importance of student input

While criminal justice undergraduate enrollments continue to burgeon, rarely do criminal justice departments conduct comprehensive surveys of their majors as part of the baccalaureate curriculum review process. This paper describes one such survey completed by 238 criminal justice majors at Wayne State University in Detroit. Major survey findings are presented along with their implications for student and faculty diversity, curriculum design, teaching and grading methods, student advising, and department administration.

Academic dishonesty among criminal justice majors: A research note

There is a limited, but growing body of literature on the academic integrity of criminal justice majors. This study adds to the research by surveying 850 students at a Midwestern university and comparing criminal justice majors to students majoring in other disciplines. The survey consisted of various academic dishonesty behaviors, rationales for being academically dishonest, and whether or not the behaviors were ethical. The results indicated that there were some differences between criminal justice and non-criminal justice majors; however, for most measures, the two groups of students were similar. Unfortunately, the overall level of cheating was high for both criminal justice and non-criminal justice students.