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Course Description

In this course, you will investigate big data and policy analysis as it is applied to issues of crime, incarceration, and policing practices. Drawing upon an economic perspective, you will examine policymaking in the criminal justice system and how it affects crime rates and mass incarceration trends. Incarceration has disproportionately impacted people of color in the United States, so you will also analyze trends of inequality in the United States criminal justice system and policing practices. Finally, you will explore how algorithms can be used with big data to inform policy and decision making, and you will practice building regression models to make predictions about crime rates.

You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course:

  • Income Inequality and Intergenerational Mobility
  • Impact of Racial-Ethnic Segregation on Education and Neighborhood Inequality
  • Social and Economic Impact of the Early COVID-19 Pandemic

Faculty Author

Maria Fitzpatrick; Matthew Hall

Benefits to the Learner

  • Compare the different types of data that researchers use to measure crime
  • Examine how the number of people in prisons and jails has increased and how this trend has disproportionately impacted people of color
  • Explore research using big data that analyzes incarceration and specific policing practices and their impact on crime levels and other outcomes
  • Identify which policies are associated with lower rates of criminal activity
  • Investigate how algorithms can be used with big data to inform criminal justice policy and decision making and identify how they can be improved to reduce bias

Target Audience

  • Aspiring data scientists and analysts
  • Policy, business, and finance analysts
  • Social science researchers
  • Government program managers
  • Program evaluators
  • City and regional planners
  • Public sector professionals

Applies Towards the Following Certificates

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Cornell Brooks School of Public Policy; Cornell Brooks School of Public Policy
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