The journal – A review of its first 45 years
| Author | Philip Stenning,Matthew Manning,Paul Mazerolle |
| Published date | 01 April 2014 |
| Date | 01 April 2014 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0004865813506020 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
Australian & New Zealand
Journal of Criminology
The journal – A review of its
2014, Vol. 47(1) 9–24
! The Author(s) 2014
first 45 years
Reprints and permissions:
sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav
DOI: 10.1177/0004865813506020
Matthew Manning, Philip Stenning
anj.sagepub.com
and Paul Mazerolle
Griffith University, Queensland, Australia
Abstract
Since the inception of the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology in March 1968,
the journal has, without doubt, become the leading criminological journal in the Australasian
region. The founding Editor, Dr Allen Bartholomew, had many hopes and expectations for the
journal envisaging ‘. . . a systematic study of all the measures to be taken in the spheres of
prevention. . .of legislation, of the enforcement of criminal law, of punishments and other
methods of treatment’. In this article, we track the journal’s progress from its inception in
1968 to 2012 (45 years into its future) to assess whether Dr Bartholomew’s hopes and
expectations have materialised and in what ways the study of crime and its prevention has
evolved over the years. We survey the journal’s 45 year journey in in an ever-changing and
dynamic environment by examining issues such as gender and trends in origins of authors,
trends in research methods, the crime issues and how they have evolved over time, and the
journals impact on public policy.
Keywords
Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, crime, criminal justice, criminology,
public policy, research trends
In his editorial in the first issue of the journal in March 1968, the founding editor,
Dr. Allan Bartholomew, wrote:
The Journal, which is to be published quarterly, is intended to provide as wide a forum as
possible for the publication of research and the exchange of ideas in the field of criminology.
We would endorse the view expressed by Professor Radzinowicz that:
It is not a definition that is needed but a workmanlike description of functions.
Criminology, in its narrow sense, is concerned with the study of the phenomenon of
crime and of the factors or circumstances individual and environmental – which may
have an influence on, or be associated with, criminal behaviour, and the state of crime in
Corresponding author:
Matthew Manning, Griffith University, Mt Gravatt Campus, Brisbane, Queensland 4122, Australia.
Email: m.manning@griffith.edu.au
10
Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology 47(1)
general. But this does not, and should not, exhaust the whole subject matter of crimin-
ology. There remains the vitally important problem of combating crime. The systematic
study of all the measures to be taken in the spheres of prevention (direct and indirect), of
legislation, of the enforcement of the criminal law, of punishments and other methods of
treatment, constitutes an indisputable and integral part of criminology. To rob it of this
practical function is to divorce criminology from reality and render it sterile. Its individ-
ual entity lies in the peculiar purpose that brought it into existence: namely, the study of
crime, its conditioning, its prevention and treatment.
We propose to base our publication policy on this broad view of criminology
In this article, we present the results of a descriptive analysis of the journal’s content
during its first 45 years of publication1 to assess the extent to which it has lived up to
these high expectations expressed by its first editor. Further, we also identify how the
journal’s content has changed during those years and what factors may have influenced
the change.
The field of criminology is relatively young, yet the ANZJC has figured prominently
over time as the key vehicle in this region for showcasing research on a broad range of
topics of interest to the readership. The key areas of concern for the readership, as well
as for the field in general, are expected to change over time, driven to some extent by
areas of interest and focus of researchers, theoreticians, as well as prominent shifts in
crime and justice policy. At the same time, the prevailing social context and circum-
stances of each period in question should inform and shape the research undertaken and
submitted for review as well as the likelihood of it appearing in the journal. For example,
concerns over mass shootings and the need for further research on gun control could be
expected to increase after the Port Arthur massacre of 1996, and research on terrorism-
related crimes and policy responses to them could also be expected to increase after the
events on 9/11 and in Bali. So we would expect that a journal such as the ANZJC, with a
broad readership and responsibility, would demonstrate both continuity and discontinu-
ity in areas of publishing trends and foci over time. It is this issue that we explore in this
paper, given the ANZJC’s prominence and presence in the field.
Method
The method employed in this paper is purely descriptive, analysing linear trends and
employing cross tabulations across a range of variables. The project began by identifying
the salient variables that we thought would be of interest to the readers of the journal
and also a range of variables that would examine whether the journal, its editors and
contributors have lived up to the expectations set out by Dr. Allen Bartholomew in the
first issue of the journal in 1968. A focus group was established in 2009 to develop a set
of plausible variables that could be reliably measured. To test the reliability of coding of
each journal article (909 in total), a random set of articles (n ¼ 30) was selected and
coded by three different researchers familiar with crime, criminal justice and criminology
issues. The samples were then compared to assess the level of variability in coding.
Minor changes to the coding frame were then made and a re-test conducted by the
same researchers. Upon examination of the results, it was concluded that the coding
Manning et al.
11
tool used to assess each article was reliable and that the coding could begin. The coding
took approximately 11 months. Upon completion of coding, a sample was once again
selected to measure the reliability of the coding method. This was undertaken to check
that coding had not drifted away from original definitions. Little variation was found.2
For most of its life, the journal has published three issues a year.3 This has allowed
it to publish an average of 20 main articles4 and 10 book reviews5 each year.
Editorials, review essays, obituaries and other notices have also been included in
some years. In this review, we focus only on main articles and not on other kinds
of publications such as book reviews, editorials, obituaries and other items. We ana-
lysed the main articles published from Volume 1(1) to Volume 45(2) in terms of the
following nine variables: (1) the editors; (2) the authors – focusing on single- and
multiple-authored papers, by authors’ gender and location (Australian, New Zealand
or other international);...
To continue reading
Request your trial