Date of Award

9-4-2015

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Criminal Justice

First Advisor

Mary Parker

Abstract

This study examines contextual- and individual-level predictors of adult sentencing outcomes for felony offenders in the state of Arkansas from 2005 to 2009. Contextual- and individual-level variables are used to determine the effects of conflict and social disorganization theory on sentencing outcomes and/or disparities as the individuals vary by race/ethnicity across counties. In the United States, where whites are the majority, theoretically laws and policies should demonstrate oppressive results on the minorities. Criminological literature illustrates sentencing disparities based on race and/or ethnicity, depending on location. One consistent theoretical perspective that emerges from the literature for explaining this phenomenon is conflict theory, which states that the criminal justice system operates for the powerful and discriminates against the poor and minorities. Minority threat perspective, a perspective that has grown out of conflict theory, allows this researcher to narrow the focus from an overarching conflict theory foundation. One shortcoming of research on minority threat is the lack of analysis for all three components of this perspective (political, economic, and racial) and focuses solely on the proportion of minority populations in a community. This paper examines the effects of minority threat perspective and social disorganization theory on sentencing outcomes for violent felony convictions in Arkansas from 2005 to 2009. The expectation is that racial disparities in sentencing outcomes should be found given the small minority population. County-level characteristics of both social disorganization theory and minority threat perspective will be used to examine sentencing outcomes. The data analyzed in this study include Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) data on felonies docketed in Arkansas courts at the individual-level. American Community Survey (ACS) data are publically available and will allow analyses at the contextual-level. Data from Dave Leip’s Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections will be used to analyze the contextual-level impact of political affiliation on each county’s sentencing outcomes. The findings of this research are surprising in that there is mixed support for minority threat perspective, and social disorganization theory is not supported strongly. Further research is needed to tease out more detailed information. This researcher proposes various avenues for future study.

Download

Included in

Criminology Commons

Share

COinS