Taking Stock in Wildlife Crime Research: Trends and Implications for Future Research

ABSTRACT

Wildlife crime is an emerging topic of study within criminology and criminal justice (CCJ). This study provides the first-ever systematic review of the state of wildlife crime research by CCJ scholars to describe and better understand how it has evolved over time and where the opportunity for expansion exists. Data gathered from a search of the Criminal Justice Abstracts database is analyzed to address ten hypotheses concerning overall trends. Findings show that quantitative studies are rare in the literature with the majority of studies being conceptual or theoretical in nature. Further, the literature is concentrated among researchers, countries, universities, and journals, and that research relies heavily on certain methods, foci, and theories.

Disclosure Statement

The author(s) declare that they have no competing interests. This manuscript has not been published elsewhere and that it has not been submitted simultaneously for publication elsewhere.

Notes

¹ See the Center for Conservation Criminology and Ecology events page for more information.

² See all eight green criminology edited collections here: https://www.routledge.com/Green-Criminology/book-series/GREENCRIM.

³ Based on personal experience by the second author of this article and based on the experiences of colleagues publishing in the wildlife crime field.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sara C. McFann

Sara C. McFann is a PhD candidate of International Crime and Justice at Florida International University. She received a B.A. in linguistics from the University of Maryland and an M.S. in Criminal Justice from Florida International University. She is actively involved in research projects on domestic violence, wildlife crime, situational crime prevention, and program evaluation.

Stephen F. Pires

Stephen F. Pires is an Associate Professor in the Department of Criminology & Criminal Justice at Florida International University. He is an expert on the illegal wildlife trade with a particular focus on commonly poached species (i.e., hot products), illicit markets, and the organization of the illegal trade, and has co-authored the book, “Wildlife Crime: An Environmental Criminology and Crime Science Perspective” (2018).