The purposes of this article are to determine (a) employer attitudes toward hiring ex-offenders and (b) how these attitudes are affected by the level of training the ex-offender received while incarcerated, government incentives to hire, type of offense committed, and the relationship of the crime to the job to be filled. Eighty-three Houston and Dallas employers were surveyed on their attitudes toward hiring ex-offenders. In general, although the initial willingness to hire ex-offenders was low among employers, other findings indicate that the level of education, government incentives, and the relationship of the crime to the job increase employer willingness to hire an ex-offender. The type of offense, however, when disclosed, appears to have a negative effect on employers' willingness to hire, especially toward those with violent and sexual crimes as well as crimes against children. Limitations and policy applications of the findings are also discussed.

Abstract. Taiwan is known for rapid economic growth, but in 1988, the government ended 40 years of martial law, resulting in greater political and social freedoms. This paper explores the influence of economic, social, and political structures on crime in the Republic of China on Taiwan. A time series analysis examines the structural correlates of crime in Taiwan from 1964 to 1990. Both total crime and burglary/larceny rates are regressed on seven independent variables derived from various theoretical perspectives. The results support Hagan's powercontrol and Christie's crime-industry perspectives for total crime, while measures assessing lack of economic means and the economic deprivation were significant for burglary/larceny.

This paper evaluates the impact

Thailand has been plagued with a narcotics problem for nearly 800 years. Recently the Thai government expressed serious concern about issues such as the increasing number of drug abusers and exportation of drugs to the international black market (Supath, 1992). Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, is the principal gateway for exports of heroin from the Golden Triangle region to the international black market and is an important financial center for laundering heroin profits (Bureau of International Narcotics Matters (BINM), 1992;Cooper, 1990).Like many other Asian nations, the Thai government responded to the widespread drug epidemic with total prohibition of any drug-related activity (Yodmani, 1992). In the past few years, the government has promulgated and amended narcotics statutes. These laws impose severe measures on serious violators, such as a mandatory death sentence and life imprisonment (Hemarajata, 1982;Jayasuriya, 1984). More recently, the Thai government has ratified an extradition treaty with the USA for drug traffickers and manufacturers and has promulgated narcotics conspiracy and asset forfeiture laws (BINM, 1993).In comparison with other types of crime, drug offenses in Thailand have increased drastically. Table I depicts Thailand's crime rates per 100,000 population from 1988 to 1992. As shown, the total crime rate increased over the five-year period, except in 1990. Murder and robbery decreased year by year, while the rates for other crimes fluctuated. The drug offense rate, however, An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 1995 annual meetings of the American Society of Criminology, held in Boston, Massachusetts.