Beth Bjerregaard

Professor, Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology
Professor, Public Policy Doctoral Program

Faculty Website

Research Interests: Gang Membership; Capital Punishment; Institutional Anomie Theory

Dr. Bjerregaard received her Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the State University of New York. She has since focused on a variety of gang membership and delinquent behaviors, as well as family violence. In researching these topics, she has employed quantitative methodology to the study of behaviors and engaged in legal analyses of the criminal justice system’s response to such behaviors.

• Recent and/or Relevant Publications
• Bjerregaard, Beth and Joseph A. Cochran. “The Role of School-Related Bonding Factors and Gender: Correlates of Gang Membership Among Adolescents” Women and Criminal Justice, 22 (1): 30-53.
• Cochran, John K. and Beth Bjerregaard. (January 9, 2011). “Structural Anomie & Crime: A Cross-National Test” International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology. DOI: 10.1177/0306624X10396071
• Lord, Vivian B., Beth Bjerregaard, Kristie R. Blevins and Holly Whisman. “Factors Influencing the Responses of Crisis Intervention Team-Certified Law Enforcement Officers” Police Quarterly 14 (4): 388-406.
• Bjerregaard, Beth, Sondra J. Fogel, M. Dwayne Smith and Wilson R. Palacios. “Alcohol and Drug Mitigation in Capital Murder Trials: What are the Implications for Sentencing Decisions?” Justice Quarterly 27 (4): 517-537.
• Bjerregaard, Beth. “Gang Membership and Drug Involvement: Untangling the Complex Relationship.” Crime and Delinquency 56 (1): 3-34.

Areas of Research and Teaching Expertise

• Justice Policy
• Methods and Analysis
• Gang Membership
• Capital Punishment
• Institutional Anomie Theory