Margaret A. Zahn is an American sociologist and

criminologist Criminology (from Latin , "accusation", and Ancient Greek , ''-logia'', from λόγος ''logos'' meaning: "word, reason") is the study of crime and deviant behaviour. Criminology is an interdisciplinary field in both the behavioural and so ...

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

. She received her PhD in sociology from the

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

in 1969. Zahn has served as president of the

American Society of Criminology The American Society of Criminology (ASC) is an international organization based on the campus of Ohio State University whose members focus on the study of crime and delinquency. It aims to grow and disseminate scholarly research, with members wo ...

and has received Fellow of the American Society of Criminology for Outstanding Lifetime Career Achievement.

Professional career

Zahn has served as a professor at multiple universities. She began her tenure-track career at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

, where she worked as a professor in the Department of Sociology from 1969 until 1987. From 1987 until 1990, she served as professor and chair for the Department of Sociology, Social Work, and Criminal Justice at

Northern Arizona University Northern Arizona University (NAU) is a public research university based in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was founded in 1899 as the final public university established in the Arizona Territory, 13 years before Arizona was admitted as the 48th state. ...

. At

University of North Carolina-Charlotte The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC Charlotte or simply Charlotte) is a public education, public research university in Charlotte, North Carolina. UNC Charlotte offers 24 doctoral, 66 master's, and 79 bachelor's degree programs ...

, Zahn served as chair of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology and as associate dean in the College of Arts and Sciences from 1990 to 1995. Zahn began working at

(NCSU) in 1995 and is currently emerita professor of sociology. While at NCSU, she has served as dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences from 1995 to 2001. While on leave from NCSU, she served in leadership roles for the Violence and Victimization Division and the Office of Research and Evaluation at the

National Institute of Justice The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) is the research, development and evaluation agency of the United States Department of Justice. NIJ, along with the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), Office of Juvenil ...

in Washington, D.C. Zahn has help multiple positions in the

and the

American Sociological Association The American Sociological Association (ASA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the discipline and profession of sociology. Founded in December 1905 as the American Sociological Society at Johns Hopkins University by a group of fif ...

. In 1997, she served as president of the American Society of Criminology. From 1999 until 2001, she served on the board of directors of Consortium of Society Sciences Associations. Zahn retired in 2017. As of 2019, she is professor emerita at NCSU.

Awards

Zahn has received multiple awards including Fellow of the American Society of Criminology for Outstanding Lifetime Career Achievement and the Herbert Bloch Award from the American Society of Criminology. She received the Spivak Award from the American Sociological Society.

Research and publications

Zahn has published multiple peer-reviewed articles and books. She primarily studies violence, girls' delinquency, and homicide. Some of her publications include: *"Stranger homicides in nine American cities".

Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology The ''Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology'' ("JCLC") is a peer-reviewed, student-run academic journal published by the Northwestern University School of Law Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law is the law school of Northwestern ...

, 1987. *"Determining what works for girls in the juvenile justice system: A summary of evaluation evidence".

Crime & Delinquency ''Crime and Delinquency'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes papers in the field of Criminology. The journal's editor is Paul E. Tracy (University of Massachusetts Lowell). It has been in publication since 1955 and is currently pu ...

, 2009. *''The Delinquent Girl''.

Temple University Press Temple University Press is a university press founded in 1969 that is part of Temple University (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania). It is one of thirteen publishers to participate in the Knowledge Unlatched pilot, a global library consortium approach t ...

, 2009. *"Causes and correlates of girls' delinquency". Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

US Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...

, 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zahn, Margaret A. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American criminologists American women criminologists North Carolina State University faculty Ohio State University Graduate School alumni Temple University faculty Northern Arizona University faculty