Date of Award

1998

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

Abstract

This study investigated the characteristics of student judicial offenders. The sample of 1,179 college students who were found guilty of violating rules and standards at a Midwestern university over a ten year period, 1985–1994. Nineteen demographic characteristics were examined. These variables were: alcohol use, maternalEducation and occupation, paternalEducation and occupation, a measure of socio-economic status, hometown size, affiliation in a Greek letter organization, major, semester and cumulative grade point average, class standing, ethnicity, gender, residence, and verbal, math and total SAT scores. Also, the characteristics of offenders that were repeat offenders and those students who were involved in serious offenses were examined. Two null hypotheses were examined. The first investigated the variables or any subset of variables that would predict level of offense utilizing a multiple discriminant analysis. The second investigated the variables or any subset of variables that would predict recidivism utilizing a multiple discriminant analysis. The a step wise multiple discriminant analyses provided insight into offenders who were involved in serious offenses and those who were repeat offenders. Five predictive variables were determined for offenders involved in serious offenses. These included: alcohol use, gender, residence, major, and Greek affiliation. Three predictive variables were determine for repeat offenders which included: class standing, cumulative grade point average, and ethnicity. Demographic data provided a profile of the average student judicial offender.

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