The Criminology Academy

Ep. 117 Defining School Shootings and Arming Teachers with Benjamin Comer

Welcome to Episode 117 of The Criminology Academy podcast, where we are criminally academic. In this episode, we are speaking with Professor Benjamin Comer and his work around school shootings.

Benjamin Comer is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Texas Christian University. His research focuses on gun violence, school gun violence, and mass gun violence. His additional areas of research focus on data accuracy and comparability, as well as spatial criminology. Benjamin received his PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice from Sam Houston State University.

Ep. 116 Risk Needs Assessments with Zach Hamilton

In this episode, we are speaking with Professor Zach Hamilton about his work on risk-needs assessments.

 

Zachary Hamilton is a Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice and Associate Director of the Nebraska Center for Justice Research at the University of Nebraska Omaha. His research centers on innovation in risk and needs assessment development. Specifically, he works directly with adult corrections and juvenile justice agencies to create assessments that are optimized for their agency’s needs. Zachary earned his PhD in Criminal Justice in 2010 from Rutgers University.

Ep. 115 The Uber, AirBnB, and Crime with David Kirk

In this episode we speak with David Kirk about the gig economy (Uber; AirBnb) and how it relates to crime. 

David Kirk is a professor in the Department of Criminology and Research Associate of the Population Studies Center at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his PhD in sociology from the University of Chicago and previously served on the faculties at the University of Oxford, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Maryland. His research agenda is primarily organized around three interrelated themes: the causes and consequences of cynicism and distrust of the police and the law, solutions to criminal recidivism, and the causes and consequences of gun violence.

Ep. 114. Public Perceptions of What Rape is with Megan Augustyn

We spoke with Professor Megan Augustyn about public beliefs and rape, the Rochester Youth Development Study, and research on middle adulthood.

Megan Augustyn is an associate professor in the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida State University. She received her PhD in 2013 from the University of Maryland. Her research focuses on the study of the causes and consequences of crime, victimization, and other health-risk behaviors across the life course. Megan is the Principal Investigator of the Rochester Youth Development Study. 

Ep. 113 Brain Trauma and Mental Health in the Criminal Justice System with Joseph Schwartz

This week we speak with Joseph Schwartz about the effect traumatic brain injuries can have on criminal behavior. We also discussed correctional officer mental health and its impact on thej ob. 

 

Joseph A. Schwartz is an associate professor in the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Florida State University. His current work focuses on the long-term physical and mental health implications of chronic stress exposure, as well as on the role of traumatic brain injury in the development of behavior problems and health outcomes.

Ep. 112 Studying and Measuring Sex Trafficking in the United States with Teresa Kulig

Teresa Kulig is an associate professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Nebraska Omaha, where she coordinates the Doctoral and Fast Track programs. Dr. Kulig is also co-director of the Victimology and Victim Studies Research Lab. She earned her PhD from the University of Cincinnati in 2018. Her research interests include studying the nature and control of sex and labor trafficking, the measurement and theories of victimization, public opinion on responses to victimization, and the social construction of crime.

Ep. 111 Studying Gun Violence Through Neighborhood and Social Networks with Andy Papachristos

In this episode we speak to Andy about the connection between social networks, neighborhoods, and crime. 

Andrew V. Papachristos: John G. Searle Professor of Sociology at Northwestern University. He directs the Institute for Policy Research and the Center for Neighborhood Engaged Research & Science. His work applies network science to urban issues like gun violence, police misconduct, and street gangs.

Ep. 110 Urban Green Spaces and Crime with James Wo

James Wo is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology at the University of Iowa and a senior research fellow at the University of Iowa Public Policy Center. His research interests include neighborhoods and crime, spatial inequalities, local institutions and organizations, land uses, and quantitative research methods. He received his PhD in Criminology, Law, and Society from UC Irvine.

Ep. 109 Early Career Series: Being an Teaching Professor with Colby Valentine

This week we speak with Colby Valentine about what it's like to be a Professor of Instruction at a major university. 

Colby Valentine is an Assistant Professor of Instruction in the Department of Criminology at the University of South Florida. Dr. Valentine received her B.A. in Sociology with an emphasis in Criminal Justice from the University of Pacific (2005), her M.S. in Criminology and Criminal Justice from San Diego State University (2007) and her Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice from Florida State University (2012). Her research focuses on correctional-based research (i.e., prison misconduct, jail visitation, solitary confinement), victimization (i.e., sex and labor trafficking, intimate partner violence) and criminology and criminal justice pedagogy. She teaches on various topics such as research methods, criminological theory, corrections, and victimization.

Ep. 108 Reflection Series: Legitimacy and Procedural Justice with Tom Tyler

This week we spoke with Professor Tom Tyler. We reflected on his career and how he became interested in criminology. We also discuss his major contributions to the field: his work on police legitimacy and procedural justice. Finally, Tom gives us his thoughts on the field and advice for the future. 

 

Tom Tyler is the Macklin Fleming Professor Emeritus of Law and Professor of Psychology at Yale Law School, as well as a Founding Director of The Justice Collaboratory. In 2024, he was awarded the prestigious Stockholm Prize in Criminology for his research on legitimacy and procedural justice. He holds a PhD in social psychology from the University of California at Los Angeles.