NCJ Number
229578
Journal
Criminal Justice Studies Volume: 22 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2009 Pages: 421-434
Date Published
December 2009
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This study explored crime specialization among a group of college student computer criminals.
Abstract
While the prior research on whether or not offenders specialize and if certain offender sub-groups (e.g., violent, property, drug, and sex offenders) may tend to specialize more than others has typically produced results that suggest that most offenders do not specialize, one offender sub-group, for example, computer criminals, have largely been ignored in this literature. Relying on official longitudinal data sources for a large sample of college students, this study sought to examine if computer criminals tend to specialize and to explore what, if any, factors may distinguish computer crime specialists from generalists. Results suggested that age, being White, having a high grade point average (GPA), and not being affiliated with a Greek fraternity or sorority significantly predicted specialization. Study limitations and suggestions for future research are also discussed. Tables, figure, notes, and references (Published Abstract)