Demonstration Project

Transcription

1 Demonstration Project Aaron Chalfin Assistant Professor School of Criminal Justice Office: 665AB Dyer Hall Phone: (513) Website: Course Description The purpose of this demonstration project is to complete a large writing and research project on your own. While it will involve a good amount of work and I imagine has generated some anxiety for you, this really is a terrific opportunity one I hope you will be able to take full advantage of. My own experience is that an independent research project offers a tremendous opportunity for intellectual and personal growth. The ability to understand and critically analyze research is one of the core skills that gives meaning to the credential you are in the process of earning here at the University of Cincinnati. In short, this demonstration project is a chance to train your mind to process information at a very high level. Upon completion, this is an achievement you should be exraordinarily proud of. Indeed I feel very privileged to help you through this process. About the Instructor My name is Aaron Chalfin I m an Assistant Professor in the School of Criminal Justice at the University of Cincinnati. I study many different areas of criminal justice policy. However, much of my current research examines the effect of police manpower on crime and the extent to which there is a relationship between crime and unauthorized immigration. My past research has considered both the cost and deterrent effect of capital punishment, the relationship between unemployment and crime and the degree to which DNA evidence can be used to solve residential burglaries. Prior to joining the UC faculty, I completed my Ph.D. in Public Policy at the University of California, Berkeley and worked as a research associate at the Urban Institute, a policy research organization in Washington DC. Along the way, I earned a master s degree in Economics from Yale University, worked for a management consulting firm and dropped out of law school after a single semester. I m originally from New York City and am a rabid fan of the New York Giants and New York Mets. 1

2 Your Assignment The day-to-day work of individuals employed in law enforcement, corrections and other parts of the criminal justice system involves identifying, capturing, prosecuting, sentencing, and incarcerating offenders. Perhaps the central function of these activities, however, is deterring individuals from participating in illegal activity in the first place. Deterrence is important not only because it results in lower crime but also because, relative to incapacitation, it is cheap. Offenders who are deterred from committing crime in the first place do not have to be identified, captured, prosecuted, sentenced, or incarcerated. For this reason, assessing the degree to which potential offenders are deterred by criminal justice inputs (more intensive policing or harsher sanctions) is a first order policy issue. In this course, you will write a (double-spaced) page paper laying out the principle theories of criminal deterrence as well as summarizing empirical evidence on the degree to which criminal justice inputs such as police and prisons are associated with changes in the propensity of potential offenders to offend. In particular, in your paper, I would like you to answer the following questions: 1. What are the major theoretical approaches in explaining deterrence? 2. What are the main research strategies that have been used to study deterrence? Which are most credible? 3. Are potential offenders deterred by increases in police manpower or by more sophisticated police tactics? 4. Are potential offenders deterred by changes in the severity of criminal sanctions? Note: You are also free to propose your own research topic which I might or might not allow you to pursue. This is a good option for a student who has a compelling interest in and advanced knowledge of a particular topic. However, choosing your own topic can lead to disaster for students without such a background. This is a challenging assignment I have attempted to make things easier for you by identifying papers to read and providing you with a frmaework upon which to base your analysis. Without the benefit of this guidance, you will be left to your own devices to figure out what to read and how to frame your topic. If you would like to propose your own research topic, please contact me by the end of January, at the very latest. Evaluation Your course grade will be determined on the basis of three assignments: Short Professional Biography (5%) **Due January 21, 2014 at 11:59pm EST** Please write a 1-2 page professional biography describing 1) your educational background and career progression to date, 2) why you are studying to earn a master s degree in Criminal Justice and 3) what you d like accomplish professionally in the future. In addition, 2

3 please tell me anything else you d like for me to know about you. This assignment will be graded primarily for completion but it is important that your biography is clear and well-written. Initial Paper Draft (40%) **Due Febrary 28, 2014 at 11:59pm EST** The initial draft of your research paper should be a complete paper and should include a works cited page. The paper should address the theoretical foundations of deterrence research as well as a synthesis of current knowledge with regard to what works. I don t care what format you use for your bibliography as long as it is consistently applied and, for each work, lists the names of all authors and/or editors, the title of the paper, the name of the journal or edited volume and the year of publication. Final Paper Draft (55%) **Due March 29, 2014 at 11:59pm EST** I will provide you with detailed feedback on your initial draft. My feedback will include concrete suggestions for how you can improve your paper. It is your responsibility to integrate my feedback into your manuscript with an eye towards producing a polished and professional final product. I will not use a formula or grading algorithm to determine your grade instead your grade will be based on a holistic review of your research and will reflect the overall quality of your work. Having said that, here are a couple of thoughts on what good work entails: An excellent research paper will be thoughtful, critical and well-analyzed. It will not merely summarize prior research it will integrate the extant literature in a way that allows your reader to have a good understanding of: 1. Theories of deterrence and how these theories are operationalized empirically 1. What we know about deterrence and how we know it 2. What we don t know about deterrence 3. Remaining controversies: On which issues have scholars yet to form of a consensus? Note: Late assignments will not be accepted. Policy on Electronic Communication It is important that you check your official UC account and the Blackboard course management website frequently. This will be the primary means I will use to disseminate course information including important announcements. 3

4 Policy on Accommodations If you have a disability (e.g., visual impairment, hearing impairment, physical impairment, communication disorder, and/or specific learning disability) which may influence your performance in this course, you must talk with the Disability Services Office (DSO) to arrange for reasonable accommodations to ensure an equitable opportunity to meet all the requirements of this course. If you require accommodations due to disability, please contact DSO at [email protected] or (513) Course Withdrawal Please check with your advisor before withdrawing from any course. If you are receiving financial aid there could be repercussions from withdrawing. Also note that only in very rare circumstances will an Incomplete be given. Only students who have been attending class regularly and submitting assignments as required will be considered for an I grade. Academic Dishonesty Academic dishonesty in any form is a serious offense and, because it is unfair to your fellow students, cannot be tolerated in an academic community. Accordingly, university Rules, including the Student Code of Conduct, and other documented policies of the School of Criminal Justice, College, and University related to academic integrity will be enforced. Any violation of these regulations, including acts of plagiarism, cheating, verbatim use of previous course submissions, deception of effort, copying another students work, allowing other students to copy your work, or unauthorized assistance will be dealt with on an individual basis according to the severity of the misconduct. This may result in a failing course grade and/or suspension or dismissal from the program. Students are expected to follow the mandates of the University of Cincinnati Code of Conduct. You may view this information online using the following link: University of Cincinnati Code of Conduct 4

5 Course Readings ** = Required reading (other readings are strongly recommended) Note: I strongly recommend that you read the Winship and Morgan paper before you begin reading any empirical studies. **Becker, Gary S. (1968). Crime and Punishment: An Economic Approach, Journal of Political Economy 76(2), [Skim for basic ideas ignore the math] **Braga, Anthony A. (2005). Hot Spots Policing and Crime Prevention: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials, Journal of Experimental Criminology 1(3), **Chalfin, Aaron and Justin McCrary (2013). Criminal Deterrence: A Review of the Research, Journal of Economic Literature (forthcoming) Chalfin, Aaron, Amelia Haviland and Steven Raphael (2013). What Do Panel Studies Tell Us About a Deterrent Effect of Capital Punishment? A Critique of the Literature, Journal of Quantitative Criminology 29(1): 5-43, **Cullen, Francis T., Cheryl Lero Jonson and Daniel S. Nagin (2011). Prisons Do Not Reduce Recidivism: The High Cost of Ignoring Science, The Prison Journal 9(3): **Durlauf, Steven N. and Daniel S. Nagin (2010). Imprisonment, NBER Working Paper. The Deterrent Effect of **Durlauf, Steven N. and Daniel S. Nagin (2010). Imprisonment and Crime: Can Both Be Reduced?, Criminology & Public Policy 10(1): Cops and Crime, Jour- Evans, William N. and Emily G. Owens (2007). nal of Public Economics 91(1), Johnson, Rucker and Steven Raphael (2013). How Much Crime Does the Marginal Prisoner Buy?, Journal of Law and Economics 55(2) Levitt, Steven D. (1996) The Effect of Prison Population Size on Crime Rates: Evidence from Prison Overcrowding Litigation, Quarterly Journal of Economics 111: **Levitt, Steven D. and Miles, Thomas J. (2006). Economic Contributions to the Understanding of Crime, Annual Review of Law and Social Science 2, Klick, Jonathan and Alexander Tabarrok (2005). Using Terror Alert Levels to Estimate the Effect of Police on Crime, Journal of Law and Economics 48(1),

6 MacDonald, John M., Jonathan Klick and Ben Grunwald (2013). The Effect of Privately Provided Police Services on Crime, University of Pennsylania Working Paper. **Nagin, Daniel S. (1998). Criminal Deterrence Research at the Outset of the Twenty-First Century, in Michael Tonry, ed., Crime and Justice: A Review of Research, Vol. 23, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, pp **Nagin, Daniel S. (2013). Deterrence: A Review of the Evidence by a Criminologist for Economists, Annual Review of Economics 5. **Nagin, Daniel S. and Greg Pogarsky (2000). Integrating Celerity, Impusivility, and Extralegal Sanction Threats into a Model of General Deterrence: Theory and Evidence, Criminology Nagin, Daniel S. and G. Matthew Snodgrass (2013). The Effect of Incarceration on Re-Offending: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Pennsylvania, Journal of Quantitative Criminology Sherman, Lawrence W. and David Weisburd (1995). General Deterrent Effects of Police Patrol in Crime Hot Spots : A Randomized Controlled Trial, Justice Quarterly 12(4), **Weisburd, David, Cody W. Telep, Joshua C. Hinkle and John E. Eck (2010). Is Problem-Oriented Policing Effective in Reducing Crime and Disorder?, Criminology & Public Policy 9(1): **Winship, Christopher and Stephen L. Morgan (1999). The Estimation of Causal Effects from Observational Data, Annual Review of Sociology 25. 6