Abigail Kolb
Associate Professor
678-839-6326
akolb@westga .edu
Pafford Social Science Building - Room 238
My research is multidisciplinary, and has focused on the intersection of race, class, and gender inequalities within the criminal justice system. Specifically, I have focused on the unique issues that women of color face in corrections, their corporeal experiences within the carceral system, and their individual and collective mechanisms of agency.
In addition, I have worked as a clinical and forensic social worker for over a decade, with various populations, and primarily with sexual offenders. Currently, my research revolves around sex offender treatment.
Beyond my research, I serve as the Site Director for Prison Education Programs and teach courses at a Level V (maximum security) prison in Georgia. At this facility, the University of West Georgia (UWG) has implemented a 4-year Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies program. We are currently in our first semester with our inaugural cohort!
- B.S., Bachelor of Social Work, University of Wisconsin - Madison, 2005
- M.S., Master of Science - Clinical Social Work, Columbia University, 2006
- PhD, Doctor of Philosophy - Criminology, Simon Fraser University, 2015
- CRIM-1100 (Intro to Criminal Justice)
- CRIM-2000 (Survey of Criminology)
- CRIM-2245 (Juvenile Delinquency)
- CRIM-4200 (Violent Crime)
- CRIM-4231 (Women & Criminal Justice)
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime)
- CRIM-4280 (Sex Offenders)
- CRIM-4284 (Senior Capstone)
- CRIM-4293 (Correctional Programs)
- CRIM-4295 (Sex Offenders)
- CRIM-5280 (Sex Offenders )
- CRIM-6000 (Principles of Criminology)
- CRIM-6623 (Crime and Social Inequality)
- CRIM-6999 (Different Serial Killers)
- CRJU-4500 (Management of Forensics)
- XIDS-2100 (Intro to Social & Human Servic)
Fall 2023 Sections
- CRIM-2000 (Survey of Criminology) Section: 51 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- XIDS-2100 (Intro to Social & Human Servic) Section: 51 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Summer 2023 Sections
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4295 (Sex Offenders) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Spring 2023 Sections
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: 02 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4284 (Senior Capstone) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Fall 2022 Sections
- CRIM-4231 (Women & Criminal Justice) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4284 (Senior Capstone) Section: E02 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4293 (Correctional Programs) Section: 01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Summer 2022 Sections
- CRIM-1100 (Intro to Criminal Justice) Section: E02 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4200 (Violent Crime) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Spring 2022 Sections
- CRIM-1100 (Intro to Criminal Justice) Section: 03 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4280 (Sex Offenders) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRJU-4500 (Management of Forensics) Section: 80E eMajor Courses External Resource
- CRIM-5280 (Sex Offenders ) Section: E05 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-6000 (Principles of Criminology) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Fall 2021 Sections
- CRIM-1100 (Intro to Criminal Justice) Section: E03 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-2245 (Juvenile Delinquency) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-6623 (Crime and Social Inequality) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Summer 2021 Sections
- CRIM-2245 (Juvenile Delinquency) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Spring 2021 Sections
- CRIM-2000 (Survey of Criminology) Section: 02 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-2245 (Juvenile Delinquency) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: E01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Fall 2020 Sections
- CRIM-2000 (Survey of Criminology) Section: 02 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: 01 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-4280 (Sex Offenders) Section: E02 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
- CRIM-6999 (Different Serial Killers) Section: E03 external Syllabus via Concourse External Resource
Summer 2020 Sections
- CRIM-2245 (Juvenile Delinquency) Section: E01
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: E01
Spring 2020 Sections
- CRIM-1100 (Intro to Criminal Justice) Section: E02
- CRIM-2245 (Juvenile Delinquency) Section: 01
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: 01
Fall 2019 Sections
- CRIM-2245 (Juvenile Delinquency) Section: E01
- CRIM-4279 (Race and Crime) Section: 01
- CRIM-4280 (Sex Offenders) Section: E02
Kolb, A.F. (Forthcoming, Feb. 2024). Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Sex Offenders: A Treatment Guide. Routledge. [View Publication External Resource]
Schweighoffer, A., Piche, L., & Kolb, A. (Forthcoming, 2024). Assessing child sexual exploitation material offenders. In L.A Craig, L. Dixon, & T.A. Gannon (Eds.). The Wiley Handbook of What Works in Offender Rehabilitation: An Evidence-Based Approach to T
Christopher, Kelley; Kolb, Abigail; and Parsons, Tiffany A. (2022) "“’My walk matches my talk’: An exploratory study of a moral rehabilitation program for incarcerated women.”," The Journal of Public and Professional Sociology: Vol. 14 : Iss. 1 , A [View Publication External Resource]
Kolb, A. (2021). “Just Listen, People!”: Narrative as Resistance in Criminological Research. In J.A. Schlosser (Ed.) Prison Stories: Women Scholars’ Experiences Doing Research Behind Bars (pp. 67-84). Lanham, MD: The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing G
Kolb, A. & Palys, T. (2012). Are you Down?: Power relations and gender reconstruction among Latina gang members in Los Angeles. Journal of Gang Research, 20(1): 19-32.
Kolb, A. & Palys, T. (2016). Homegirls, Hoodrats and Hos: Co-constructing gang status through discourseand performance. International Journal for Crime, Justice, and Social Democracy, 5(4): 29-44. doi:10.5204/ijcjsd.v5i4.334. [View Publication External Resource]
Kolb, A. & Palys, T. (2018). Playing the part: Pseudo-families, wives, and the politics of relationships in women’s prisons in California. The Prison Journal, 98(6), 678-699. doi: 10.1177/0328855. [View Publication (PDF)]
Kolb, A., Palys, T., & Green, A. (2019). “When You’re Out, You’re Not Really Out”: Exiting Strategies among Gang-Affiliated Chicanas. The Journal of Public and Professional Sociology, 11(2), Article 4. [View Publication External Resource]
Kolb, A. (Forthcoming). One step forward, one step back: An overview of inequality in the criminal (in)justice system from 1704 to the present. In P. Pitman-Brown, & T. Parsons (Eds.). Introduction to Social Justice.
Race, class, and gender inequality in the criminal justice system
Qualitative research; sex offender treatment; race, class, gender, and crime; criminal justice system