About 1,200 criminal justice researchers as well as active and retired law-enforcement professionals from around the world are expected to attend the annual meeting of the international Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, to be held March 1-5 in Toronto. Presentations of the latest research in the field will be made, including research presented by the University of Cincinnati faculty and students.
Recognized at the conference will be UC researchers Bonnie Fisher, professor, and Francis Cullen, distinguished professor. Fisher and Cullen will receive the 2010 Outstanding Book Award for “Unsafe in the Ivory Tower: Sexual Victimization on College Campuses.” The work represents more than 15 years of research in the study of the sexual victimization of college women, including a national-level study of more than 4,000 women.
The pair also garnered the Justice Quarterly’s ACJS Donal MacNamara Award for the 2010 article “What Distinguishes Single Sexual Victims from Recurring Ones? The Role of Lifestyle-Routine Activities and First-Incident Characteristics.” The MacNamara Award for Outstanding Journal Publication, which Cullen also received last year, recognizes outstanding scholarship in one of ACJS’ publications (Justice Quarterly, Journal of Criminal Justice Education, and ACJS Today).
Not surprisingly given UC’s traditionally strong presence at the ACJS meeting, UC’s School of Criminal Justice holds a No. 1 ranking for research productivity and recognition in U.S. News & World Report as one of the top three doctoral programs in the nation.
Among the UC research to be presented at the 2011 annual meeting are
EFFECTIVE PRACTICES IN COMMUNITY SUPERVISION: EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF A TRAINING INITIATIVE FOR PROGRATION AND PAROLE
Building upon research in Canada and New Zealand, researchers at the University of Cincinnati have been testing and studying a new approach to working with offenders called Effective Practices in Community Supervision (EPICS). The purpose of the EPICS model is to teach probation and parole officers how to apply the principles of effective intervention (and core correctional practices specifically, including relationship skills) to community supervision practices. This presentation will present preliminary data from several study sites. Initial results indicate that trained officers are targeting criminogenic risk factors (factors that tend to produce crime, e.g., alcohol consumption) to a much higher degree than untrained officers, and are using the skills taught in the training.
UC Presenters: Paula Smith, University of Cincinnati
Edward Latessa, University of Cincinnati
Myrinda Schweitzer, University of Cincinnati
Co-author: Andrew Myer, Viterbo University
PEOPLE, PLACES AND OWNERS: FINDING THE LOCUS OF POLICE INTERVENTIONS TO PREVENT CRIME
UC researchers examined calls for police service from apartment complexes, rental units, extended-stay hotels/motels and shopping centers in several Ohio communities in order to identify geographic areas most in need of assistance and suggest programs to reduce call volume. For instance, in Middletown, Ohio, the researchers analyzed police calls for service to determine whether residents in Section 8 housing required a disproportionate amount of police resources. Findings indicated that while Section 8 housing in the community was more likely to require police service than residential properties without Section 8 tenants, Section 8 housing did not generate the highest volume of calls among rental units. The UC report recommended police educate and focus resource on those landlords owning the properties generating the highest volume of calls.
In another project, UC researchers examined whether traffic cameras would reduce crashes at traffic signals in South Euclid, Ohio. The conclusion was that red-light cameras are unlikely to reduce crashes in the community.
UC Presenters: James Frank, University of Cincinnati
John Eck, University of Cincinnati
Katie Gallagher, University of Cincinnati
Co-author: Troy Payne, University of Alaska
“POLICING” THE EFFECTIVENESS AND EFFICIENCY OF TECHNOLOGY: ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF RECONFIGURING THE POLICE CRUISER
On behalf of the Ohio State High Patrol, UC researchers surveyed police officers using 35 police vehicles newly equipped with technology that centralized control and command equipment and better organized the cockpit of the vehicle. This new technology, called TACNET, integrates stand-alone emergency vehicle electronics into a unified command and control system. The system features a centrally located touch screen, mobile computing platform, innovative control pod, head-up display, and voice activation.
The UC team assisted in the evaluation of the technology, comparing existing cockpit configuration with the new configurations in terms of office safety and efficiency. In addition, the team conducted a rough cost-effectiveness analysis. Findings indicate that troopers operating the newly equipped vehicles reported improved perceptions of equipment reliability, fewer visibility problems, feeling less likely to be involved in an accident as a result of using equipment, and feeling that it was less likely they would be injured by the equipment located in the cockpit in the event of an accident. On the other hand, technicians reported that the TACNET installation process was more expensive and labor-intensive than traditional equipment installations.
UC Presenters: James Frank, University of Cincinnati
Lawrence Travis, University of Cincinnati
Co-authors: Charles Klahm, St. Joseph’s College
Kenneth Novak, University of Missouri — Kansas City
