Victim Researcher Profile

BIO

Dr. Heather Zaykowski is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Massachusetts Boston. She received her Ph.D. in Criminology in 2011 and Masters in Sociology in 2008 from the University of Delaware. Dr. Zaykowski's research interests include victimization, youth violence, the intersection of victimization and offending, and police-community relationships. Her skills include quantitative methods (SPSS, Stata) and evaluation research (mixed methods), including collaboration with local community organizations. Dr. Zaykowski has extensive experience working with local programs and multidisciplinary and multi-organizational teams. For the past three years, she has been the Principal Investigator and Local Research Action Partner for the Metro Mayor Coalition Senator Charles E. Shannon Jr. Community Safety Initiative. This collaborative group includes eight police agencies (including a multi-city youth gang task force) and one to two representative youth-serving organizations from cities in the Greater Boston Area. Dr. Zaykowski is responsible for developing and implementing youth risk assessments, conducting community risk assessments and leading evaluation activities. She has also served as the lead evaluator for the OJJDP funded Second Chance Act Reentry Program for Juveniles with Co-Occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disorders and was the Principal Investigator for other youth-focused evaluations including Youth-Police Dialogues: Examining the Long Term Impact of the YW Boston Model and The Effectiveness of Alternative Programs in Juvenile Justice: Central Region Reception Center Program Evaluation. She also served as the lead evaluator in a SAHMSA funded study of chronically homeless adults with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders. Dr. Zaykowski's research has appeared in notable peer reviewed journals such as the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, the American Journal of Criminal Justice, the Journal of Traumatic Stress, Crime and Delinquency, Sociological Forum, the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, the British Journal of Criminology, and Violence and Victims. (Photo by Harry Brett/UMass Boston)

VICTIMIZATION FOCUS

Drug-Related Victimization, Hate and Bias Crimes, Physical Assault (other than domestic violence or elder abuse), Robbery, Youth/School Violence

SPECIAL POPULATIONS

American Indian and Alaska Native (tribal) victims, Child victims, Male victims generally, Urban high crime neighborhood victims

RESEARCH EXPERTISE

Descriptive studies, Needs assessment, Program evaluation, Qualitative studies, Quantitative studies

VICTIM RESEARCH EXPERIENCE

Quantitative studies