Richard A. Ball

Richard A. Ball is Professor Emeritus at Pennsylvania State University. He received his doctorate from Ohio State University in 1965. He served as Program Head for Administration of Justice for the 12-campus Commonwealth Colleg of Penn State and earlier as Chair of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at West Virginia University. Professor Ball has also been a member of a number of editorial boards and an officer in different professional organizations. He has authored several monographs on community power structure and on correctional issues, and he has coedited two books on white-collar crime. He has authored or coauthored more than 100 articles and book chapters, including articles in the American Journal of Corrections, American Sociological Review, The American Sociologist, British Journal of Social Psychiatry, Correctional Psychology, Crime and Delinquency, Criminology, Deviant Behavior, Federal Probation, International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice, International Social Science Review, Journal of Communication, Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, Journal of Small Business Management, Journal of Psychohistory, Justice Quarterly, Northern Kentucky Law Review, Qualitative Sociology, Rural Sociology, Social Forces, Social Problems, Sociological Focus, Sociological Symposium, Sociology and Social Welfare, Sociology of Work and Occupations, Urban Life, Victimology, and World Futures. He is Sage coauthor of House Arrest and Correctional Policy: Doing Time at Home (1988). His work extends beyond criminology to include philosophy, history, and cultural analysis as well as organizational dynamics and evaluation research. He has done cross-cultural field work, served as chief, Central Testing Branch, U.S. Army, and worked in both state and federal correctional institutions. In 1996, he collaborated on the production of the television documentary A Year and a Day dealing with prison history. His honors include the Outstanding Researcher Award at West Virginia University and the Outstanding Scholar Award at Penn State. In 2014, his name was engraved on the Scholars Wall at Potomac State College as one of eight graduates of Potomac State to be so honored during the 100-year history of the institution.