Not Just a Class You Take to Get a Grade: Practitioner Perspectives on Criminal Justice Statistics Education

In prior research, both students and practitioners rate statistics as less valuable than other topics in criminal justice education. This study adds important context by exploring the specific quantitative skills that criminal justice professionals value. Qualitative interviews and a quantitative survey were conducted with 37 practitioners from a variety of criminal justice occupations. Most participants supported teaching basic statistical concepts and valued the ability to visualize and communicate data, clean and manage flawed data, and critically evaluate the context and limitations of results. They also suggested emphasizing authentic assignments and spreadsheet programs rather than advanced statistical software. Overall, the results affirm the importance of statistics in criminal justice education while illuminating differences between traditional statistics courses and the quantitative skills valued by practitioners. These findings suggest ways to strengthen the professional relevance of statistical skills for criminal justice majors while retaining the rigor and broad goals of liberal arts education.