Chapter 2 - Measuring Crime and Behavior Flashcards
Questions to consider when picking a research method?
-What do I want to study?
-Are there ethical considerations?
What are cleared offenses/clearance rate?
Crimes cleared by the arrest of a suspect or by exceptional means (Cases in which a suspect has been identified but he/she is not immediately available for arrest)
What are the problems comparing international crime rates?
difficult to compare crimes in different countries because every country records their crime rates differently
What are the gender and racial differences in reporting on self-report surveys?
males tend to report their antisocial activities less honestly than females and African Americans less honestly than other racial groups
What is crime mapping?
the use of modern tech such as Geographic Information Systems by police to map and analyze patterns of crime
What is qualitative research?
Research that involves more quality or number of research (interviews, case studies, record keeping)
What is quantitative research?
Research designed to get as many responses as possible
(survey and questionnaries)
What is cross-sectional research?
Research that involves studying your subject at one point in time
What is longitudinal research?
Research that involves studying your subject multiple times
What is correlation?
The relationship between two variables
What is positive and negative correlation?
-Positive - variables moving in same direction
-Negative - variables moving in opposite directions
What does causality require?
- Correlation (strain)
- Proper temporal ordering (labelling theory)
- Ruling out all other possible explanations (spuriousness)
What the 4 are common research methods?
Experiments, surveys, interviews, and observation
What are the characteristics of experiments?
-Independent variables - treatment
-Dependent variables - outcome
-Compares to control group (group that experiences change)
What are the strengths and weaknesses of experiments?
-Strength - if there’s a random assignment to treatment vs. control group
-Weakness - Finding people to participate
What is recidivism?
Likeliness to commit a crime again
What are the strengths and weaknesses of surveys?
-Strength- lower cost and an be distributed to large sample
-Weakness- Response rates aren’t always high/can’t tell who filled out the survey
What are the strength and weaknesses of interviews?
-Strength - interviewer can ask more questions
-Weakness - time consuming
What are the different types of interviews?
-Unstructured - No interviews questions, interviewee driven
-Semi-structured - Interview questions with follow up questions
-Structured - Set of questions; follows a set structure
What are the strengths and weaknesses of observation?
-Strength - Researcher may be able to understand facets of their subjects
-Weakness - May not behave naturally
What are the different types of observation?
-Participation
-Non-participant (sitting in a court trial)
What are ethical principles?
Generally accepted standards of conflict for researchers
What is the history of codes of ethics?
-After WW11, Nuremburg Trials
-Tuskgee scandal
-National research act of 1974
-Formed IRS
-Created National Commission for Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research
What are the 3 core ethical principles according to Belmont Report
-Respect for persons (Don’t deceive)
-Beneficence (Do no harm)
-Justice (Fair selection of research participants; no bias)
What are the ethics of conducting surveys (5)?
-Avoiding harm (can be physical, emotional, social, financial, legal)
-Informed consent (voluntary participation is important but is in ethical grey area)
-Avoid deception
-Protect subject’s identities
-Maintain objectivity and present findings truthfully
Why do we measure crime?
-To test theories about why people commit crime
-To see if policies or historical events are associated with changing crime rates
-To inform the public about the appropriate level of concern for public safety
-To provide criminal justice agencies and practitioners with info to help them anticipate their future needs
-To provide an understanding of different types of offenses
What are the 3 common sources of crime data?
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR), National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS), National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
What is the UCR?
Data compiled annually by the FBI based on data they receive from law enforcement agencies across the US (divided into part 1 (index) and part 2 offenses)
What is the equation for crime rate?
reported offense/population x 100,000
What percent of the population is covered by agencies who submit data to the UCR?
98%
What are the Part 1 offenses (reported) of the UCR in order?
Homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, arson
What crimes are in Part 2 of the UCR?
(these offenses have to be reported and an arrest has to be made)
Forgery
Fraud
Embezzlement
Vandalism
Prostitution
DUI
Drug offenses
Weapons offenses
Simple assault
Gambling
What are the limitations of the UCR?
-Hierarchy rule: when more than one offense has been committed in a single crime event, only the most serious offense is reported to the UCR (Arson would be reported no matter what)
-Only counts crime that are reported to law enforcement
-Sexual assault usually not reported to police
-Some crimes such as corporate crime or terrorism not counted by UCR
-Subject to political manipulation (over or under counting)
-Reports can be incomplete or have data errors
What is the goal of NIBRS?
to provide more detailed, accurate, and timely data than the UCR
As of 2021, what is the national standard from crime data reporting?
NIBRS
How many law enforcement agencies reported data to NIBRS in 2019?
Under 50%
What info does NIBRS cover?
Info on the offence, victim, offender, etc.
How are the NIBRS offenses divided?
-Into Group A and B
(There are 23 Group A offenses and Group B offenses are only reported if there is an arrest)
What are the limitations of NIBRS?
-Can’t show long term trends
-Only includes crimes reported to law enforcement
-Because NIBRS collects more detailed info, it’s more difficult to collect and report info
-Data errors are possible (political manipulation)
When did UCR, NIBRS, and NCVS start?
UCR- 1930s
NCVS- 1970s
NIBRS- 1980s
What are the NCVS’s goals?
-Provides insight into dark figures of crime (crime not reported to law enforcement)
-To identify portions of the population at risk of victimization and estimate victimization rates
What does the NCVS entail?
-Asks individuals if they’ve been victims of certain crimes (12 and older)
-Provides details about victims, offenders, and crimes
-Calculated crimes rates as per 1000 households
What are the limitations of NCVS?
-Crimes without victims aren’t counted (drug deal, homicides)
-Crimes against businesses aren’t included
-Some victims aren’t willing to share incidents with researchers
-Memory issues, reporting victimization that occurred outside of the stated time period can occur
What should you look for when choosing a source?
-Population of interest
-Crime of interest
-Long term trends
-Crimes that have been reported
-Generalizing trends
What are the limitations of self reports?
-Doesn’t ask about serious crime
-Science of sophomores (College students aren’t the best to ask about crime since the higher the education = lower potential of committing crime)
-People may not be truthful and accurate in their reporting
What do self reports entail?
-Generally surveys the general public
-Commonly high school or college students are surveyed
-Ideally gets a large sample that is nationally representative
