Unit 1 AC1.6 Evaluate methods of collecting crime statistics

Question 1

Home Office

Answer 1

The Home Office provides police recorded crime (PRC) in tables that contain recorded crime figures broken down by offence type, geography and time period.This information can be accessed by the public. It should be noted that these figures can be affected by changes in recording policy and practice (the protocol for recording a crime once it has been reported).

Question 2

Crime Survey for England and Wales

Answer 2

This is a victim survey that asks a sample of the population in England and Wales about their experiences of crime. It includes crimes against households and adults, also including data on crime experienced by children as well as crimes against society and businesses. An important feature of this survey is that it includes crimes that are not reported to the police. This makes the survey potentially a more accurate recording measure than surveys that just ask about crimes reported to police, as well as information about location, offender characteristics and relationship to the victim.

Question 3

Reliability of methods of collecting statistics about crime

Answer 3

Any statistic has its limitations and no source can tell us with complete accuracy what is happening with crime. However, as the CSEW also considers crime not reported to the police, it may be more reliable. The methods of recording crime by the police have changed over the years and are acknowledged to have affected data and reliability; comparing yearly statistics will have its limitations.

Question 4

Validity of methods of collecting statistics about crime

Answer 4

Validity is described as the degree to which a research study measures what it intends to measure. If the results of a study are not deemed to be valid then they are meaningless. If a crime survey is meant to record the amount of crime that has taken place it may not be truly valid. For example, the victim may be unaware of the offence, or the crime may be victimless. In addition, not all crime is reported and reporting a crime to the police does not mean it is recorded by them.

Question 5

Ethics of methods for collecting statistics about crime

Answer 5

Ethics of methods for collecting statistics about crime concern moral rules and codes of conduct to the collection, analysis, reporting and publication of information from the research. In particular, it means active acceptance of the right to privacy, confidentiality and informed consent. The CSEW is entirely confidential and the details are only used for research purposes.

Question 6

Strengths

Answer 6

Police do not report all crime, so they have no information on unreported crime.
CSEW captures unreported crime; relies on first-hand victim knowledge; identifies most at risk and informs prevention schemes.
PRC can use the information collected to detect and prevent crimes.

Question 7

Limitations

Answer 7

CSEW fails to capture victimless; relies on the memory of the victim; some victims may be reluctant to speak.
Lack of parity between the two recording methods resulted in police recording a 10% rise in crime in 2017, and CSEW reporting a 7% reduction in crime in 2017

Question 8

Evaluate

Answer 8

Evaluate - form an idea of the amount, number, or value of; assess.

Question 9

Victim survey

Answer 9

Victim Survey - These occur where the intention is to interview a representative sample of a particular population and to ask a series of questions about their experiences of victimisation. These surveys started in the USA; the first such survey in the UK was in 1972.

Question 10

Office for National Statistics

Answer 10

Office for National Statistics (ONS) - The UK’s largest independent producer of official statistics and its recognised national statistical institute. They are responsible for collecting and publishing statistics related to the economy, population and society at national, regional and local levels.

Question 11

Police Recorded Crime

Answer 11

Police Recorded Crime - Statistics on crimes and offences recorded by the police provide a measure of the volume of criminal activity with which the police are faced.

Question 12

Reliability

Answer 12

Reliability - The quality of being trustworthy or of performing consistently well.

Question 13

Limitations

Answer 13

Limitations - a limiting rule or circumstance; a restriction.

Question 14

Ethics

Answer 14

Ethics - moral principles that govern a person’s behaviour or the conducting of an activity.

Question 15

Validity

Answer 15

Validity - the quality of being logically or factually sound.