Most Influential Scholars in Criminology and Criminal Justice, 1986-2020

This brief examines the influence and prestige of scholars and works in the field of criminology and criminal justice, as well as changes in influence and prestige over a period of 35 years, using citation analysis. Based on responses to prior research, most criminologists consider the results both fascinating and thought-provoking, although methods of measuring scholarly influence are also highly controversial. The brief includes 35 years of data (1986 through 2020) on the most-cited scholars and works in major American and international criminology and criminal justice journals, and provides an objective measure of scholarly influence and prestige. Appropriate for graduate students and researchers, it helps to document the intellectual development of criminology and criminal justice as a field of study. Preface Contents About the Authors Chapter 1: Citation Analysis in Criminology and Criminal Justice 1.1 Overview 1.2 Uses of Citation Analysis 1.3 Sources of Data 1.4 Cohn and Farrington’s Citation Research 1.5 Most-Cited Scholars and Works in Four Major International Journals 1.6 Most-Cited Scholars and Works in Six Major American Journals 1.7 Most-Cited Scholars and Works in 20 Journals 1.8 Criminal Career Concepts in Citation Analysis 1.9 Limitations of Citation Analysis 1.10 Conclusion References in the Text Chapter 2: Methodology 2.1 Selecting a Source of Citation Data 2.2 Journal Selection 2.3 Selecting Four International Journals 2.4 Selecting Six American Journals 2.5 Selecting 20 American and International Journals 2.6 Obtaining the Citation Data 2.7 Counting Citations 2.8 Limitations of This Methodology 2.9 Strengths of This Methodology 2.10 The Current Research References in the Text Chapter 3: Most-Cited Scholars in Four International Journals 3.1 Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology (ANZ) 3.2 British Journal of Criminology (BJC) 3.3 Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice (CJC) 3.4 Criminology (CRIM) 3.5 Most-Cited Scholars in all Four Journals 3.6 Most-Cited Works of the Most-Cited Scholars 3.7 Conclusion References in the Text Chapter 4: Most-Cited Scholars in Six American Criminology and Criminal Justice Journals 4.1 Journal of Quantitative Criminology (JQC) 4.2 Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency (JRCD) 4.3 Justice Quarterly (JQ) 4.4 Journal of Criminal Justice (JCJ) 4.5 Criminal Justice and Behavior (CJB) 4.6 Most-Cited Scholars in Six American Journals 4.7 Most-Cited Works of the Most-Cited Scholars 4.8 Conclusion References in the Text Chapter 5: Most-Cited Scholars in 20 Journals 5.1 Citations in 20 Journals 5.2 Most-Cited Scholars in Each Journal 5.3 Most-Cited Scholars in Groups of Five Journals 5.4 Most-Cited Scholars in Groups of 10 Journals 5.5 Most-Cited Scholars in all 20 Journals 5.6 Most-Cited Works of the Most-Cited Scholars 5.7 Prevalence, Frequency, Specialization, and Versatility 5.8 Conclusion References in the Text Chapter 6: Conclusions 6.1 The Main Contribution of this Book 6.2 Policy Implications 6.3 The Way Forward 6.4 Final Conclusions References in the Text References Index