Correlates and Consequences of Adolescent Victimization and Offending

BJS’s Visiting Fellows Program aims to facilitate collaboration between academic scholars and government researchers in survey methodology, statistics, economics, and social sciences. Visiting fellows have the unique opportunity to address substantive, methodological, and analytic issues relevant to BJS programs and to further knowledge about and understanding of the operation of the criminal justice system. Fellowship applicants are expected to have a recognized research record or considerable expertise in their area of proposed research. Applicants must submit a detailed research proposal, which will be evaluated on the applicability of the research to BJS programs, the value of the proposed research to science, and the quality of the applicant's research record. The program offers researchers an opportunity to conduct statistical research in a particular area of mutual interest to them and BJS, examine innovative approaches to the analysis and dissemination of BJS data, and interact with BJS staff to gain first-hand knowledge of developments in BJS statistical programs. Each year the solicitation identifies priority project areas for applicants to consider addressing in preparing their proposals.

This award is being made to The Pennsylvania State University on behalf of BJS Visiting Fellow Dr. R. Barry Ruback, for the project entitled, “Correlates and Consequences of Adolescent Victimization and Offending.”

The fellowship has three goals:

(1) The visiting fellow plans to continue his past research on repeat victimization, hate crimes, and the reporting of crime to the police. Noting that adolescents have high rates of victimization of all types and relatively low rates of reporting victimizations to the police, it is felt that the three research areas would be central to a better understanding of the correlates and consequences of adolescent victimization. These research questions would be analyzed primarily using data from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS).

(2) The visiting fellow will work with BJS and OJJDP staff on projects with reference to ongoing programs at OJJDP. In particular, two research initiatives that would examine mediating mechanisms would be relevant. One is the victim-offender overlap, which would examine proposed individual-level mechanisms. The second is how drug and alcohol use mediate the link between victimization and repeat victimization and the reciprocal link between victimization and offending.

(3) The visiting fellow will work with BJS and OJJDP staff to develop a set of analyses and statistical tables that would be undertaken and published on a regular basis (e.g., every year, every three years), in the same way that BJS publishes reports on victimization, prisoners, etc. on a predetermined schedule. In addition to these three research goals, the proposed project would help in the training of at least one PSU graduate student in the use of data collected by BJS and of interest to OJJDP. (CA/NCF)

Note: This project contains a research and/or development component, as defined in applicable law.