Active shooters: U.S. trends and perpetrators’ characteristics
2015 review of FBI statistics and a study in Justice Quarterly showing patterns and trends relating to violence in the United States and the typical characteristics of perpetrators.
Criminal Justice
Research roundups, tip sheets, articles and explainers related to the topic of criminal justice
Expert Commentary
Juvenile incarceration and its impact on high school graduation rates and adult jail time
2015 study in The Quarterly Journal of Economics showing how early incarceration hurts high school graduation rates and increases the chances of further contact with the criminal justice system.
Expert Commentary
The contested field of violent video games: Research roundup
2013 review of scholarly studies that examine possible positive and negative outcomes of violent video game play, including links to aggressive behavior.
Expert Commentary
False confessions, new data and law enforcement interrogations: Research findings
2011 study by Iowa State, Central Michigan University and the RAND Corporation in the Journal of Law and Human Behavior.
Expert Commentary
Human trafficking and the “new slavery”: Definitions, enforcement, understanding
2014 paper in the Annual Review of Law and Social Science that explores current debates and findings relating to the area of human trafficking.
Expert Commentary
The research on capital punishment: Recent scholarship and unresolved questions
2014 review of research on capital punishment, including studies that attempt to quantify rates of innocence and the potential deterrence effect on crime.
Expert Commentary
Protests, waves of collective action and policing in the United States: Key research ideas
In the wake of the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, we review research on the nature of social movements, “waves” of protests and activism cycles, as well as police response.
Expert Commentary
Analyzing race, crime and urban violence, after Ferguson: Research perspectives and data
2014 review of empirical data and recent academic studies on important issues related to the African-American community, including trends in crime, homicide and violence rates.
Expert Commentary
Zero-tolerance disciplinary policies: Influence of student, school and infraction characteristics on suspensions and expulsions
2014 study published in the American Educational Research Journal exploring the factors associated with racial disparities in school discipline.
Expert Commentary
How U.S. urban unrest in the 1960s can help make sense of Ferguson, Mo.: Research brief
2014 research on how lessons from past conflicts can help us better understand current events, by Ashley M. Howard, Loyola University New Orleans and the Scholars Strategy Network.
Expert Commentary