CRIME AND DEVIANCE - Official Crime Statistics Flashcards
What are some of the factors in society that could lead to an increase and/or a decrease in crime? HINT: Name as many as you can; there are 10 examples here!
- Employment rates
- Education and schooling
- Economy (Inflation)
- Changes to the law / Government policy
- Better or worse policing (Law enforcement)
- More crimes are reported during a certain year
- More state intervention
- Media trends / coverage on an issue
- Increasing population (More victims due to an increase in perpetrators)
- Victims feel more confident to report their crimes (they have better faith in the system)
What does OCR stand for?
Official Crime Rate!
What is the OCR / What does it contain?
Police-recorded crimes –> Court and prison records!
What does BCS stand for?
British Crime Surveys!
How many Surveys come under the BCS + What are they?
2 - Victim Surveys and Self-Report Surveys!
What are Victim Surveys?
These surveys speak to people who have been a victim of a crime, in order to get statistics! Not all of the crimes people mention have been reported to the police!
What are Self-Report Surveys?
These are completed by prisoners once they are in custody!
What are the Strengths of Victim Surveys / Studies? HINT: Name as many as you can; there are 4 here!
- It includes where people feel a crime has been committed (includes crimes that may have not been reported to the police)
- Tells the police about crimes they didn’t know about, which can hopefully lead to better policing
- There is anonymity for individuals involved
- High validity (truth!)
What are the Weaknesses of Victim Surveys / Studies? HINT: Name as many as you can; there are 5 here!
- Some crimes are less likely to be reported by victims, such as sexual assault and domestic abuse cases!
- There is a risk of repeat reporting (this can affect the data samples)
- These often rely on people’s memories; will evidence and statements be incorrect / falsely remembered?
- Some crimes don’t have a victim
- Lack of representativeness; some people do not want to come forward?
What are the Strengths of Self-Report Surveys / Studies? HINT: Name as many as you can; there are 4 here!
- Includes where people feel a crime has been committed
- Tells the police crimes they don’t know about from elsewhere (people are admitting to what they have done)
- They help to find out ‘hidden offenders’ by looking at different age groups, ethnicities and social classes!
What are the Weaknesses of Self-Report Surveys / Studies? HINT: Name as many as you can; there are 3 here!
- Validity - Respondents may lie or exaggerate their crimes, either purposely or mistakenly!
- Lack of representativeness, as they are mainly on young people!
- Relevant crimes - Because of the lack of representation, many crimes reported are not relevant / ‘useful’!
Can you explain a scandal regarding the Greater Manchester Police in 2021?
They are the 2nd largest police force after the Met. They failed to record 80,000 crimes in one year and closed cases without proper investigation! One in five of all crimes and one in four of violent crimes were not recorded → They blamed the ‘troubled computer system’!
What do Moore, Aiken and Chapman say about the police?
They say the police are ‘filters’; they only record some of the crimes that are reported to them based off a number of factors.
(MOORE, AIKEN AND CHAPMAN) How factors did they identify that the police would use to ‘filter’ crimes?
5!
(MOORE, AIKEN AND CHAPMAN) What are the 5 factors did they identify that the police would use to ‘filter’ crimes?
- SERIOUSNESS of the crime
- SOCIAL STATUS of the VICTIM
- CLASSIFICATION of the CRIME
- POLICE DISCRETION
- PROMOTION and RELATIONS at WORK
