Rate My Professor Robert Lytle

Robert Lytle is an Associate Professor in the School of Criminal Justice and Criminology at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where he joined in Fall 2016 as Assistant Professor and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2022. He has served as Graduate Coordinator for the school's graduate programs from 2021 to 2023 and as Graduate Career Outcomes Advisor since 2025. Previously, Lytle was Assistant Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at East Carolina University from 2015 to 2016 and PhD Intern/Research Analyst in the Research, Planning, and Accreditation division of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services from 2014 to 2015. His academic background includes a PhD in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 2015, with a dissertation examining changes in Sex Offender Registration and Notification laws across U.S. states; an MA in Experimental Psychology from Radford University in 2010; and a BS in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice from James Madison University in 2007. Before pursuing graduate studies, he worked as a staff supervisor in a residential treatment facility for juveniles with behavioral and justice-related issues.

Lytle's research specializations encompass criminal justice policy processes, including the creation, implementation, change, and outcomes of policies on sex offenses, institutional and community corrections, public opinion, and hate crimes. He has published peer-reviewed articles in journals such as Criminology, Criminal Justice and Behavior, American Journal of Criminal Justice, Criminal Justice Policy Review, Policing: An International Journal, and Journal of Crime and Justice. Notable publications include 'Variation in the Legislative Activity for Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws Across States Over Time' (2019), 'Do I Report This? Understanding Variation in the Content of State Mandatory Reporting Laws' (2021, Journal of Qualitative Criminal Justice and Criminology), 'Politics, Knowledge, and Sexual Assault: Public Perceptions of Trump-Era Title IX Proceedings' (2023, Journal of Crime and Justice), 'Differences in Police Perceptions Between Native- and Foreign-Born US Citizens' (2025, Policing: An International Journal), and 'Examining Community Perceptions of the Police Post 2020' (2025, Policing: An International Journal). As co-principal investigator, he has secured external grants totaling over $1 million, including a $324,987 National Science Foundation REU program on hate crime victimization in the South (2020-2025), a $453,805 Arkansas Department of Corrections assessment of correctional unit culture and climate (2021-2025), and multi-year Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention funding for disparate minority contact studies exceeding $449,000 (2017-2022). Lytle received the 2023 University of Arkansas at Little Rock Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award and the College of Business, Health, and Human Services Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award for his innovative doctoral statistics instruction, student mentoring—including co-authoring four publications with students—and chairing multiple dissertation committees.