VTechWorks

VTechWorks provides global access to Virginia Tech scholarship, including journal articles, books, theses, dissertations, conference papers, slide presentations, technical reports, working papers, administrative documents, videos, images, and more by faculty, students, and staff. Faculty can deposit items to VTechWorks from Elements, including journal articles covered by the University open access policy. Email vtechworks@vt.edu for help.

Recent Submissions

The Credibility Gap: Epistemic Injustice and Neurodivergence in U.S. Legal Contexts

Van Vorce, Hailey; Parti, Katalin; Armour, Chelsea; Edgin, Jamie O. (Sage, 2026-04-10)

Neurodivergent people, including individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, continue to face systemic barriers to meaningful and fair participation in the U.S. justice system. Legal standards governing competence, credibility, and culpability remain anchored in expectations of neurotypical communication and reasoning. These expectations do more than shape procedures; they define who is heard, believed, and ultimately brought to justice. This commentary examines forensic ableism, the privileging of neurotypical cognition and communication in legal contexts, through Fricker's framework of epistemic injustice, with a focus on testimonial injustice. In practice, credibility judgments are rooted in neurotypical norms that often devalue neurodivergent testimony. Across competency evaluations, credibility assessments, and capital sentencing decisions, disability-linked patterns of expression and interaction are frequently misinterpreted as signs of unreliability or diminished competence. Addressing forensic ableism requires the redesign of legal processes and broadened disability education to aid in the recognition of diverse cognitive and communication profiles as legitimate ways of knowing and participating. We call for reforms grounded in accessibility, epistemic humility, and collaboration with the neurodivergent community.

Was Sutherland right? An analysis of cryptocurrency offenders

Dearden, Thomas E.; Parti, Katalin; Hawdon, James E. (Emerald, 2026-04-09)

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the applicability of conventional criminological theories to white-collar offenders involved in cryptocurrency-related market manipulation, specifically pump-and-dump schemes. Using Sutherland’s differential association (DA) framework as a theoretical foundation, this research tests whether demographic and theoretical factors – such as self-control, DA, anomie and strain – predict illegal financial behavior in emerging digital markets. Design/methodology/approach: Survey data from a national sample of US adults on the promotion of cryptocurrencies for financial gain were analyzed using t-tests and regression models. Findings: The findings of this study suggest that traditional theories of crime, including DA, anomie and strain, lose predictive significance when demographic variables are considered. High-income, male and younger individuals were most likely to engage in cryptocrime in general. Overall, the results of this study highlight the complexity of white-collar criminality in digital spaces and suggest that financial and demographic factors outweigh conventional criminological theories when predicting involvement in cryptocrime. Originality/value: This paper considers early notions of white-collar crime against modern online financial crimes. The authors addressed the intersection of criminological theory and modern cryptocurrency crime.

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