Contact: Sarah Nicholas<\/a><\/p>\n STARKVILLE, Miss.\u2014A Mississippi State sociology faculty member is a selection for the New Scholar Award from the American Society of Criminology\u2019s Division on Women and Crime.<\/p>\n Tara E. Sutton is being recognized for her comprehensive career in the field of criminology and her research into trauma as a predictor of crime. An assistant professor of sociology, she also is an affiliated faculty member in the Gender Studies program. Sutton\u2019s award honors the achievements of scholars who show outstanding merit early in their careers.<\/p>\n ASC is the national organization for criminologists in the U.S. but also includes international members. Organized in 1941, it fosters the exchange of scholarly information among criminology scholars. The ASC\u2019s largest unit, established in 1984, the Division on Women and Crime facilitates and promotes research and theory development, pedagogical strategies, and curricular enhancement that strengthen the links between gender, crime and justice.<\/p>\n \u201cI was so excited to be recognized by the DWC, because to me, that signals my research is making a difference in the field of feminist criminology by contributing to greater understandings of the influence of gender, sexuality and race in relation to experiences of violence and crime,\u201d Sutton said. \u201cI also think this award recognizes that I am trying to take a compassionate approach to difficult issues. I hope my work can be used to better support victims of violence and to draw attention to the fact that sometimes negative behaviors, like crime, are actually responses to trauma and adversity. When viewed through that lens, treatment and justice become the focus over punishment and ostracization.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n An MSU faculty member since 2018, Sutton\u2019s research centers on predictors and outcomes of family and sexual violence or other forms of trauma. She studies the social and family contexts of intimate partner violence, sexual assault, child abuse and other criminal behavior with a focus on women, Black families and LGBTQ+ young adults.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn one paper of particular interest to the DWC and published in their journal, \u2018Feminist Criminology,\u2019 I\u00a0incorporated work by Black feminists and feminist criminologists who have highlighted the inextricably linked influences of race and gender on Black girls and women\u2019s lived experiences,\u201d Sutton said. \u201cFindings demonstrated that racial discrimination has long-term detrimental effects on Black women akin to the impact of early sexual and physical abuse. These early traumas influenced women\u2019s crime by increasing school difficulties, psychological distress and substance use.\u201d<\/p>\n Sutton received her Ph.D. in sociology in 2018, master\u2019s degree in human and family science in 2012, and bachelor\u2019s degree in psychology in 2010, all from the University of Georgia.<\/p>\n She is the principal investigator of a current project funded by MSU\u2019s College of Arts and Sciences\u2019 strategic research initiative, \u201cEarly Adverse Experiences and Sexual and Relational Violence Among College Students in Mississippi.\u201d<\/p>\n For more about MSU\u2019s Department of Sociology, visit www.sociology.msstate.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n MSU\u2019s College of Arts and Sciences is home to the most diverse units for research and scholarly activities, including natural and physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and the humanities.\u00a0For more details about the College of Arts and Sciences, visit www.cas.msstate.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n MSU is Mississippi\u2019s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Studio](\"\/sites\/www.msstate.edu\/files\/inline-images\/Sutton_Tara_20220210_RL57978_tes285_half.jpg\"\/)