Dr. Paul J. Becker

Hello and welcome to my homepage

Education / Work Experience

• Associate (tenured) Professor of Sociology (Fall 2005 - current): University of Dayton    

• Affiliated with Criminal Justice Studies

• Assistant Professor of Sociology (Fall 2002 - Summer 2005): University of Dayton

• Assistant Professor of Criminology (1996-2002): Morehead State University

• Doctorate Degree in Sociology (1992-1996): Bowling Green State University           

• Dissertation: Ohio’s Ethnic Intimidation Law: An Application of McGarrell and Castellano's Integrated Conflict Model of Crime Legislation and Policy.

• Comprehensive exams: (1) Major area of Criminology with a specialization in Corrections, (2) Minor area of Social Psychology, (3) Research Methodology & Statistics

• Adult Probation Officer (1989-1992): Elkhart (Indiana) City Probation Department

• On-call / Substitute Worker (1989-1992): Elkhart County Juvenile Detention Center

• Master's Degree in Criminology (1987-1989): Indiana State University

• Bachelor's Degree (1983-87): ISU - Major in Criminology, Minor in Psychology

• Hometown: Elkhart, Indiana (1983 graduate of Elkhart Central High School )

What Do I Teach?

• I usually teach three classes every semester including a section of Sociology 101       (either honor's or regular) and a section of Criminology Theory.

• My third class through Winter 2009 is the Senior Project, which is the sociology major capstone course.  For this class, students conduct a research project which involves collecting original data or analyzing an existing data set.

• For my third class, beginning with the Fall Semester 2009, I'll teach a section of Victimology one semester and will alternate between Visual Sociology / Criminology  and Crime, Film, & Society the other semester.

• I usually teach two online courses every summer: Soc 101 and either Corrections or the Sociology of Extremism.

• At UD I have also taught Corporate Crime and the Community as a special topics course.

• In the past (at Morehead State, Bowling Green State, and the University of Toledo) I have taught Criminology, Deviant Behavior, Juvenile Delinquency, Domestic Terrorism, Introduction to Criminal Justice Systems, Contemporary Social Problems, History of Corrections, White-Collar Crime, Sociology of Punishment, and Sociology of Sport.

• In addition, I have taught Sociology of Law (combined undergraduate and graduate class) and graduate courses in Criminology Theory and Deviance.

• I have also supervised both graduate and undergraduate independent research projects and criminology internships, and have served on graduate and honor's thesis committees. 

Areas of Specialization

• Hate Crimes

• White Supremacy, Racialist, and Anti-Government Beliefs and Organizations

• Sociology of Law, The Creation of Law

• Visual Sociology / Criminology

• Corporate and State Crime, Environmental Inequality and Environmental Justice

• The Internet and the Exploitation of Children

• The Portrayal of Crime and Justice in Movies and Television

Additional Research and Teaching Interests

• Victimology

• Cultural Criminology and Sociology

• Criminology Theory and Policy Issues

• The Sociology of Punishment, History of Corrections, Community Corrections

• Commemorating Traumatic (On the Community and National Level) and Historic Events

• Issues Related to Pedagogy

• Domestic Terrorism