Bianca Bersani

As a life course criminologist, Dr. Bersani's research interests involve the study of patterns and predictors of offending from adolescence through adulthood. Key themes include the investigation of desistance and persistence in offending, the factors that facilitate and hinder desistance from criminal offending, divergence in offending across race/ethnicity, gender, and immigration status, and the application of innovative methodologies to understanding the mechanisms of behavioral change.

Dr. Bersani is also the Director of the Maryland Crime Research and Innovation Center (MCRIC). MCRIC offers academic expertise, conducts research, integrates data, builds partnerships between government, academia, and industry, and develops and evaluates innovative criminal justice strategies aimed at preventing and reducing crime.

Dr. Bersani earned her Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Maryland, M.A. in Sociology and B.A. in Sociology and Psychology from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.