Graduate Research in Criminal Justice

Collaborative research efforts between graduate students and faculty frequently result in innovative dissertations, joint publications, sole-authored graduate student publications, and conference presentations.

Our students frequently present papers at the annual meetings of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, the American Society of Criminology, and the Western Pacific Association of Criminal Justice Educators. Students have also published their work in the American Journal of Police, Criminal Law Bulletin, Journal of Criminal Justice, Judicature, Justice Quarterly, and The Prison Journal.

Students also conduct original research that often becomes the basis for their dissertation. The following dissertations are fine examples of criminal justice research that students are conducting within the criminal justice concentration of the Ph.D. in political science:

• Collaboration, Commitment, and Conflict: Implementation of an Innovative Interagency Domestic Violence Program, by Lucy Hochstein, 2002.

• Building Bridges: Is the Architecture of Community Policing Flawed? A Policy Impact Analysis in 202 American Cities, by Ricky Gutierrez, 2002.

• Community Policing: An Analysis of Police Community Perceptions, by Arrick Jackson, 2001.

• Kids, Cops, and the Politics of School-Based Crime Prevention: An Assessment of the Spokane Police Department’s Community Safety Education Program, by David Mueller, 2001.

• Civil Lawsuits, Citizen Complaints, and Policy Innovations, by John Worrall, 1999.

• Racial Disparity, Patterned Offenses, and Practical Impacts: An Assessment of the Persistent Offender Law in the State of Washington, by Nancy Rodriguez, 1998.

• Lifestyle, Motivation, and Adult Criminality, by Cary Heck, 1998.

• Social Capital, Civic Engagement, Social Equity, and Community Oriented Policing: Underlying Factors Affecting the Implementation of COP in Medium-Sized Cities, by Mark Correia, 1998.

• Public Policy Analysis of Correctional Administration Systems and Management Practices, by Michael Reisig, 1996.

• The Causes of Drug Use and Smuggling in Saudi Arabia, by Fahad Al-Mennaa, 1995.

• Community Crime Prevention, Community Policing, and Public Housing: An Evaluation of a Multi-level, Collaborative Drug-Crime Elimination Program in Spokane, Washington, by Andrew Giacomazzi, 1995.

• Contemporary Organizational Change in Community-Orientated Policing: A Contingency Approach, by Jihong Zhao, 1994.

• Community Oriented Policing in the State of Washington: An Implementation Analysis and Impact Analysis, by Michael Caldero, 1993.

• Policy Implications for New Generation Jails, by Mary Stohr, 1990.

• Television News Reporting of Crime Analysis of Three Models of Newsmaking, by Lynette Lee-Sammons, 1989.

• Charles F. Stafford, Jr.: A Study in Judicial Behavior, by Francis Bernat, 1987.

• The New Generation Correctional Philosophy: An Implementation Analysis and Impact Evaluation, by Linda Zupan, 1987.