- Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology
West Virginia University
Morgantown, WV
U.S.A 26505
Walter DeKeseredy
West Virginia University, Sociology/Anthropology, Department Member
- Walter S. DeKeseredy is Anna Deane Carlson Endowed Chair of Social Sciences, Professor of Sociology, and Director of ... moreWalter S. DeKeseredy is Anna Deane Carlson Endowed Chair of Social Sciences, Professor of Sociology, and Director of the Research Center on Violence at West Virginia University. He is also a Fellow of the American Society of Criminology. DeKeseredy has has published 28 books and over 200 scientific journal articles and book chapters on violence against women and other social problems. In 2008, the Institute on Violence, Abuse and Trauma gave him the Linda Saltzman Memorial Intimate Partner Violence Researcher Award. He also jointly received the 2004 Distinguished Scholar Award from the American Society of Criminology's (ASC) Division on Women and Crime and the 2007 inaugural UOIT Research Excellence Award. In 1995, he received the Critical Criminologist of the Year Award from the ASC’s Division on Critical Criminology and Social Justice (DCCSJ), in 2008 the DCCSJ gave him the Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2014 the Academy of Criminal Justice's Critical Criminal Justice Section gave him the Critical Criminal Justice Scholar Award. In 2017, his co-authored book Abusive Endings was the recipient of the ASC" Division on Victimology's (DOV) Robert Jerin Book Award. In 2022, his book Woman Abuse in Rural Places received the DOV's Robert Jerin Book Award and he received the DCCSJ's Praxis Award.edit
The concept of critical criminology – that crime and the present-day processes of criminalization are rooted in the core structures of society – is of more relevance today than it has been at any other time. Written by an internationally... more
The concept of critical criminology – that crime and the present-day processes of criminalization are rooted in the core structures of society – is of more relevance today than it has been at any other time.
Written by an internationally renowned scholar, Contemporary Critical Criminology introduces the most up-to-date empirical, theoretical, and political contributions made by critical criminologists around the world. In its exploration of this material, the book also challenges the erroneous but widely held notion that the critical criminological project is restricted to mechanically applying theories to substantive topics, or to simply calling for radical political, economic, cultural, and social transformations. Now fully updated and expanded in a new edition, this book offers further coverage of new directions in critical criminology, covering topics such as:
Green criminology
Indigenous criminology
Intersectionality
Narrative criminology
Rural critical criminology
Queer criminology
Zemiology
Critical research methods
Contemporary critical criminological policies
Written in a clear and direct style, this book is an essential source of reference for both undergraduate and postgraduate students of criminology, deviance and social control, criminological theory, social policy, research methodology, and criminal justice.
Written by an internationally renowned scholar, Contemporary Critical Criminology introduces the most up-to-date empirical, theoretical, and political contributions made by critical criminologists around the world. In its exploration of this material, the book also challenges the erroneous but widely held notion that the critical criminological project is restricted to mechanically applying theories to substantive topics, or to simply calling for radical political, economic, cultural, and social transformations. Now fully updated and expanded in a new edition, this book offers further coverage of new directions in critical criminology, covering topics such as:
Green criminology
Indigenous criminology
Intersectionality
Narrative criminology
Rural critical criminology
Queer criminology
Zemiology
Critical research methods
Contemporary critical criminological policies
Written in a clear and direct style, this book is an essential source of reference for both undergraduate and postgraduate students of criminology, deviance and social control, criminological theory, social policy, research methodology, and criminal justice.
Research Interests:
This book chronicles key contemporary developments in the social scientific study of various types of male-to-female abuse in rural places and suggests new directions in research, theory, and policy. The main objective of this book is not... more
This book chronicles key contemporary developments in the social scientific study of various types of male-to-female abuse in rural places and suggests new directions in research, theory, and policy. The main objective of this book is not to simply provide a dry recitation of the extant literature on the abuse of rural women in private places. To be sure, this material is covered, but rural women’s experiences of crimes of the powerful like genocidal rape and corporate violence against female employees are also examined.
Written by a celebrated expert on the subject, this book considers woman
abuse in a broad context, covering forms of violence such as physical and sexual assault, coercive control, genocidal rape, abortion bans, forced pregnancy, and corporate forms of violence. It offers a broad research agenda that examines the multidimensional nature of violence against rural women. Drawing on decades of work in the shelter movement, with activist organizations and doing academic and government research, DeKeseredy punctuates the book with stories and voices of perpetrators and survivors of abuse. Additionally, what makes this book unique is that it focuses on the plight of rural women around the world and it introduces a modified version of Liz Kelly’s original continuum of sexual violence.
An accessible and compelling read, this book will appeal to students and
scholars of criminology, sociology, women’s studies, cultural studies, policing, geography, and all those interested in learning about the abuse women face in rural areas.
Walter S. DeKeseredy is Anna Deane Carlson Endowed Chair of Social
Sciences, Director of the Research Center on Violence, and Professor of
Sociology at West Virginia University. He has published 26 books, over 100
refereed journal articles, and 90 scholarly book chapters on issues such as
woman abuse, rural criminology, and criminological theory.
Written by a celebrated expert on the subject, this book considers woman
abuse in a broad context, covering forms of violence such as physical and sexual assault, coercive control, genocidal rape, abortion bans, forced pregnancy, and corporate forms of violence. It offers a broad research agenda that examines the multidimensional nature of violence against rural women. Drawing on decades of work in the shelter movement, with activist organizations and doing academic and government research, DeKeseredy punctuates the book with stories and voices of perpetrators and survivors of abuse. Additionally, what makes this book unique is that it focuses on the plight of rural women around the world and it introduces a modified version of Liz Kelly’s original continuum of sexual violence.
An accessible and compelling read, this book will appeal to students and
scholars of criminology, sociology, women’s studies, cultural studies, policing, geography, and all those interested in learning about the abuse women face in rural areas.
Walter S. DeKeseredy is Anna Deane Carlson Endowed Chair of Social
Sciences, Director of the Research Center on Violence, and Professor of
Sociology at West Virginia University. He has published 26 books, over 100
refereed journal articles, and 90 scholarly book chapters on issues such as
woman abuse, rural criminology, and criminological theory.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Please go to this site for more informationhttps://www.routledge.com/The-Routledge-International-Handbook-of-Violence-Studies/DeKeseredy-Rennison-Hall-Sanchez/p/book/9781138283442
Research Interests:
The main objective of the second edition of the Routledge Handbook of Critical Criminology is twofold: (1) to provide original chapters that cover contemporary critical criminological theoretical offerings generated over the past five... more
The main objective of the second edition of the Routledge Handbook of Critical Criminology is twofold: (1) to provide original chapters that cover contemporary critical criminological theoretical offerings generated over the past five years and (2) to provide chapters on important new substantive topics that are currently being studied and theorized by progressive criminologists. Special attention is devoted to new theoretical directions in the field, such as southern criminology, queer criminology, and green criminology. The diverse chapters cover not only cutting-edge theories, but also the variety of research methods used by leading scholars in the field and the rich data generated by their rigorous empirical work. In addition, some of the chapters suggest innovative and realistic short-and long-term policy proposals that are typically ignored by mainstream criminology. These progressive strategies address some of the most pressing social problems facing contemporary society today, which generate much pain and suffering for socially and economically disenfranchised people. The new edition of the Handbook is a major work in redefining areas within the context of international multidisciplinary critical research, and in highlighting emerging areas, such as human trafficking, Internet pornography and image-based sexual abuse. It is specifically designed to be a comprehensive resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students, researchers and policymakers. Routledge titles are available as eBook editions in a range of digital formats
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Part of the Gender and Justice series edited by Claire Renzetti http://www.ucpress.edu/series.php?ser=gaj
Research Interests: Sociology, Cultural Studies, Criminology, Gender Studies, Sex and Gender, and 32 moreWomen's Studies, Sociology of Violence, Domestic Violence, Violence, Family studies, Sociology of Crime and Deviance, Family Law, Sexual Violence, Family, Gender, Critical Criminology, Women, Feminism, Violence Against Women, Marriage and Divorce, Gender And Violence, Women and Culture, Feminism and Social Justice, Intimate Partner Violence, Women and Gender Studies, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, Crime, Divorced families, Child Abuse, Divorce, Gender and Women's Studies, Abuse, Violence Against Women and Children, Critical Criminolgy, Sociology of Violence and Crime, International Critical Criminology, and Homicide and Suicide
If you will be at the American Society of Criminology Conference, please attend the reception hosted by the Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology and the Research Center on Violence at West Virginia University on Friday, November 20.
Research Interests:
There was a vibrant surge in the 1980s and 1990s of social scientific work on men’s abuse of women in sports-related contexts, but this wave receded over the past two decades and eventually disappeared. Recently, however, an international... more
There was a vibrant surge in the 1980s and 1990s of social scientific work on men’s abuse of women in sports-related contexts, but this wave receded over the past two decades and eventually disappeared. Recently, however, an international cadre of scholars have revisited the off- and online victimization of women in these settings, and the main objective of this paper is to examine what the extant scholarly literature tells and does not tell us about this social problem.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
This chapter argues that a single strategy will not end the atrocities committed both by men continuing their abuse after separation and by those who were not abusive during a relationship but became so after their partners left them. The... more
This chapter argues that a single strategy will not end the atrocities committed both by men continuing their abuse after separation and by those who were not abusive during a relationship but became so after their partners left them. The solutions proposed are legal and criminal justice reforms; social services; economic policies; feminist men's efforts; and new electronic technologies.
Research Interests: Criminology, Technology, Domestic Violence, Homicide, Family Law, and 7 morePolitical Science, Gender, Women, Separation, Children, Divorce, and Abuse
How many women are victimized by lethal and nonlethal physical and sexual separation or divorce assault? What are the key risk factors associated with these harms? This chapter seeks to answer these questions, drawing from feminist and... more
How many women are victimized by lethal and nonlethal physical and sexual separation or divorce assault? What are the key risk factors associated with these harms? This chapter seeks to answer these questions, drawing from feminist and other sociological perspectives on violence against women.
Research Interests: Sociology, Criminology, Technology, Domestic Violence, Homicide, and 8 moreFamily Law, Gender, Women, Separation, Sexual Assault, Children, Divorce, and Abuse
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
To date, no large study has looked at whether separation/divorce sexual assault varies across urban, suburban, and rural areas. The authors use 1992-2009 NCVS (National Crime Victimization Survey) data to estimate the percentage of... more
To date, no large study has looked at whether separation/divorce sexual assault varies across urban, suburban, and rural areas. The authors use 1992-2009 NCVS (National Crime Victimization Survey) data to estimate the percentage of separation/divorce sexual assault against women in urban, suburban, and rural communities. In addition, the authors identify and compare the relative risk of sexual assault victimization for women across areas. Findings indicate that a higher percentage of rural divorced/separated women were victims of rape/sexual assault than were urban divorced/separated women. In addition, rural separated women are victims of intimate rape/sexual assault at significantly higher rates than their suburban and urban counterparts.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
This chapter draws together diverse sources in order to show how children are victimized by abuse at separation and divorce. It also reviews some of the cultural and structural reasons why woman abuse and child abuse are not handled... more
This chapter draws together diverse sources in order to show how children are victimized by abuse at separation and divorce. It also reviews some of the cultural and structural reasons why woman abuse and child abuse are not handled appropriately in the family law context.
Research Interests: Criminology, Psychology, Technology, Domestic Violence, Homicide, and 10 moreFamily Law, Gender, Women, Separation, Children, Child Abuse, Divorce, Judges, Abuse, and Collateral
This chapter challenges the “common sense” notion that it is essential for a couple to be living apart to be considered separated or divorced. In making this challenge, the authors make the case for a broad, gender-specific definition of... more
This chapter challenges the “common sense” notion that it is essential for a couple to be living apart to be considered separated or divorced. In making this challenge, the authors make the case for a broad, gender-specific definition of separation/divorce violence, one that includes acts of physical violence and psychological means of victimization.
Research Interests: Sociology, Criminology, Psychology, Technology, Domestic Violence, and 8 moreHomicide, Family Law, Gender, Women, Separation, Children, Divorce, and Abuse
This chapter examines how new electronic technologies are used by men to exert control and power over women during and after separation and divorce. Included in this chapter are sections on cyberstalking, social network site intrusion,... more
This chapter examines how new electronic technologies are used by men to exert control and power over women during and after separation and divorce. Included in this chapter are sections on cyberstalking, social network site intrusion, and image-based sexual abuse.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Page 140. Chapter Four Intimate Male Violence Against Women In Canada Walter S. DeKeseredy And Desmond Ellis Various forms of male violence against female intimates—whether wives, ex-wives, cohabitors, or dating ...
Research Interests:
The Routledge Handbook of Critical Criminology is a collection of original essays specifically designed to offer students, faculty, policy makers, and others an in-depth overview of the most up-to-date empirical, theoretical, and... more
The Routledge Handbook of Critical Criminology is a collection of original essays specifically designed to offer students, faculty, policy makers, and others an in-depth overview of the most up-to-date empirical, theoretical, and political contributions made by critical criminologists around the world. Special attention is devoted to new theoretical directions in the field, such as cultural criminology, masculinities studies, and feminist criminologies. Its diverse essays not only cover the history of critical criminology and cutting edge theories, but also the variety of research methods used by leading scholars in the field and the rich data generated by their rigorous empirical work. In addition, some of the chapters suggest innovative and realistic short- and long-term policy proposals that are typically ignored by mainstream criminology. These progressive strategies address some of the most pressing social problems facing contemporary society today, and that generate much pain ...
Research Interests: Sociology, Criminology, Violence, Politics, Critical, and 3 moreInternational, Crime, and Mainstream
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Most of the empirical and theoretical work on violence against women has thus far centered on the plight of women who live in the Global North. The main objective of this chapter, then, is to contribute to the advancement of southern... more
Most of the empirical and theoretical work on violence against women has thus far centered on the plight of women who live in the Global North. The main objective of this chapter, then, is to contribute to the advancement of southern criminology by examining what social scientists know about various types of woman abuse in the Global South. Here, we answer these questions: What do we know? How do we know it? What are the next steps? All the answers are heavily informed by feminist ways of knowing, and the answers to the third question emphasize new empirical and theoretical directions.
Research Interests:
Page 361. MASCULINITIES AND INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE WALTER S. DEKESEREDY MARTIN D. SCHWARTZ Choose a form of violence and examine international statistics on the gender of its perpetrators. ... 1997; Renzetti. Edleson. &... more
Page 361. MASCULINITIES AND INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE WALTER S. DEKESEREDY MARTIN D. SCHWARTZ Choose a form of violence and examine international statistics on the gender of its perpetrators. ... 1997; Renzetti. Edleson. & Kennedy Bergen. 2001). Similarly. ...
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
This chapter reviews widely read and cited social scientific theories of separation and divorce violence against women. Explanations covered include the male proprietariness thesis, the challenge thesis, a feminist/male peer support model... more
This chapter reviews widely read and cited social scientific theories of separation and divorce violence against women. Explanations covered include the male proprietariness thesis, the challenge thesis, a feminist/male peer support model of separation and divorce sexual assault, a rural masculinity crisis/male peer support model of separation/divorce sexual assault, and the social and economic exclusion model of separation/divorce woman abuse in public housing.
Research Interests: Criminology, Psychology, Technology, Domestic Violence, Homicide, and 8 moreFamily Law, Gender, Women, Separation, Sexual Assault, Children, Divorce, and Abuse
The social scientific study of sexual assault on North American university/college campuses started in 1957 with a path-breaking survey conducted by Clifford Kirkpatrick and Eugene Kanin. However, it was not until the late 1980s that the... more
The social scientific study of sexual assault on North American university/college campuses started in 1957 with a path-breaking survey conducted by Clifford Kirkpatrick and Eugene Kanin. However, it was not until the late 1980s that the interdisciplinary literature in the field started to mushroom. Nevertheless, theoretical developments have not kept pace with the burgeoning empirical body of knowledge in the field. In fact, the current state of scholarly work is now dominated by what the late C. Wright Mills referred to as abstracted empiricism (e.g., research divorced from theory). The main objective of this paper is twofold: (1) to explain how gendered sociological theoretical offerings, especially feminist perspectives, became marginalized and (2) to suggest new sociological directions in explaining male-to-female sexual assaults in institutions of higher learning.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Page 280. 13 Confronting Woman Abuse in Canada: A Left-Realist Approach Walter S. DeKeseredy Many disadvantage*! people are targets of predatory street crimes such as assault, burglary, and theft (Jones, MacLean, and Young 1986; Phipps... more
Page 280. 13 Confronting Woman Abuse in Canada: A Left-Realist Approach Walter S. DeKeseredy Many disadvantage*! people are targets of predatory street crimes such as assault, burglary, and theft (Jones, MacLean, and Young 1986; Phipps 1986). ...
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
This chapter suggests ways of preventing male-to-female violence in rural and remote places
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
A small, but growing, body of criminological knowledge shows that natural resource extraction activities contribute to violence against women in rural and remote areas, but the extant literature is undertheorized. This is not to say,... more
A small, but growing, body of criminological knowledge shows that natural resource extraction activities contribute to violence against women in rural and remote areas, but the extant literature is undertheorized. This is not to say, however, that this research is not theoretically driven. While not always made explicit, almost all of it is guided, either explicitly or implicitly, by social disorganization theory and Durkheim's anomie theory, both of which ignore the influence of patriarchal social forces embedded in many rural localities where natural resource extraction activities occur. The main objective of this paper, then, is to offer an empirically informed new critical criminological theory that has the potential to more effectively explain the linkage between natural resource extraction and violence against women in rural and remote communities around the world.
Research Interests:
Canada is often defined as a low-violence or very safe country (Currie, 2009). There is much empirical support for this characterisation. However, some people and places in Canada are safer than are others. For example, while most men are... more
Canada is often defined as a low-violence or very safe country (Currie, 2009). There is much empirical support for this characterisation. However, some people and places in Canada are safer than are others. For example, while most men are immune from physical and sexual assaults in domestic/ household settings, these contexts are extremely dangerous for an alarming number of women. Annually, at least 11 per cent of married/cohabiting women are physically abused by their male partners (DeKeseredy, 2011a). Additionally, ample evidence suggests that Canadian men are more physically violent to adult female intimates than are males in the United States (US) (DeKeseredy, 2011a). Further, approximately 25 per cent of women enrolled at post-secondary schools experience some variation of sexual assault (DeKeseredy and Flack, 2007). Many more statistics support the assertion that it often hurts to be a woman in Canada (DeKeseredy, 2011a) but it is beyond the scope of this chapter to present them. Instead, the main objective is to review Canadian sociological, empirical and theoretical work on woman abuse done so far and to suggest new directions in research and theorising.
Research Interests: Psychology and Assertion
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
As Claire Renzetti (this issue) correctly points out in her commentary on Swan and Snow’s (this issue) article, in a relatively short period of time, the social scientific literature on gender differences in intimate partner violence... more
As Claire Renzetti (this issue) correctly points out in her commentary on Swan and Snow’s (this issue) article, in a relatively short period of time, the social scientific literature on gender differences in intimate partner violence (IPV) has increased “exponentially.” Consider, too, that a growing number of scholars, such as Swan and Snow (this issue), are now trying to theorize the complex nature of women’s use of violence in intimate relationships. However, as was the case 12 years ago when Martin Schwartz and I responded to some researchers who argued that women are just as violent as men in intimate relationships (e.g., Straus, 1993), there is still an important battle being waged over the nature of women’s behavior and its role in woman abuse (Schwartz & DeKeseredy, 1993). Indeed, the respectful but often heated scholarly exchanges that occurred at the Gender Symmetry Workshop organized by the National Institute of Justice are not representative of much popular discourse on the nature and extent of women’s use of violence. For example, on June 21, 2005, lawyer David Burroughs sent Schwartz and me an electronic message criticizing our critique of Statistics Canada’s 1999 General Social Survey on Victimization (see DeKeseredy & Schwartz, 2003). Included in his message was this statement:
Research Interests:
Research Interests: Engineering, Criminology, Program Evaluation, Psychology, Sexual Abuse, and 8 moreRape, Women, Pornography, Medicine, The Internet, Students, Humans, and Female
This chapter provides a radical feminist interpretation of The Handmaid’s Tale. One of the key points made here is that there are strong similarities between this series and what some people refer to as feminist pornography, which is just... more
This chapter provides a radical feminist interpretation of The Handmaid’s Tale. One of the key points made here is that there are strong similarities between this series and what some people refer to as feminist pornography, which is just as degrading and violent as male-directed and produced porn. Additionally, parallels between the series and real life are identified, especially those involving the oppression of women.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
In the cultural moment around the fall of Harvey Weinstein, the #MeToo phenomenon, and surge in anti-patriarchal activism around the country, this panel considers the roles that faculty of all genders can play to foster an equitable and... more
In the cultural moment around the fall of Harvey Weinstein, the #MeToo phenomenon, and surge in anti-patriarchal activism around the country, this panel considers the roles that faculty of all genders can play to foster an equitable and safe work environment. Panelists will also consider how faculty might adjust to the current climate, bringing a range of scholarly approaches to this timely and practical campus concern. There will be an opportunity for questions and open discussion following the panel.
Research Interests:
I hope you can come to our special event (see attachments) next Wednesday. Similar events will take place around the world. On December 6, 2016, the Research Center on Violence will again bring the White Ribbon Campaign to WVU. Why... more
I hope you can come to our special event (see attachments) next Wednesday. Similar events will take place around the world.
On December 6, 2016, the Research Center on Violence will again bring the White Ribbon Campaign to WVU. Why December 6? On that day in1989, a male student entered an engineering class at the Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal, Canada and proceeded to shoot 28 people, killing 14 women. He claimed he was “fighting feminism” and specifically targeted female students. In the wake of the attack at the Ecole Polytechnique, a group called the White Ribbon Campaign developed, which has turned into an international men's organization reaching over 60 countries advocating for and promoting gender equity and the end of violence against women and girls. The mission of the organization states:
“We work to examine the root causes of gender-based violence and create a cultural shift that helps bring us to a future without violence. Our vision is for a masculinity that embodies the best qualities of being human. We believe that men are part of the solution and part of a future that is safe and equitable for all people. Through education, awareness-raising, outreach, technical assistance, capacity building, partnerships and creative campaigns, White Ribbon is helping create tools, strategies and models that challenge negative, outdated concepts of manhood and inspire men to understand and embrace the incredible potential they have to be a part of positive change” - The White Ribbon Campaign
The Research Center on Violence at WVU upholds these ideals, among others, and is dedicated to reducing gender violence in collaboration with a variety of progressive organizations, such as the Rape and Domestic Violence Information Center (RDVIC) and FRIS.
Please spread the word and be a part of this event. We will hold a memorial for the 14 women, show the riveting film Polytechnique, and then have a call to men. I hope to see you there. Bring anyone you want.
Best,
Walter
On December 6, 2016, the Research Center on Violence will again bring the White Ribbon Campaign to WVU. Why December 6? On that day in1989, a male student entered an engineering class at the Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal, Canada and proceeded to shoot 28 people, killing 14 women. He claimed he was “fighting feminism” and specifically targeted female students. In the wake of the attack at the Ecole Polytechnique, a group called the White Ribbon Campaign developed, which has turned into an international men's organization reaching over 60 countries advocating for and promoting gender equity and the end of violence against women and girls. The mission of the organization states:
“We work to examine the root causes of gender-based violence and create a cultural shift that helps bring us to a future without violence. Our vision is for a masculinity that embodies the best qualities of being human. We believe that men are part of the solution and part of a future that is safe and equitable for all people. Through education, awareness-raising, outreach, technical assistance, capacity building, partnerships and creative campaigns, White Ribbon is helping create tools, strategies and models that challenge negative, outdated concepts of manhood and inspire men to understand and embrace the incredible potential they have to be a part of positive change” - The White Ribbon Campaign
The Research Center on Violence at WVU upholds these ideals, among others, and is dedicated to reducing gender violence in collaboration with a variety of progressive organizations, such as the Rape and Domestic Violence Information Center (RDVIC) and FRIS.
Please spread the word and be a part of this event. We will hold a memorial for the 14 women, show the riveting film Polytechnique, and then have a call to men. I hope to see you there. Bring anyone you want.
Best,
Walter
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Abusive Endings offers a thorough analysis of the social-science literature on one of the most significant threats to the health and well-being of women today—abuse at the hands of their male partners. The authors provide a moving... more
Abusive Endings offers a thorough analysis of the social-science literature on one of the most significant threats to the health and well-being of women today—abuse at the hands of their male partners. The authors provide a moving description of why and how men abuse women in myriad ways during and after a separation or divorce. The material is punctuated with the stories and voices of both perpetrators and survivors of abuse, as told to the authors over many years of fieldwork. Written in a highly readable fashion, this book will be a useful resource for researchers, practitioners, activists, and policy makers.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
New Flier about the Research Center on Violence at WVU.
Research Interests:
The main objective of this course is to provide graduate students with an advanced understanding of the sociological study of crime and social control in rural communities. Students will be exposed to definitions, theories, and the latest... more
The main objective of this course is to provide graduate students with an advanced understanding of the sociological study of crime and social control in rural communities. Students will be exposed to definitions, theories, and the latest empirical research on rural and small-town crime. Students will also examine progressive ways of preventing and controlling crime in rural areas. Special attention will be devoted to the ways in which gender, social class, and race/ethnicity influence various types of crime in rural areas and societal reactions to them. By the end of this course, students will be able to: • dispel rural crime myths; • understand the realities of rural crime and social control; • identify the challenges of gathering sociological crime data in rural communities; • understand various theoretical perspectives on rural crime; and • suggest progressive means of curbing and preventing rural crime.
Research Interests:
WVU's Dept. of Sociology & Anthropology and the Research Center on Violence at WVU are pleased to announce Dr. Claire Renzetti's public presentation on Sept. 15, 2015 in the Mountainlair. A reception at the Boston Beanery will follow at 5... more
WVU's Dept. of Sociology & Anthropology and the Research Center on Violence at WVU are pleased to announce Dr. Claire Renzetti's public presentation on Sept. 15, 2015 in the Mountainlair. A reception at the Boston Beanery will follow at 5 pm.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
The class reviews the extant theoretical and empirical literature on male peer support for violence against women and participants are exposed to new relevant policies and practices.
Research Interests:
Though empirical and policy work on violence against women has advanced considerably over the past 40 years, scholars, practitioners, and activists in the field continue to face many challenges, especially those generated by... more
Though empirical and policy work on violence against women has advanced considerably over the past 40 years, scholars, practitioners, and activists in the field continue to face many challenges, especially those generated by anti-feminists. The main objective of this presentation is to suggest means of effectively dealing with attempts to marginalize feminist scholarship and intervention strategies. The approaches suggested include revisiting some major contributions from the past, including broad and gender-specific definitions, local community surveys, and multiple measures of successful intervention outcomes. Special attention is also devoted to the importance of responding to pornography and to working with men.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Hi Friends and Colleagues, West Virginia University’s Department of Sociology and Anthropology is hosting a reception on Friday night at the ASC Conference. It will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. in Foothill D, 2nd floor, Marriott Hotel.... more
Hi Friends and Colleagues,
West Virginia University’s Department of Sociology and Anthropology is hosting a reception on Friday night at the ASC Conference. It will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. in Foothill D, 2nd floor, Marriott Hotel.
You are all warmly invited and there will be food and WVU goodies. Plus, of course, a cash bar.
Hope to see you there.
Best,
Walter
West Virginia University’s Department of Sociology and Anthropology is hosting a reception on Friday night at the ASC Conference. It will take place from 7 to 9 p.m. in Foothill D, 2nd floor, Marriott Hotel.
You are all warmly invited and there will be food and WVU goodies. Plus, of course, a cash bar.
Hope to see you there.
Best,
Walter
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Polyvictimization means looking at multiple victimizations of different kinds that one person has experienced. Virtually, all of the work in this field focuses on the effects of childhood trauma and victimization on currently distressed... more
Polyvictimization means looking at multiple victimizations of different kinds that one person has experienced. Virtually, all of the work in this field focuses on the effects of childhood trauma and victimization on currently distressed children, and empirical and theoretical work on the intertwining of adult female offline and online abuse experiences is in short supply. Recently, however, some scholars are starting to fill these research gaps by generating data showing that technology-facilitated violence and abuse are part and parcel of women's polyvictimization experiences at institutions of higher education. This chapter provides an in-depth review of the extant social scientific literature on the role technology-facilitated violence and abuse plays in the polyvictimization of female college/university students. In addition to proposing new ways of knowing, we suggest progressive policies and practices aimed at preventing polyvictimization on the college campus.
Research Interests:
This chapter suggests ways of preventing male-to-female violence in rural and remote places
Research Interests:
There is no single critical criminology. Rather, there are critical criminologies with differ ent histories, methods, theories, and political perspectives. However, critical criminology is often defined as a perspective that views the... more
There is no single critical criminology. Rather, there are critical criminologies with differ ent histories, methods, theories, and political perspectives. However, critical criminology is often defined as a perspective that views the major sources of crime as the unequal class, race/ethnic, and gender relations that control our society. Critical criminologists op pose prisons and other draconian means of social control. Their main goal is major radi cal and cultural change, but they recognize that these transitions will not occur in the current neoliberal era. Hence, most critical criminologists propose short-term anticrime policies and practices and fundamental social, economic, and political transformations, such as a change from a capitalist economy to one based on more socialist principles.
Research Interests:
Purpose-This chapter presents some innovative ways in which researchers can collect survey data on various types of violence against women. Methodology/approach-The suggestions made here are drawn from over 30 years of national,... more
Purpose-This chapter presents some innovative ways in which researchers can collect survey data on various types of violence against women. Methodology/approach-The suggestions made here are drawn from over 30 years of national, international, and local survey research. Findings-The methods described in this chapter minimize underreporting, produce theoretically relevant data, and have meaningful policy consequences. Originality/value-The research techniques reviewed here have made many important contributions to the field and the data they uncovered have helped raise public awareness about one of the world's most compelling social problems.
Research Interests:
Intimate violence against women takes many shapes and forms and is endemic to most, if not all, societies. However, some groups of women are much more likely than others to be subjected to lethal and non-lethal acts of violence committed... more
Intimate violence against women takes many shapes and forms and is endemic to most, if not all, societies. However, some groups of women are much more likely than others to be subjected to lethal and non-lethal acts of violence committed by their current or former male partners. Rural women constitute one high-risk faction, but have historically been given short shrift by the social scientific community. This is not surprising because, as made explicit throughout the Handbook, criminology is generally urban-biased. Still, the empirical and theoretical literature on intimate femicide, sexual assault, physical violence, and other brutal male behaviors experienced by rural women has rapidly grown since the latter part of the last decade, with most of it generated in the United States. The main objective of this chapter is to review this body of knowledge and to suggest new directions in research and theory.
Research Interests:
This is a scholarly review of a path-breaking new book.
Research Interests:
Criminology has a long history of examining the "usual suspects" that include a legion of interpersonal violent acts committed in private and public places (e.g., rape, armed robbery, etc.), corporate and white-collar crime, policing,... more
Criminology has a long history of examining the "usual suspects" that include a legion of interpersonal violent acts committed in private and public places (e.g., rape, armed robbery, etc.), corporate and white-collar crime, policing, prisons, juvenile delinquency, and hate crime. This is not to say, however, that criminology does not adapt to ever changing times and ignores new social problems like cybercrime. Nonetheless, sports-related wrongdoings and societal reactions to them continue to receive selective inattention, which is an empirically based observation repeatedly made explicit over the last four decades by leading criminological experts on the "dark side" of sport, such as Kevin Young, author of Chapter 1 in Power Played. Consider that one would still be hard pressed to find a single article on the relationship between crime, social control, and sport in the most highly ranked North American criminology journals, which, arguably, are Criminology, Criminology and Public Policy, and Justice Quarterly. As highly celebrated singer/songwriter Bob Dylan would say, "The Times They are a-Changin," and critical criminologists are leading the charge. Recently, academics from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, particularly those based in Canada, the U.S., and the U.K., have produced some timely books that are quickly establishing a new criminology of sport, one that emphasizes how racial/ethnic, social class, and gender inequality shape various types of crime that occur on and off the playing field and the formal and informal responses to them. Prior, though, to Silva and Kennedy's compilation, there was no comprehensive anthology that highlighted critical criminological perspectives and thus the editors should be commended for crafting their groundbreaking contribution, one that includes an international cadre of social scientists. Sixteen chapters are included in this collection, and these novel offerings reflect the fact that bridge-building between sport and criminology is a global and intellectually diverse enterprise. A key objective of this book is to, in the words of Silva and Kennedy, "demonstrate how current developments in critical criminology can shed light on the various manifestations of crime and control within sporting cultures that both contribute to public understanding of criminal justice and reshape the justice system itself" (p. 32). Collectively, the chapters unequivocally achieve this goal. Even so, there is no party line and each chapter is unique, ranging from the Introduction that provides a brief overview of contemporary critical criminological directions and their relevance to sport, to subsequent offerings that focus on race, class, gender, and sexuality issues (Part 2), to those that carefully examine head trauma and athletic violence (Part 3), and last, but certainly not least, to issues related to governance, surveillance, security, and carceral contexts (Part 4). Most fitting, since he is a pioneer in the development of the critical criminology of sport, is Nick Groombridge's "post-game analysis" of each chapter and his thoughts on moving forward.
Research Interests:
This is a scholarly review of the only book published to date on the sexual harassment of rural Australian women.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
This is my review of Fitz-Gibbon et al.'s anthology.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Within the large criminological literature on youth violence, the bulk of empirical, theoretical , and policy work on the topic centers on inner-city male boys, especially those who are African-American and Latino. The relatively small... more
Within the large criminological literature on youth violence, the bulk of empirical, theoretical , and policy work on the topic centers on inner-city male boys, especially those who are African-American and Latino. The relatively small amount of social scientific work that has focused on girls' violence is also urban-biased and the non-White group typically examined is Black. Hence, three key factors make Irwin and Umemoto's book a refreshing read: (1) the research featured in it examines both girls' and boys' violence; (2) rural and urban contexts are given equal attention; and (3) the experiences of Pacific Islander teenagers are prioritized. Of course, there is much more to Jacked Up and Unjust than just these salient features and the authors should be commended for producing a timely piece of scholarship that speaks to readers on many levels. The main objective of this book is to present the results of nine years of ethnographic research conducted in two different locations in Hawaii—a rural setting and a more urban area. The authors used a mixed-methods approach to collect their data, including youth and adult focus groups, youth interviews, high school staff interviews, community adult and youth practitioner interviews, and youth observations. Priority, however, is granted to the narratives and voices of youth. What we learn from reading such accounts is that the motives and contexts of girls' and boys' violence differ in some ways, but that both sexes, according to Irwin and Umemoto, battle ''a long history of injustice stemming from US colonial conquest in the Pacific, which included the imposition of a rigid racial caste system, thus racialization in American colonial contexts is important to consider'' (p. 4). Thus, Irwin and Umemoto's book is much more than an empirical enterprise. One particularly striking element is the authors' theory of colonial patriarchy. As the authors explain in Chapter 1, research on girls' violence needs to examine how patriarchy intersects with many other sources of oppression, such as the collective trauma caused by American imperial expansion into Hawaii and other regions of the Pacific. We discover from reading the youth narratives that gender-related factors alone cannot account for why
Research Interests:
Much of the extant social scientific literature on separation/divorce violence focuses on the risks to women from male partners when women are wanting to end, are planning to end, are trying to end, are in the process of ending, or have... more
Much of the extant social scientific literature on separation/divorce violence focuses on the risks to women from male partners when women are wanting to end, are planning to end, are trying to end, are in the process of ending, or have ended a relationship with a male marital or cohabiting partner. Attention to children is also necessary to understanding the dynamics of “dangerous exits.” The main objective of this presentation is to show how children are impacted in male-to-female abuse at separation and divorce.
Research Interests:
Since the mid 1980s, North American researchers have accumulated much social scientific knowledge about the extent, distribution, sources, and consequences of physical and sexual violence against college women. However, surveys of... more
Since the mid 1980s, North American researchers have accumulated much social scientific knowledge about the extent, distribution, sources, and consequences of physical and sexual violence against college women. However, surveys of technology-facilitated stalking and image-based sexual abuse on college campuses are in short supply. Further, the few that have been conducted do not identify key sociological risk factors associated with these two electronic forms of victimization. The main objective of this paper, then, is twofold: (1) to examine the role of negative peer support and (2) to determine if technology-facilitated stalking and image-based sexual abuse are associated with female students’ intimate partner violence and sexual assault experiences. The results show that negative peer support is a significant predictor of digital victimization and that such victimization is strongly associated with intimate partner violence and sexual assault.
Research Interests:
Sociological research on violence against rural women quickly exploded on the scene in the latter part of the last decade. There is now strong international empirical evidence showing that rural women are at greater risk of experiencing... more
Sociological research on violence against rural women quickly exploded on the scene in the latter part of the last decade. There is now strong international empirical evidence showing that rural women are at greater risk of experiencing various types of intimate violence than are their urban and suburban counterparts. Nevertheless, more sociological empirical and theoretical contributions are necessary. The main objective of this paper is to describe the current state of sociological knowledge about intimate violence against rural women and to suggest new directions in understanding this problem.
Research Interests:
Dr. DeKeseredy discusses the linkages between patriarchy, male peer support and sexual harassment.
Research Interests:
Resources from the BWJP webinar 9 October 2017 DeKeseredy, W. S., Dragiewicz, M., & Schwartz, M. D. (2017). Abusive endings: Separation and divorce violence against women. Oakland, CA: University of California Press.... more
Resources from the BWJP webinar 9 October 2017
DeKeseredy, W. S., Dragiewicz, M., & Schwartz, M. D. (2017). Abusive endings: Separation and divorce violence against women. Oakland, CA: University of California Press. https://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520285750
DeKeseredy, W. S., Dragiewicz, M., & Schwartz, M. D. (2017). Abusive endings: Separation and divorce violence against women. Oakland, CA: University of California Press. https://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520285750
Research Interests:
Studies of violent victimization in rural and remote parts of the U.S. are in short supply and the bulk of those done so far focus mainly on man-to-woman violence in intimate relationships among people without disabilities. There is,... more
Studies of violent victimization in rural and remote parts of the U.S. are in short supply and the bulk of those done so far focus mainly on man-to-woman violence in intimate relationships among people without disabilities. There is, indeed, a major need to broaden the focus of rural victimological research to include violence against people with disabilities, which is the main objective of this article. Relying on original exploratory data generated by the first phase of the West Virginia Community Quality of Life Survey (WVCQLS), population estimates of four types of violent victimization are presented: stalking, sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and hate and bias assaults. The results show that a large number of rural West Virginia residents with disabilities experience these forms of victimization. Directions for further empirical and theoretical work are discussed.
Research Interests:
Studies of violent victimization in rural and remote parts of the U.S. are in short supply and the bulk of those done so far focus mainly on man-to-woman violence in intimate relationships among people without disabilities. There is,... more
Studies of violent victimization in rural and remote parts of the U.S. are in short supply and the bulk of those done so far focus mainly on man-to-woman violence in intimate relationships among people without disabilities. There is, indeed, a major need to broaden the focus of rural victimological research to include violence against people with disabilities, which is the main objective of this article. Relying on original exploratory data generated by the first phase of the West Virginia Community Quality of Life Survey (WVCQLS), population estimates of four types of violent victimization are presented: stalking, sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and hate and bias assaults. The results show that a large number of rural West Virginia residents with disabilities experience these forms of victimization. Directions for further empirical and theoretical work are discussed.
Research Interests:
Featured in a recent issue of Critical Criminology, the results of an exploratory bibliometric study conducted by me, Ping Lam Ip, and Andrea DeKeseredy empirically confirm what James Ptacek and I observed in the latter part of 2018 as a... more
Featured in a recent issue of Critical Criminology, the results of an exploratory bibliometric study conducted by me, Ping Lam Ip, and Andrea DeKeseredy empirically confirm what James Ptacek and I observed in the latter part of 2018 as a disturbing trend in the bulk of the social scientific literature on violence against women. It is the ascendancy of liberal feminism, an orthodox school of thought that sidelines decades of rigorous research showing that patriarchy is one of the most powerful determinants of all types of woman abuse and other highly injurious consequences of male power and privilege. Fast forward to 2023 and things have gotten worse. For instance, one would be hard pressed today to find the terms feminism and patriarchy in prominent interdisciplinary journals like Journal of Family Violence, Violence and Victims, and Psychology of Violence. Such selective inattention is astonishing, which is why I, James and the two other contributors to this symposium (among others) repeatedly ask, ‘How can you possibly develop a rich understanding of various types of violence against women without examining the role of patriarchy?’ Ptacek’s new ground-breaking book Feeling Trapped proves that you cannot, using data provided by in-depth interviews with 60 women from different social class backgrounds. Ptacek’s findings also remind us that social class and race/ethnicity must be prioritized in research on the ways in which women are trapped in abusive relationships.
Research Interests:
The central argument of this short piece is that if you want to give conference session participants andthose they later meet at the scholarly gathering the impression that you are a conscientious scholar,then make the time and effort to... more
The central argument of this short piece is that if you want to give conference session participants andthose they later meet at the scholarly gathering the impression that you are a conscientious scholar,then make the time and effort to author a polished paper and distribute hard copies to the audience.
Research Interests:
In this review symposium, four readers present their views on Walter DeKeseredy's book Woman Abuse in Rural Places
Research Interests:
Advances in social scientific understandings of female racial/ ethnic minority college students’ experiences of woman abuse have not kept pace with the amount of theoretical and empirical work on the plight of their White counterparts.... more
Advances in social scientific understandings of female racial/
ethnic minority college students’ experiences of woman abuse
have not kept pace with the amount of theoretical and empirical
work on the plight of their White counterparts. What is
especially needed is a study that examines racial/ethnic variations
in negative peer support for various types of victimization
in institutions of higher learning. Using the Campus Quality of
Life Survey, results show (1) no significant differences between
White and racial/ethnic minority women students in polyvictimization
within types of abuse (i.e., stalking, harassment, sexual
assault, and intimate partner violence), but some differences
in overall rates of victimization and polyvictimization, and (2)
negative peer support is strongly related to woman abuse and
polyvictimization. Implications are discussed
ethnic minority college students’ experiences of woman abuse
have not kept pace with the amount of theoretical and empirical
work on the plight of their White counterparts. What is
especially needed is a study that examines racial/ethnic variations
in negative peer support for various types of victimization
in institutions of higher learning. Using the Campus Quality of
Life Survey, results show (1) no significant differences between
White and racial/ethnic minority women students in polyvictimization
within types of abuse (i.e., stalking, harassment, sexual
assault, and intimate partner violence), but some differences
in overall rates of victimization and polyvictimization, and (2)
negative peer support is strongly related to woman abuse and
polyvictimization. Implications are discussed
Research Interests:
Diana Scully intellectually, politically, and personally touched the lives of many people. Though she has left this world, her groundbreaking sexual assault research continues to influence many feminist scholars who examine various types... more
Diana Scully intellectually, politically, and personally touched the lives of many people. Though she has left this world, her groundbreaking sexual assault research continues to influence many feminist scholars who examine various types of violence against women. This article points to some of her most noteworthy contributions to the field.
Research Interests:
The social scientific study of sexual assault on North American university/college campuses started in 1957 with a path-breaking survey conducted by Clifford Kirkpatrick and Eugene Kanin. However, it was not until the late 1980s that the... more
The social scientific study of sexual assault on North American university/college campuses started in 1957 with a path-breaking survey conducted by Clifford Kirkpatrick and Eugene Kanin. However, it was not until the late 1980s that the interdisciplinary literature in the field started to mushroom. Nevertheless, theoretical developments have not kept pace with the burgeoning empirical body of knowledge in the field. In fact, the current state of scholarly work is now dominated by what the late C. Wright Mills referred to as abstracted empiricism (e.g., research divorced from theory). The main objective of this paper is twofold: (1) to explain how gendered sociological theoretical offerings, especially feminist perspectives, became marginalized and (2) to suggest new sociological directions in explaining male-to-female sexual assaults in institutions of higher learning.
Research Interests:
There was a burst of creative social scientific investigation into hypermasculine male athletes' violence against women in the 1980s and 1990s, but this interest has seemed to have dried up. Furthermore, the extant literature on this... more
There was a burst of creative social scientific investigation into hypermasculine male athletes' violence against women in the 1980s and 1990s, but this interest has seemed to have dried up. Furthermore, the extant literature on this problem is for the most part atheoretical and devoid of sociological ways of knowing. Thus, the main goal of this paper is to highlight the value of applying a modified male peer support theory of male-to-female violence to explain the linkage between playing professional hockey and online and offline variants of woman abuse.
Research Interests:
This article presents crime survey data from the state of West Virginia in the United States showing that, controlling for structural conditions, community atmosphere is significantly related to crime, violence and many other social... more
This article presents crime survey data from the state of West Virginia in the United States showing that, controlling for structural conditions, community atmosphere is significantly related to crime, violence and many other social problems in rural places. These results help identify measurable and achievable progressive desired ends in rural policing, replacing law enforcement outputs (for example, arrests, gun and drug seizures) with safe, strong community outcomes as the summum bonum (i.e, ultimate outcome) of policing. Findings show that interdependent communities where police are partners with residents are the safest, while conflict communities where the police are viewed as adversaries are least safe. These results suggest a left realist consequentialist approach to police ethics to dismantle the hegemony of draconian policies and practices.
Research Interests:
This article presents crime survey data from the state of West Virginia in the United States showing that, controlling for structural conditions, community atmosphere is significantly related to crime, violence and many other social... more
This article presents crime survey data from the state of West Virginia in the United States showing that, controlling for structural conditions, community atmosphere is significantly related to crime, violence and many other social problems in rural places. These results help identify
measurable and achievable progressive desired ends in rural policing, replacing law enforcement outputs (for example, arrests, gun and drug seizures) with safe, strong community outcomes as the summum bonum (i.e, ultimate outcome) of policing. Findings show that interdependent
communities where police are partners with residents are the safest, while conflict communities where the police are viewed as adversaries are least safe. These results suggest a left realist consequentialist approach to police ethics to dismantle the hegemony of draconian policies and
practices.
measurable and achievable progressive desired ends in rural policing, replacing law enforcement outputs (for example, arrests, gun and drug seizures) with safe, strong community outcomes as the summum bonum (i.e, ultimate outcome) of policing. Findings show that interdependent
communities where police are partners with residents are the safest, while conflict communities where the police are viewed as adversaries are least safe. These results suggest a left realist consequentialist approach to police ethics to dismantle the hegemony of draconian policies and
practices.
Research Interests:
This article presents local crime survey data showing that, controlling for structural conditions, community atmosphere is significantly related to crime, violence, and many other social problems in rural places. These results help... more
This article presents local crime survey data showing that, controlling for structural conditions, community atmosphere is significantly related to crime, violence, and many other social problems in rural places. These results help identify measurable and achievable progressive desired ends in rural policing, replacing law enforcement outputs (e.g., arrests, gun and drug seizures) with safe, strong community outcomes as the summum bonum of policing. Our findings show that interdependent communities, where police are partners with residents, are the safest, while conflict communities, where the police viewed as adversaries, are least safe. These results suggest a left realist consequentialist approach to police ethics to dismantle the hegemony of draconian policies and practices.
Research Interests:
In this current era characterized by much fear of, and anxiety about, the political influence and actions of the U.S. alternative right (alt-right), only a small number of men's rights organizations receive attention from the media, the... more
In this current era characterized by much fear of, and anxiety about, the political influence and actions of the U.S. alternative right (alt-right), only a small number of men's rights organizations receive attention from the media, the Democratic Party, or a large cadre of progressives. This article demonstrates that ignoring all-male anti-feminist organizations is a flawed strategy for challenging the recent rise of the altright because these misogynistic groups are heavily involved in the gun rights movement, major contributors to racist practices and discourses, and active participants in efforts to criminalize and curtail women's access to abortion. Another, but equally important, aim of this piece is to briefly suggest new means of creating effective movements aimed at achieving social justice, one that involves a coalition of broader constituencies that prioritize gender and sexuality as well as race/ethnicity and social class.
Research Interests:
A small, but growing, body of criminological knowledge shows that natural resource extraction activities contribute to violence against women in rural and remote areas, but the extant literature is undertheorized. This is not to say,... more
A small, but growing, body of criminological knowledge shows that natural resource extraction activities contribute to violence against women in rural and remote areas, but the extant literature is undertheorized. This is not to say, however, that this research is not theoretically driven. While not always made explicit, almost all of it is guided, either explicitly or implicitly, by social disorganization theory and Durkheim's anomie theory, both of which ignore the influence of patriarchal social forces embedded in many rural localities where natural resource extraction activities occur. The main objective of this paper, then, is to offer an empirically informed new critical criminological theory that has the potential to more effectively explain the linkage between natural resource extraction and violence against women in rural and remote communities around the world.
Research Interests:
In the early afternoon of May 2, 2022, I received one of the most noteworthy emails of my life. ASC President Dr. Janet Lauritsen reached out to inform me that I was named an ASC Fellow. I was in a state of disbelief and it took nearly 45... more
In the early afternoon of May 2, 2022, I received one of the most noteworthy emails of my life. ASC
President Dr. Janet Lauritsen reached out to inform me that I was named an ASC Fellow. I was in a state
of disbelief and it took nearly 45 minutes for me to grasp that I would be added to such a prestigious list
of colleagues who made incredible contributions to interdisciplinary empirical, theoretical, and political
understandings of crime, law, and social control. This award speaks to me on many levels and receiving
it influenced me to think about how I got to where I am today in professional life. I would like to share
some of my precious memories with you.
President Dr. Janet Lauritsen reached out to inform me that I was named an ASC Fellow. I was in a state
of disbelief and it took nearly 45 minutes for me to grasp that I would be added to such a prestigious list
of colleagues who made incredible contributions to interdisciplinary empirical, theoretical, and political
understandings of crime, law, and social control. This award speaks to me on many levels and receiving
it influenced me to think about how I got to where I am today in professional life. I would like to share
some of my precious memories with you.
Research Interests:
Social scientific knowledge of the extent, distribution, causes, and consequences of various types of gendered interpersonal violence against North American college women has markedly advanced since the early 1980s. Nevertheless, major... more
Social scientific knowledge of the extent, distribution, causes, and consequences of various types of gendered interpersonal violence against North American college women has markedly advanced since the early 1980s. Nevertheless, major research gaps still exist, including a conspicuous absence of quantitative and qualitative data on racial/ethnic variations in female students' polyvictimization experiences. Using results of the Campus Quality of Life Survey conducted at a large doctoral institution in the South Atlantic region of the United States, this article shows that ethnic minority and White female students are equally at risk of experiencing multiple types of victimizations of different kinds, such as stalking, sexual harassment, physical violence, and sexual assault.
Research Interests:
Despite the important role which the police play in the reproduction of social order, there is a lacuna in critical criminological literature on the policing of democratic societies. As a consequence, the mistaken impression is fostered... more
Despite the important role which the police play in the reproduction of social order, there is a lacuna in critical criminological literature on the policing of democratic societies. As a consequence, the mistaken impression is fostered that policing in Canada is not problematic.
This paper challenges this view, documenting the extent of police malpractice and raising the question of the need for police accountability. Within this context the authors discuss three forms which police accountability has historically taken : judicial inquiry, community police
monitoringgroups, and consultative liaison panels. One problem which the authors note is theway in which all three models depend upon the police for information about the nature of crime and policing, making them susceptible to dominant discourses about policing. Thus they
continue by discussing the left realist model as potentially a fourth model. This form of police accountability emerged in Britain during the 1980s and is characterized by the production of an alternative discourse on crime and police practices based on locally conducted and controlled victimization surveys. The extent to which this practice of police accountability
might be relevant to the Canadian context remains yet to be explored. The authors note in closing, however, that this is an empirical and not a theoretical question, meaning that Canadian criminologists must become more practical and less academic in their discourses of social control.
This paper challenges this view, documenting the extent of police malpractice and raising the question of the need for police accountability. Within this context the authors discuss three forms which police accountability has historically taken : judicial inquiry, community police
monitoringgroups, and consultative liaison panels. One problem which the authors note is theway in which all three models depend upon the police for information about the nature of crime and policing, making them susceptible to dominant discourses about policing. Thus they
continue by discussing the left realist model as potentially a fourth model. This form of police accountability emerged in Britain during the 1980s and is characterized by the production of an alternative discourse on crime and police practices based on locally conducted and controlled victimization surveys. The extent to which this practice of police accountability
might be relevant to the Canadian context remains yet to be explored. The authors note in closing, however, that this is an empirical and not a theoretical question, meaning that Canadian criminologists must become more practical and less academic in their discourses of social control.
Research Interests:
This study examines intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization (i.e., technology-facilitated and in-person psychological, physical, and sexual) and polyvictimization, along with the role of social support and other factors in... more
This study examines intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization (i.e., technology-facilitated and in-person psychological, physical, and sexual) and polyvictimization, along with the role of social support and other factors in influencing these experiences. Using a sample of college women in intimate relationships in the past year (n = 265), findings revealed that social support was important in predicting IPV victimizations, with less prosocial support contributing to more frequent victimization for specific IPV forms and polyvictimization. The same support features emerged as significant for repeat technology-facilitated and repeat psychological IPV (i.e., social network relationship support), and for repeat physical and repeat sexual IPV (i.e., family connectedness), suggesting certain forms share commonalities. In the polyvictimization model,
Research Interests:
The extant sociological literature on male-to-female violence in rural communities reveals that the bulk of the empirical work on this problem focuses mainly on non-lethal physical assaults, such as beatings. Much more research on sexual... more
The extant sociological literature on male-to-female violence in rural communities reveals that the bulk of the empirical work on this problem focuses mainly on non-lethal physical assaults, such as beatings. Much more research on sexual violence is sorely needed. The main objective of this review is twofold: (1) to describe the current state of international sociological knowledge about male sexual violence against adult women and (2) to suggest new directions in research and theory.
Research Interests:
Purpose of Review Widely referred to as either "revenge porn" or "nonconsensual sharing of sexual imagery," image-based sexual abuse targets millions of people around the world and causes much harm. This article covers the current state... more
Purpose of Review Widely referred to as either "revenge porn" or "nonconsensual sharing of sexual imagery," image-based sexual abuse targets millions of people around the world and causes much harm. This article covers the current state of social scientific knowledge on this key variant of digitized sexual violence and suggests new directions in empirical work. Recent Findings A rapidly growing body of research shows that image-based sexual abuse is committed mainly by men against women and it often co-occurs with offline forms of male-to-female assaults like rape, stalking, and beatings. Additionally, to further understand the scope of factors that contribute to the problems of online image-based sexual abuse online, researchers should examine the relationship between image-based sexual abuse and pornography consumption. Summary Future studies should be specially designed to test theories that prioritize the concepts of gender, power, control, and patriarchy. Further, despite the creation of new legislation aimed at curbing image-based sexual abuse, the criminal justice system's response has, thus far, been woefully inadequate. Hence, additional means of prevention and control are necessary. A multidisciplinary approach may involve mental health and sexual wellness awareness campaigns that include ethical behaviors in a digital space. Also, clinical assessment and treatment may be part of creating long-term changes at individual, interpersonal, and societal levels with psychosexual education that investigates core beliefs and harmful operating systems that facilitate image-based sexual abuse. Moreover, testing and providing empirically validated treatments for those who experienced sexual trauma and those who perpetrated and consumed digitized sexual abuse are warranted.
Research Interests:
Obtaining accurate survey data on the prevalence of woman abuse in institutions of higher education continues to be a major methodological challenge. Underreporting is difficult to overcome; yet, there may be effective ways of minimizing... more
Obtaining accurate survey data on the prevalence of woman abuse in institutions of higher education continues to be a major methodological challenge. Underreporting is difficult to overcome; yet, there may be effective ways of minimizing this problem. One is adding a supplementary open-ended question to a primarily quantitative questionnaire. Using data derived from the Campus Quality of Life Survey (CQLS), this article examines whether asking respondents to complete such a question increases the prevalence rates of four types of woman abuse and provides information on behaviors that are not included in widely used and validated measures of these harms.
Research Interests:
Research on violence against members of college lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities has rapidly grown in the past few years. Prevalence studies show that sexual minorities enrolled at institutions of higher... more
Research on violence against members of college lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities has rapidly grown in the past few years. Prevalence studies show that sexual minorities enrolled at institutions of higher learning are at higher risk of being victimized by sexual assault, stalking, and intimate partner violence (IPV) than their heterosexual counterparts. However, it is unclear how widespread multiple victimizations of the same type, or multiple victimizations of different types (polyvictimization), is among LGBTQ college students. The study also looked at negative peer support (NPS), which is closely related to the male peer support variable shown many times to be related to college student victimization Although NPS has been found to contribute to this problem among broader groups of students, there has not been specific evidence that LGBTQ students are multiple or polyvictimized. Using data from a survey conducted at a large residential school in the South Atlantic region of the United States, this article documents the breadth of LGBTQ poly-victimization at this research site covering more than 25 forms of sexual harassment, sexual assault, IPV, and stalking. This study is the first to document that the presence of NPS increases the amount of polyvictimization among LGBTQ students. Probit analysis shows that attachment to abusive peers is strongly related to polyvictimization across all variables; receiving NPS increases the probability of multiple forms of victimization.
Research Interests:
Regardless of their contributions to some of the most important scientific advances in the field, feminist sociological analyses of various types of male-to-female violence that prioritize the concept of patriarchy have leveled off or... more
Regardless of their contributions to some of the most important scientific advances in the field, feminist sociological analyses of various types of male-to-female violence that prioritize the concept of patriarchy have leveled off or declined in the last 12 years, especially in North America. This article describes how mainstream work came to dominate the field and suggests a few strategies for challenging the hegemony of orthodox perspectives on sexual assault, beatings, technology-facilitated abuse, and other forms of woman abuse.
Research Interests:
Sociological research on male-to-female violence against women in rural places has mushroomed over the past 20 years. Nonetheless, theoretical developments are not keeping pace with the burgeoning contemporary empirical literature. This... more
Sociological research on male-to-female violence against women in rural places has mushroomed over the past 20 years. Nonetheless, theoretical developments are not keeping pace with the burgeoning contemporary empirical literature. This article reviews the current state of sociological theoretical work in the field and suggests new ways of thinking theoretically about woman abuse in rural places.
Research Interests:
Sociological research on male-to-female violence against women in rural places has mushroomed over the past 20 years. Nonetheless, theoretical developments are not keeping pace with the burgeoning contemporary empirical literature. This... more
Sociological research on male-to-female violence against women in rural places has mushroomed over the past 20 years. Nonetheless, theoretical developments are not keeping pace with the burgeoning contemporary empirical literature. This article reviews the current state of sociological theoretical work in the field and suggests new ways of thinking theoretically about woman abuse in rural places.
Research Interests:
Predicting recidivistic severity in forensic populations would prove useful to tribunals deciding on sentence length, deciding on determinate versus indeterminate sentences, and applying “significant risk” statutes. In an exploratory... more
Predicting recidivistic severity in forensic populations would prove
useful to tribunals deciding on sentence length, deciding on determinate
versus indeterminate sentences, and applying “significant risk” statutes.
In an exploratory study, we combine actuarial and self-report data to
“predict” current severity of offending, in a forensic population in which
all individuals are past offenders. Current criminal charges against a
group of inmates (participants) in a Canadian, forensic psychiatric unit,
were related to basic demographic and diagnosis information from psychiatric
files, past offenses, and a few easily administered and scored
pencil-and-paper tests. Many participants previously held Not Criminally
Responsible due to Mental Disorder for at least one criminal offense.
The collected information “predicted” current offense(s), producing R’s
of .60, .57 and .89 for N = 171 males and 28 females. Limitations include
the need for replication with prospective designs and a better scale
to measure severity of violence. Implications for practice and policy are
discussed.
useful to tribunals deciding on sentence length, deciding on determinate
versus indeterminate sentences, and applying “significant risk” statutes.
In an exploratory study, we combine actuarial and self-report data to
“predict” current severity of offending, in a forensic population in which
all individuals are past offenders. Current criminal charges against a
group of inmates (participants) in a Canadian, forensic psychiatric unit,
were related to basic demographic and diagnosis information from psychiatric
files, past offenses, and a few easily administered and scored
pencil-and-paper tests. Many participants previously held Not Criminally
Responsible due to Mental Disorder for at least one criminal offense.
The collected information “predicted” current offense(s), producing R’s
of .60, .57 and .89 for N = 171 males and 28 females. Limitations include
the need for replication with prospective designs and a better scale
to measure severity of violence. Implications for practice and policy are
discussed.
Research Interests:
Heavily influenced by broad definitions of crime developed by a few pioneering critical criminologists, the main objective of this article is to provide evidence showing that the current Trump administration is a regime that commits... more
Heavily influenced by broad definitions of crime developed by a few
pioneering critical criminologists, the main objective of this article is to
provide evidence showing that the current Trump administration is
a regime that commits crimes of the powerful and facilitates some types
of interpersonal violence in private places. Special attention is devoted to
direct and in-direct state-perpetrated violent crimes against women.
pioneering critical criminologists, the main objective of this article is to
provide evidence showing that the current Trump administration is
a regime that commits crimes of the powerful and facilitates some types
of interpersonal violence in private places. Special attention is devoted to
direct and in-direct state-perpetrated violent crimes against women.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Sociological research on violence against rural women quickly exploded on the scene in the latter part of the last decade. There is now strong international empirical evidence showing that rural women are at greater risk of experiencing... more
Sociological research on violence against rural women quickly exploded on the scene in the latter part of the last decade. There is now strong international empirical evidence showing that rural women are at greater risk of experiencing various types of intimate violence than are their urban and suburban counterparts. Nevertheless, more sociological empirical and theoretical contributions are necessary. The main objective of this paper is to describe the current state of sociological knowledge about intimate violence against rural women and to suggest new directions in understanding this problem.
Research Interests:
Over the past few years, college campuses across the United States have conducted climate surveys primarily aimed at gleaning quantitative data on the extent and distribution of sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and stalking.... more
Over the past few years, college campuses across the United States have conducted climate surveys primarily aimed at gleaning quantitative data on the extent and distribution of sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and stalking. Conspicuously absent from these surveys are measures of two other serious problems that plague many students in this current era: hate crimes and bias incidents. Using data from the 2016 Campus Quality of Life Survey, the main objective of this article is to help fill a major research gap by presenting data on the prevalence and key demographic correlates of these two behaviors. One of the main findings is that close to 60% of the sample reported being victimized because of their real or perceived race/ ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, or political orientation.
Research Interests:
Researchers have accumulated much social scientific knowledge about the scope, distribution, causes, and outcomes of the physical and sexual abuse of female students in North American institutions of higher learning. However, surveys of... more
Researchers have accumulated much social scientific knowledge about the scope, distribution, causes, and outcomes of
the physical and sexual abuse of female students in North American institutions of higher learning. However, surveys of
technology-facilitated stalking and the dissemination of unwanted sexual messages/images in college campus communities
are in short supply. The few that have been conducted do not identify key sociological risk factors associated with these
two electronic forms of victimization. This paper, then, has two objectives: (1) to examine the influence of two types of
negative peer support and (2) to determine if being the target of technology-facilitated stalking and receiving unwanted sexual
messages/images are associated with female students’ intimate partner violence and sexual assault experiences. The results
confirm that the two variants of negative peer support examined in this study are significant predictors of digital victimization
and that such abuse is strongly associated with intimate partner violence and sexual assault.
the physical and sexual abuse of female students in North American institutions of higher learning. However, surveys of
technology-facilitated stalking and the dissemination of unwanted sexual messages/images in college campus communities
are in short supply. The few that have been conducted do not identify key sociological risk factors associated with these
two electronic forms of victimization. This paper, then, has two objectives: (1) to examine the influence of two types of
negative peer support and (2) to determine if being the target of technology-facilitated stalking and receiving unwanted sexual
messages/images are associated with female students’ intimate partner violence and sexual assault experiences. The results
confirm that the two variants of negative peer support examined in this study are significant predictors of digital victimization
and that such abuse is strongly associated with intimate partner violence and sexual assault.
Research Interests:
Pornography affects millions of people’s relationships, attitudes, values, beliefs and behaviors. This is not surprising because porn is, as documented by a wealth of research and Culture Reframed resources, widely used, produced and... more
Pornography affects millions of people’s relationships, attitudes, values, beliefs and behaviors. This is not surprising because porn is, as documented by a wealth of research and Culture Reframed resources, widely used, produced and distributed around the world. Indeed, porn consumption is not a rare act committed by a small group of pathological people. There is much cultural and health-related damage associated with porn, and social scientists, particularly psychologists and sociologists,
continue to advance a rich empirical understanding of its harmful impacts. This report briefly reviews social scientific knowledge about the harms of porn and suggests new directions in research. Following in the footsteps of the contributors to the anthology Violence Against Women and Children: Mapping the Terrain,1 these three questions will be addressed: What do we know? How do we know it? What are the next steps?
continue to advance a rich empirical understanding of its harmful impacts. This report briefly reviews social scientific knowledge about the harms of porn and suggests new directions in research. Following in the footsteps of the contributors to the anthology Violence Against Women and Children: Mapping the Terrain,1 these three questions will be addressed: What do we know? How do we know it? What are the next steps?