I want you to be an informed citizen who can help improve our society by reducing crime. To achieve this outcome, which aligns with the fourth course-level outcome listed above, you are tasked with using a criminological theory to solve a hypothetical community-level crime problem (or potential problem). For this project, you will choose one of the hypothetical community-level crime problems below, select and provide a detailed description of the criminological theory (one covered in class or the textbook) you believe can explain the problem you selected, and provide a detailed description of how you propose, based on what the theory selected argues and its policy implications, to address the problem.
Community-Level Crime Problems (you select one):
The Police Chief of your township just received the precinct’s latest crime statistics and noticed a sizeable increase in burglaries, auto thefts, and car break-ins in the business district (a one-mile strip of road with restaurants, shops, apartments, and offices). The Police Chief brings this up at the next Civic Engagement Advisory Board meeting, which you serve on, and asks board members to assist in coming up with a solution to this problem. As an individual who has studied criminology, you tell the Chief you’ll write a proposal specifying a criminological theory that can explain why the problem is occurring and possible solutions based on this theory.
The Principal of your township’s high school has noticed increased damages, vandalism, and defacement of school property immediately following dismissal. The Principal brings this up at the next School Board meeting, which you serve on, and asks board members to assist in coming up with a solution to this problem. As an individual who has studied criminology, you tell the Principal you’ll write a proposal specifying a criminological theory that can explain why the problem is occurring and possible solutions based on this theory.
A Residential Reentry Center (RRC) (also referred to as a halfway house) is being built in your community, and due to your knowledge of criminology, you’ve been asked to sit on its board. This RRC will assist individuals transitioning from prison to the community (e.g., help finding housing and employment, vocational and educational training, substance and mental health treatment, and healthcare service). The Director of the RRC solicits the board members to identify additional programs the center can offer based on criminology to help ensure that individuals who come to this center have a strong foundation for success (meaning, they are less likely to re-offend). You take on this challenge and tell the Director you’ll write a proposal specifying a criminological theory that can explain why individuals engage in crime and possible solutions to prevent them from doing so.
This short, formal paper should be approximately 950 words (excluding the reference page). To ensure credit is given to the author of the theory you selected (or if you use any other resources to complete this project), in-text citations and a reference page are required. You can format your in-text citations and reference page in APA or MLA. I suggest using the citation style you are most familiar with. Abstracts, cover pages, and running headers are not required. All projects should be accompanied by a Grammarly report of at least 80% (to ensure everyone does this, only submissions with evidence of this report will be graded).
This assignment is due during finals week and is worth 10% of your grade. Submit your capstone project to its corresponding Dropbox on D2L, which is checked for plagiarism and AI usage using Turnitin. Additional instructions, including a grading rubric and citation resources, are provided on D2L. If you have any questions, please let me know. Also, I realize citations can be tricky. If you need help, I’m here to assist.
Steps to completing the capstone project:
Choose one of the hypothetical community-level crime problems above.
Select a criminological theory to explain the chosen community-level crime problem.
Provide a detailed description of the criminological theory (one covered in class or the textbook) you believe can explain the community-level crime problem you selected (≥375 words = approximately a page and a half). Be sure to include in-text citations when necessary.
Provide a detailed description of how you propose addressing the selected crime problem using the chosen theory’s propositions and policy implications. In other words, based on the theory you choose, what do you suggest we do to address the crime problem (the policy solutions) (≥375 words)? Be sure to include in-text citations when necessary.
Write an introduction (placed at the beginning of the paper) and a conclusion (placed at the end of the paper) (together ≥200 words).
Create a reference page.
Run your paper through Grammarly and make suggested changes.
Upload your paper and Grammarly report with 80% or higher to D2L.
