Criminology so white? How race/ethnicity is represented, presented, and discussed in criminology and criminal justice research

• In Event: Testing Key Theories and Concepts: New Strategies and Long-Standing Challenges

Abstract

A small body of literature has examined the numeric representation of racially/ethnically diverse individuals as researchers and participants in criminology and criminal justice research. Fewer studies have examined how race/ethnicity are presented and discussed in the research findings, or how these factors vary based on author or editor characteristics, journal, and article placement. To contribute to this literature, a quantitative content analysis of five peer-reviewed journals in the fields of criminology and criminal justice was conducted. Guided by norm theory from the field of psychology and the gendered innovations framework for scientific research, particular attention was paid to visual and linguistic orderings, discussions and generalizations of race/ethnicity, and numeric representation of research participants. Findings are considered in relation to the racial/ethnic normalization of justice-involved individuals, the possible reproduction of racial/ethnic stereotypes in research publications, and how scholars of criminology and criminal justice can rethink the way knowledge is presented and discussed.

Authors

• Amanda M. Petersen, University of California, Irvine

• Jody Sundt, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis