A series of questions related to the readings will be used to assess your comprehension and understanding of the concepts discussed in the assigned materials. Responses for Questions 1 and 2 should be 1–2 paragraphs in length (1-page maximum length for each question) and must thoroughly address all parts of the assigned questions. Responses to Question 3 should be 1 paragraph in length (approximately half a page).

Throughout the semester, the purpose of the readings is to explore and understand the subtlety of themes related to law and social control. Although the readings may be about differing topics, there will be some concept, theme, or pattern that link the questions/articles together. The third question for each writing assignment will be your opportunity to identify and describe the theme(s) that you have identified during your reading. The course, overall, is about law and social control though, so when identifying themes, you will need to dig deeper into the concepts and material than the concepts at the surface. There will not be just one specific theme linking the questions/articles that you must identify; this question is your opportunity to take a position, explain how and why you have come to that position, and provide support for it.

Your response should be based on your understanding of the material, please provide direct answers to each question, not summaries of the assigned readings. The questions are structured to require that you think analytically and critically about the material when providing your response. The assigned questions are about the theories, ideas, topics, etc. discussed in the readings, not the findings of the individual readings assigned. Assigned readings serve as an example of concepts discussed in the course, but they should not be interpreted as the definitive position related to an area of research. If your response focuses primarily on explaining the results of an assigned reading, it is unlikely that you are addressing the assigned question. If you find yourself simply summarizing or paraphrasing the material described in the reading when addressing the question, stop, review the assigned question, and consider how your response addresses the concepts discussed throughout the module. Additionally, when addressing Question 3, you should be describing common theme(s) present across all assigned articles. The underlying question for Question 3 is, why were these articles assigned together? You will be identifying these themes independently as part of Modules 5–7.

In your answers, do not use direct quotations from any sources. When providing support for your positions or examples to illustrate your points you may draw on the assigned readings, academic journal articles, or books. Please do not reference websites, magazines, newspaper articles, or other non-academic sources. Additionally, support for positions or examples may not be drawn from your individual opinions or experiences (See the “Helpful Information and Examples” page on the course homepage for a discussion of the difference between taking an academic position and a personal opinion.).

Be sure to address all portions of the assigned questions. APA style must be employed in your assignments for citations, formatting, and references. Please include only one combined reference section for all responses. Instances of plagiarism will result in a score of zero for the assignment, and the use of direct quotations will result in a 50% reduction in score.

Throughout the course of this semester, I will evaluate and critique your responses and writing. I will also provide feedback to your responses. Feedback is intended to assist you in improving your writing or to consider the assigned material from a different perspective.

Dr. Matusiak's description of Questions 1-3

Please answer the questions below:

1. “Felon” is a term that carries with it many implications, how might Chiricos et al.’s (2007) findings related to withholding adjudication influence the role of different types of social control on offenders? Are labels provided by the criminal justice system effective? Explain your position.
2. Kuo et al. (2012) assessed the social dimensions (stratification, morphology, culture, organization, and social control) of Black’s theory regarding the behavior of law to evaluate victims' reporting behaviors in Taiwan. Their findings did not fully refute or demonstrate support for Black's theory, which is similar for most research on this topic throughout the world. Therefore, are stratification, morphology, culture, organization, and social control present in all societies, or do societies vary in the social dimensions they exhibit; why? Are the mixed findings related to social dimensions an issue of measurement (operationalization) rather than conceptualization? Explain.
3. According to the authors, how we identify things (e.g., labels and interpretations) can influence control. Why are the labels described by Chiricos et al. (2007) and Kuo et al. (2012) important to society’s understanding of social control? Explain your reasoning.

Please upload your response as a Word (.doc or .docx) file. Your response is worth 50 points.