Janine Zweig, Ph.D., joined the National Institute of Justice in February 2023 as executive science advisor. In this role, she advises on NIJ’s science investments and products.
Dr. Zweig has nearly 30 years of research and evaluation experience. She spent nearly 24 years at the Urban Institute, a nonprofit social policy research organization based in Washington DC, with her final position being associate vice president for justice policy. She’s conducted research, evaluation, policy analysis, and technical assistance on violent victimization (with a particular focus on sexual and intimate partner violence), as well as juvenile justice reform, substance use interventions, and programming for incarcerated and reentry populations. Her work includes both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, longitudinal studies, and multi-site evaluations. Throughout her career, Zweig worked to elevate the voices and needs of crime survivors and developed strategic partnerships with practitioners, advocates, policymakers, national-level associations, other researchers, and businesses to build knowledge and provide actionable data-driven guidance.
Zweig oversaw a portfolio of research, including studying several provisions of the Violence Against Women and Prison Rape Elimination Acts and the Office for Victims of Crime’s Vision 21. This includes projects that examined bridging the gap between research and practice in victim services; the national implementation of the SAFE (sexual assault medical forensic exam) Protocol; payment mechanisms for medical forensic exams; the effectiveness of community-based domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking services and response systems; the nature and prevalence of teen dating violence; services for victims of sexual violence in jails, prisons, and juvenile facilities; and trauma-informed programs and practices for incarcerated women.
Zweig co-created the Sexual Misconduct and Violence Taxonomy with the National Sexual Violence Resource Center to address issues of sexual harassment and assault in the ride share and hospitality industries, which Mashable.com named one of the 14 innovations that helped make the world a better place in 2018. Further, Zweig has examined the links between violent victimization experienced by adult justice-involved populations (both in the community and while incarcerated) with mental health issues, substance use/abuse, and recidivism, and has evaluated the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Deep End Reform to prevent out-of-home placements for youth in the juvenile justice system (particularly youth of color); the DC Office of the Attorney General’s restorative justice program for youth charged with serious and/or violent offenses; the PASS Program (Promoting Adolescent Sexual Health and Safety—a place-based program for youth living in chronically disadvantaged neighborhoods); reentry workforce programs for youth and adults; and adult drug courts. Before her time at the Urban Institute, she served as a project manager for the CDM Group and began her career as an advocate at a domestic violence shelter and rape crisis hotline.
She earned her Ph.D. in human development and family studies from the Pennsylvania State University.