Date of Award
2010
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Criminology & Criminal Justice
First Advisor
Hamm, Mark S.
Abstract
As America's incarceration binge begins its fourth decade, one unintended consequence of this social policy has been a growing number of criminologists/sociologists who have personal experience with incarceration as many former convicts have been pursuing education as an avenue for successful re-entry. Some of these ex-convicts have begun to secure PhD's and have been conducting research as well as teaching various university courses in Sociology and/or Criminology and Criminal Justice. Within this thesis the myths maintained by society surrounding crime and prisoners will be discussed. Using survey research, students majoring in Criminology and Criminal Justice (n = 186) at ISU were asked (1) how they would feel to discover that their professor had a criminal record and (2) would they knowingly enroll in a course that an ex-con was teaching? Also, by using an attribution scale, student perceptions on causes of crime will be examined. The findings from this research suggest that most Criminology and Criminal Justice students would welcome professors with a criminal history into the classroom.
Recommended Citation
Frana, John, "Professors with Criminal Records:
Criminology & Criminal Justice Students Views on
Former Convicts as Professors" (2010). All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2234.
https://scholars.indianastate.edu/etds/2234