Conference Program

Sixth Annual International Crime, Media, and Popular Culture Conference
Indiana State University, Terra Haute, Indiana. Attended September 22-24, 2014.
Established to encourage international cross-disciplinary exchange between academic scholars and practitioners engaged in research, teaching, and practices associated with crime, media, and popular culture.

Conference Paper

The Impacts of New Media on Copycat Crime: An Overview
People often imitate models of behavior they see around them. Both an individual and social level phenomenon, copycatting may occur through a number of biological, psychological, and social processes. However, modeled behavior may not conform to the norms, values, and culture of society. This negative modeling may be seen in copycat crime where people choose to copy prior crimes exhibited in the media. With the emergence of "new media" has come changes in the individual experience and a shift in culture and society. This exploratory study formulated measurement models to determine if any relationship exists between new media and copycat crime potential. Findings suggested that new media has the potential to lead to copycat crime through many of the same processes as traditional media. However, due to its on-demand access, interactive user feedback, and extensive content, new media has even greater potential than traditional media to influence potential copycats.

Conference Presentation

New Media and Copycat Crime