Criminal Justice & Political Science Masters Theses

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Browsing Criminal Justice & Political Science Masters Theses by browse.metadata.program "Criminal Justice"

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    Effectiveness of Restorative Justice Programs in the Prevention of Juvenile Crime
    (North Dakota State University, 2014) Buchholz, Maria Mae
    This study examined how restorative justice programs impact the probability of recidivism among juvenile offenders. It compared juveniles who completed restorative justice programs versus juveniles who were released with warning from the courts. Both groups were compared to determine if restorative justice juveniles outcomes differed based on recidivism. Logistic regression showed that restorative justice programs had statistically significant increased odds of recidivating when compared to juveniles released with a warning. However, when the groups of restorative justice were disaggregated, only the adjudicated juveniles were statistically significant. Survival time analysis showed that restorative justice juveniles have longer survival times of recidivism when compared to juveniles released with a warning. Suggestions for further research and analysis are discussed with respect to the current results.
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    The Effects of the DUI 24/7 Program in Cass County, North Dakota
    (North Dakota State University, 2019) Berge, Christine Marie
    This study presents the results of an evaluation of the 24/7 Sobriety Program in Cass County, North Dakota, looking specifically at participants’ likelihood of receiving a conviction of Driving Under the Influence (DUI) both during and after exiting the program. Data was collected of participants who have been enrolled in the program from the start of the program in 2010 through 2018 and matched to public criminal records searches of each participant. Several analyses were run to determine whether substance choice (alcohol vs. drugs), gender (male vs. female), and duration in program influence a participant’s likelihood to recidivate. Findings for each measure are presented including potential changes that could be made, as well as, limitations of the study.
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    Juvenile Perceptions of the Police and Police Services
    (North Dakota State University, 2011) Sanden, Michael Brian
    This study examined the impact of four categories of variables (demographics, neighborhood context variables, contact with the police, and vicarious influence variables) on juvenile perceptions of the police and police services. Data analyzed in this study were collected as part of a larger research evaluation that examined the impact of law enforcement efforts in relation to violent crime. Students from one middle school were surveyed. Statistical analysis consisted of a series of One-Way ANOVA tests and several ordinary least squares regression (OLS) models. The study found significant results for both dependent variables within all four categories of independent variables. Policy implications and suggestions for further research are discussed.
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    Predictors of Drug Court Success in a Small City Drug Court
    (North Dakota State University, 2013) Fangman, Melinda Sue
    This study examines the factors related to completion outcomes of the East Central Judicial District Drug Court (ECJDDC). The ECJDDC has a 71% graduation rate which far exceeds the national average of approximately 40-45%. The dataset included information on 250 participants who entered the drug court from 2003-2011. Factors included in the analysis include those related to living situation, family situation, socioeconomic status, veteran status, current offense, and prior criminal history in addition to sex, race, and age. Logistic regression determined that the strongest predictors of graduation relate to education, income, employment, and living situation. Policy implications, practice, and future research are discussed with respect to the current results.
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    Residential Mobility and Substance Use among Area Youth: The Mediating Effects of Social Capital
    (North Dakota State University, 2017) Rapp, Andrea Mae
    This study examined self-reported substance use in relation to social capital and residential mobility by administering a survey to high school students attending three Midwestern schools. The results of this study provide partial support for social capital theory. Pearson’s correlations indicate a relationship between residential mobility and two social capital variables, community involvement and community support. Results from binary logistic regression and linear regression find that students with higher levels of family and school social capital report lower levels of substance use, and higher levels of peer support are related to higher levels of reported substance use. Further exploration of interactions between social capital measures and residential mobility finds that peer support suppresses the other social capital variables in relation to substance use. Although little support was found for residential mobility, other variables found to be significant with social capital and substance use include immigration status and grade.
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    A Revalidation of the Level of Service Inventory–Revised (LSI-R)
    (North Dakota State University, 2020) Towers, Crystal Murani
    In the United States, the large number of incarcerated individuals presents heavy social and economic burdens. To lessen these strains, many criminal justice agencies utilize risk assessment to determine which individuals are at a higher risk of recidivating and allocate limited intervention resources accordingly. To ensure these interventions are being delivered to those persons most in need, these risk assessment instruments must be tested for predictive validity. The present research seeks to revalidate one such risk assessment tool, the Level of Service Inventory Revised (LSI-R), on an adult offender population of a Midwest state. Additionally, this research expands on previous LSI-R validation studies by assessing the predictive validity of the LSI-R on an understudied population, Native Americans. The analyses utilized in this research include univariate descriptive statistics, bivariate correlation, and Receiver Operator Characteristic/Area Under the Curve analysis. Results are presented. Policy implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.
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    The Veracity of Self-Reported Criminal Records among NDSU Students
    (North Dakota State University, 2013) Keimig, Kelsey Anne
    Campus safety and security are important concerns for colleges and universities. One way security is addressed is through utilization of self-report questions about criminal backgrounds during the admissions process. The current study evaluates this admissions policy by using a systematic random sample of 1,400 students to compare self-reported criminal backgrounds with criminal records listed in four online databases. Results indicate that two individuals within the sample failed to report their criminal backgrounds which included simple assault, burglary, theft, possession of controlled substance, and drug paraphernalia. While the failed reporting rate appears low, caution should be taken interpreting the results. A number of policy implications and directions for future research are discussed.