Using social science to understand and promote criminal justice in Hawai‘i

For Students

Interested students at UH Mānoa can join the Crime Lab, but know what to expect before joining!

Group Meetings

The group meeting is the heart of Crime Lab. Every week, the whole lab meets for an hour over Zoom. During group meetings, students share what they have learned and/or accomplished that period, as well as share any challenges they have run into. Some students may be invited to summarize and lead a discussion on a new piece of published criminological research, a new crime report, or a given local news story on crime. Others may present their findings or troubleshoot a problem with the group.

Group Slack Channel

In between group meetings, group members will participate on a group slack channel. They may post links to local crime or criminal justice news stories they find noteworthy, links to interesting criminological research studies, or ask quick questions.

Expectations

All group members are expected to regularly attend the group meetings and participate in the slack channel. To fully engage with the group meetings and group slack channel, all students will be expected to review the local news at least weekly (become or stay an informed citizen) and to peruse academic journals that publish criminological research (engage in continuous learning). Beyond that, the exact set of tasks will vary depending on student interest and the current needs of the lab.

Examples of data-analysis tasks:

  • First week of every month: Check the HPD Crime Dashboard to update the numbers of violent and property crimes committed the previous month.
  • Second week of every month: Check the HPD Crime Dashboard to focus on violent crimes in a chosen district.
  • Fourth week of every month: Write a local crime news “roundup” (e.g., the top five crime stories) and put them in context of what we’re finding in the Crime Observatory of O‘ahu.
  • When new reports come out: Compare Honolulu or Hawai‘i’s crime rates to comparable cities and states’ crime rates.
  • Help construct month-over-month or year-over-year comparisons of the crime rates to establish trends or even a “crime forecast.”
  • Quarterly: Review the Major Cities Chiefs’ crime report looking at Honolulu/O‘ahu’s violent crime relative to other comparable cities.

Examples of reading, writing, and other communication-focused tasks:

  • Outline and host a podcast putting Hawai‘i’s crime news in criminological and statistical perspective or communicating Crime Lab findings to a broader audience
  • Create TikTok, YouTube, or other short videos communicating Crime Lab findings to a broader audience (check out this article on the value of video essays)
  • Write a book review (summarize the argument and offer your reactions) of an academic book about crime rates
  • Construct infographics for the Crime Lab to share with local and social media
  • Coauthor an op-ed responding to local news coverage of crime (use social science methods and insights to offer context and reaction)
  • Arrange and conduct zoom interviews with public officials and write a blog post analyzing the interview along with quotes

Students should commit to approximately five hours of work/engagement a week.

Optional Coworking Sessions

Throughout each week, we will have scheduled (but optional) virtual coworking sessions. These hour-long zoom sessions are available for lab members to log on, commit to focused work on a task of their choice, work for 45 minutes, and then share how things went (what they accomplished or what problems occurred). The goal is to build camaraderie, encourage accountability, and facilitate short periods of focused work to make progress toward small, achievable goals.

To Join

Students interested in participating in the Crime Lab should sign up for a SOC 499 (Directed Reading and Research) by the second week of the semester; email Dr. Rubin to access the CRN.

Students who have specific ideas for research projects are encouraged to apply for UROP funding (deadlines 10/10 and 3/3). UROP provides funds to students to conduct research under professor supervision. Students can use the funds as a stipend (to pay themselves an hourly wage), to purchase necessary equipment (hardware, software, subscriptions, etc.), or to travel to conferences to present their research.

Students who are still new to research and do not have a specific idea in mind can also apply to UROP’s ERC fund to receive a stipend to come up with a research project and write their application for a UROP grant.

Want More Criminology?

The Sociology Department at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa offers more criminology courses than any other department on campus. Check out these courses:

  • SOC 218 Introduction to Social Problems (3)
  • SOC 231 Introduction to Juvenile Delinquency (3)
  • SOC 232 Introduction to the Sociology of Punishment (3)
  • SOC 332 Sociology of Law (3)
  • SOC 333 Criminology (3)
  • SOC 335 Survey of Drugs and Society (3)
  • SOC 336 Deviant Behavior and Social Control (3)
  • SOC 337 Criminal Justice Organizations (3)
  • SOC 374 Law, Politics, and Society
  • SOC 431 Advanced Criminology & Juvenile Delinquency (3)
  • SOC 432 Punishment & Society (3)
  • SOC 433 Analysis in Law and Social Change (3)
  • SOC 435 Women and Crime (3)
  • SOC 438 Prisons (3)
  • SOC 445 Analysis in Gender Violence (3)
  • SOC 446 Gender Violence Over the Lifecycle (3)
  • SOC 495 Topics in Sociology (3)

As part of their bachelor’s degree, students can specialize in criminology by satisfying the Sociology major requirements and taking their electives in the Crime, Law, and Social Control area.