NIJ: Graduate Research Fellowship 2008

Sponsor: The National Institute of Justice (NIJ)

The Graduate Research Fellowship is an annual NIJ program that provides assistance to universities for dissertation research support to outstanding doctoral students undertaking independent research on issues related to crime and justice. Students from any academic discipline may propose original research that has direct implications for criminal justice in the United States. NIJ encourages a variety of approaches and perspectives in its research programs. NIJ awards these fellowships in an effort to encourage doctoral students to contribute critical and innovative thinking to pressing criminal justice problems.

NIJ’s current priority topic areas: NIJ’s specific research and evaluation interests are evaluated and revised in response to the needs of the field. Successful applicants should demonstrate how the proposed research advances basic knowledge, practice, or policy in one of these designated areas or should make a compelling case for proposed research in other areas of crime and justice. Both quantitative and qualitative studies are encouraged. Special consideration will be given to applicants who use the most rigorous research methods applicable to their proposed research topic—in particular, experimental or randomized designs—to maximize the validity and reliability of findings.

Law enforcement/policing: Research on, or evaluation of—

• Strategies for improving the effectiveness, efficiency, and productivity of police and law enforcement agencies, and for enhancing officer safety, particularly through better use of public/private policing partnerships.

• Procedures and technologies used to collect, analyze, and disseminate information effectively and to facilitate secure and reliable communication.

• Procedures, policies, technologies, and basic knowledge that will maximize the effectiveness of appropriate and lawful police and public safety interventions.

• The characteristics of partnerships between law enforcement agencies and researchers that lead to effective problem-solving, and the relative importance of those characteristics.

• Law enforcement efforts to prevent and prepare for acts of terrorism or mass violence.

Biometrics: Research on, or evaluation of biometrics technologies, or novel applications, of biometrics technologies that will:

• Reduce crime.

• Enhance law enforcement and corrections officers’ abilities to correctly identify cooperative and noncooperative individuals.

• Secure the identity of individuals in the criminal justice system.

Justice systems: Research on, or evaluation of—

• The impact of criminal or juvenile justice system policies, practices, and programs on the community, system, or organization, including the impact of differing sentencing strategies.

• State or local funding structures that affect criminal justice cost effectiveness or cost shifting.

• The “downstream” impact of the policies or practices of one part of the system on another (e.g., the effect of court operations on managing prison populations or the impact of correctional practices on parole and reentry).

Courts, prosecution, and defense: Research on, or evaluation of—

• Specialized courts and prosecution strategies.

• Charging and plea bargaining.

• System costs, cost effectiveness, and indirect and opportunity costs of differing criminal justice strategies.

• Court services for litigants and other criminal justice participants who have special needs.

• Community prosecution.

• Criminal justice court systems improvement strategies.

• Information technology applied to the judicial process.

• The effect of introducing new, sophisticated scientific evidence on criminal justice court systems.

Corrections: Research on, or evaluation of—

• Safe, secure, and cost-effective management of adult and juvenile offenders in prisons, jails, and community corrections, including special offender populations.

• Causes of violence and strategies for reducing violence, including sexual assault and other misconduct, in prisons and jails.

• Policies and practices for managing high-risk offenders.

• Information technology and other types of technologies (e.g., offender tracking and monitoring technologies) applied to community and institutional corrections.

• Approaches to increasing the cost effectiveness of operations or programs to control system costs.

Offender programs and treatment: Research on, or evaluation of, corrections-based treatment and intervention strategies, their effectiveness in influencing offender behaviors, and their impact on operations. This may include studies of substance abuse, sex offending, educational or vocational programs, programs operated by community-based (including faith-based) organizations, and programs designed to encourage successful reentry of offenders into the community.

Crime prevention and the causes of crime: Research on, or evaluation of—

• Delinquent or criminal behavior, intervention strategies, and prevention programs.

• Crime prevention in specific situations or environments using physical design, access control strategies, and other technologies.

• Community-based and faith-based programs to preventing crime.

• Deterrence mechanisms that prevent crime.

• Cost-benefit methods that can be applied to crime prevention or control programs or that assess the cost effectiveness of specific crime prevention strategies, programs, and technologies.

Violence and victimization, including violent crimes: Research on, or evaluation of—

• Strategies to prevent and intervene in child abuse and neglect, other victimization of children, and youth violence (e.g., teen dating violence or relationship violence, school violence, bullying, hate crime).

• Repeat and series victimization.

• Strategies for understanding and preventing white collar crime, identity theft, and elder fraud.

• Victims of trafficking and services for trafficking victims.

• Crime victim compensation and assistance programs.

• Efforts to reduce community violence.

• Policies and interventions to address crime victims’ needs.

Drugs, alcohol, and crime: Research on, or evaluation of—

• The relationships between drugs, alcohol, and crime.

• Drug-control policies and initiatives.

• Growth in new and emerging drug markets.

• Disruption of drug markets and drug sales.

• Development of technologies used to test for illicit drugs.

International crime and justice: Research on or evaluation of—

• Transnational crime and its impact on the United States at the Federal, State, or local levels (including terrorism, corruption, organized crime, human trafficking, crime arising from the absence of rule of law, cyber crime, and drug trafficking).

• The nature and interaction of the criminal groups involved in these crimes and assessments of the harm they cause.

• Criminal justice responses to transnational crime.

Amount: $ 20,000

Deadline: November 28, 2007

For further information, please visit: http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/sl000794.pdf