Lisa Broidy

Distinguished Professor

Education: 

Ph.D., Washington State University (1997)

Research Interests: 

Crime, Law, and Social Control, Gender, Criminology

Criminological Theory, Female Offending, Developmental Criminology, Collateral Consequences of Incarceration, Domestic Violence

Research Statement: 

My research focuses on the ways in which gender frames the structural, individual and situational processes associated with violence and antisocial behavior.  Building primarily from General Strain Theory and Developmental & Life Course Theories, my work contributes to the growing theoretical and empirical literatures that account for gender differences in criminal involvement while also recognizing the significant heterogeneity that characterizes women’s pathways into and out of crime. I examine the relationship between gender and crime in both contemporary and historical contexts in the U.S. and cross-nationally. In investigating why women offend at much lower rates than men, my work suggests that the structural and social contexts women navigate limit their opportunities and motivations for serious offending. At the same time, my work illustrates that, throughout the life course girls and women confront a range of challenges that, for some, do prove criminogenic and can have both short and long term consequences for their offending trajectories. My work also examines the implications of these gendered processes for criminal justice policy and practice, particularly around female incarceration and domestic violence.

Recent/Select Publications: 

• Siegrist, Ella and Lisa Broidy. 2025. How Jailed Mothers Envision Future Motherhood in the Context of State Intrusion: Fawn, Flight, or Fight. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, Special issue on Gender, Intersectionality, Crime, and Justice. https://doi.org/10.1177/10439862251341180

• Kuluk, Ayda, Troy Allard, Carleen Thompson, James Ogilvie, and Lisa Broidy. 2025. Examining the timing of mental health contacts across female offending trajectories. Health & Justice. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40352-025-00338-4.

• Stacy De Coster and Lisa Broidy. 2024. Current Perspectives on Female Offending. Pp. 32-51 in Sandra L. Browning, Leah C. Butler, and Cheryl Lero Jonson, Eds. Advances in Criminological Theory titled Gender and Crime: Contemporary Theoretical Perspectives. Routledge.

• Lorine Hughes and Lisa Broidy. 2024. Masculinities and respect in the group context of gangs. Pp. 395-412 in David Pyrooz, James Densley, and John Leveroso, Eds. The Oxford Handbook of Gangs and Society. Oxford University Press.

• Broidy, Lisa and Ella Siegrist, 2023. "Prioritizing Protection: How Jailed Women Challenge Maternal Stigma" Feminist Criminology. https://doi.org/10.1177/15570851231189757

Courses:

Gender and Crime

Causes of Crime

Developmental/Life Course Criminology

Gender & Crime (graduate)

Theories of Crime (graduate)