Katarzyna
Celinska
BRES Fellow - CUNY Graduate Center, Black, Race, and Ethnic Studies
Postdoctoral Fellow - Rutgers University (Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, IHHCPAR)
PhD; University of Utah (Sociology)
MA; University of Warsaw (Law)
Katarzyna (Kashka) Celinska grew up in Poland, where she attended the University of Warsaw. Her master’s thesis examined the sociological and legal implications of infanticide in Poland. She earned a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Utah, where her dissertation, Individualism and Collectivism in America: The Case of Gun Ownership, explored cultural orientations through the lens of firearm ownership and attitudes toward gun control. A quantitative article based on this work was published in Sociological Perspectives.
As a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research (IHHCPAR) at Rutgers University, Dr. Celinska studied how incarcerated mothers struggle to maintain their maternal identities while separated from their children, developing a typology of coping strategies from these qualitative data. In collaboration with the Violence Institute at Rutgers, she also led an evaluation of Functional Family Therapy, a program designed for court-involved youth with behavioral and disciplinary challenges.
Her current research focuses on women in prison, where she is analyzing qualitative and quantitative data from a multi-phase project on coping and adjustment. In addition, she conducts international research in Poland on the Ukrainian refugee crisis, collaborating with the University of Warsaw to interview NGOs supporting refugees in Warsaw.
Courses in the PhD program, International Crime and Justice MA program, Criminal Justice MA program and undergraduate courses in the LPS Department. Courses on research methods, program evaluation, crime and culture, corrections, and gender.
American Society of Criminology,
Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences,
European Society of Criminology,
Polskie Towarzystwo Kryminologiczne im.Prof.S.Batawii (Polish Criminological Association)
Recent scholarly publications:
*Denotes Student Co-Author
*Fanarraga, I.* & Celinska, K. (2025). Analyzing Prison Misconduct: Gender-Specific Predictors of Rule Violations. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 00938548251359569
Celinska, K. & *Cheboubi, A.* (2025). “A storm is coming”: The New York Times coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic in American prisons. Current Issues in Criminal Justice 37 (3), 456-479.
*Fanarraga, I.* & Celinska, K. (2024). Classification of women in prison: A typology based on mental health symptoms and coping strategies. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624x241246652 (published online ahead of print 05.15.2024)
Celinska, K., & *Cheboubi, A.* (2022). The contemporary American Juvenile Justice System: Revisiting parens patriae. Archiwum Kryminologii. Archives of Criminology 44, 2, 41-60. http://doi.org/10.7420/AK2022.4
Celinska, K., & *Fanarraga, I.* (2022). Female prisoners, mental health, and contact with family and friends. The Prison Journal 102, 3, 259-282. https://doi.org/10.1177/00328855221095518
Celinska, K., *Fanarraga, I.*, & *Cronin, M.* (2022). Coping with imprisonment among incarcerated women. Women and Criminal Justice 32, 4, 325-341. https://doi.org/10.1080/08974454.2021.1970694
Celinska, K. (2021). Evaluating a Functional Family Therapy Intervention: Challenges and Lessons Learned. Research on Social Work Practice 31, 4, 360-366. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049731520985604
*Limoncelli, K.E.*, Wolff, K.T., & Celinska, K. (2019). The role of parental problems in Functional Family Therapy. Children and Youth Services Review 106, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2019.104483
Celinska, K., Sung, H., *Kim, Ch.*, & *Valdimarsdottir, M.* (2019). An outcome evaluation of Functional Family Therapy for court-involved youth. Journal of Family Therapy 41, 2, 251-276. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6427.12224
Celinska, K., & Cheng, Ch. (2017). Gender comparisons in the processes and outcomes of Functional Family Therapy. OJJDP Journal of Juvenile Justice 6, 1, 82-97.
Celinska, K. (2015). Effectiveness of Functional Family Therapy for mandated versus non-mandated youth. Juvenile & Family Court Journal 66, 4, 17-27.
Celinska, K. (2015). Attitudes towards minorities in post-communist and democratic Poland. Studies in Nationalism and Ethnicity 15, 13, 474-491.
Celinska, K., Cheng Ch., & Virgil, N. (2015). Youth and parental perspectives on the Functional Family Therapy program. Journal of Family Therapy 37, 4, 450-470.
Celinska, K., & Sung, H. (2014). Gender differences in the determinants of prison rule violations. The Prison Journal 94, 2, 220-241.
Katarzyna Celinska is a sociologist and a criminal justice scholar with research on corrections, women in prison, program evaluation, juvenile justice, international criminal justice with a special focus on Poland. Her major projects include:
Evaluation of Functional Family Therapy (2005 - 2014)
Multi-phased project on Incarcerated Women (2017 - present)
Ukrainian refugee crisis in Poland (2022 - present)