NCJ Number
180580
Date Published
1999
Length
13 pages
Annotation
An exploratory study examined the criminal and deviant behavior of criminologists, using a mail survey of a random sample of 1,500 ASC members during the summer of 1998.
Abstract
The survey received 522 responses, for a response rate of 35 percent. The anonymous questionnaires included measures of 44 individual forms of crime, deviance, or unethical behaviors. It asked participants whether they had ever engaged in these behaviors, whether they had engaged in these behaviors in the past 12 months, and whether the behaviors were subject to formal or informal adjudication. Fifty-four percent of the participants were male, 46 percent were female, 87 percent were white, 4 percent were black, 4 percent were Asian, 3 percent were Hispanic, 1 percent were Native American Indian, and 1 percent were other. Fifty-eight percent were married; 11 percent were separated, divorced, or widowed; and 31 percent were single. Sixty-two percent had doctoral degrees; another 29 percent had master's degrees. Ninety-two percent reported speeding, 84 percent had used departmental supplies for personal use, 47 percent had witnessed a crime and not reported it, 36 percent had verbally threatened another person, 66 percent had driven under the influence of alcohol or another drug, 19 percent had committed tax fraud, and 66 percent had accepted free computer software. Eighteen percent had violated a job-related rule in the past, and 9 percent had exaggerated their achievements for gain. Findings indicated that criminologists are to some extent what they study and that crime and deviance are normal, even among criminologists. Tables and 23 references