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Crime Data Sources

Crime Data Sources. Police reports, victimization, and self-report data. Sellin’s Dictum. “The value of a crime for index purposes decreases as the distance from the crime itself in terms of procedure increases” Thorsten Sellin, 1931. Sources of Crime Statistics. Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)

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Crime Data Sources

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  1. Crime Data Sources Police reports, victimization, and self-report data

  2. Sellin’s Dictum “The value of a crime for index purposes decreases as the distance from the crime itself in terms of procedure increases”Thorsten Sellin, 1931

  3. Sources of Crime Statistics • Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) • National Crime Victimization Surveys (NCVS) • Self-Report Data (SRD)

  4. Uniform Crime ReportsPart 1 Offenses • “Serious illegal acts that occur with sufficient frequency to provide an adequate basis for comparison”

  5. Crimes Not Included in the UCR Part 1 Crime Index Reason: they do not come to the attention of police often enough.

  6. Step 1: Step 2: Police must decide… Step 3: Step 4: Becoming a UCR Crime Statistic

  7. Reporting Crimes to the Police • People are MORE likely to report if… • People are LESS likely to report if…

  8. Officer Discretion • Officer discretion influenced by offense and offender characteristics

  9. Recording of Crimes by Police • Characteristics of the offense • Characteristics of offender • Characteristics of the victim

  10. Strengths of the UCR • National • Permits comparisons • Links to other sources

  11. Weaknesses of the UCR • Street crimes • Reactive crime reporting by citizens • Officer discretion • Susceptible to political pressure to over or under-report

  12. The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) • Conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Census every 6 months, households remain up to 3 years

  13. Self-Report Data • Unofficial statistics • Gets at the “dark figure” of crime • Provides information on causes of crime from offender’s perspective

  14. Ethical Issues in Self-Report Studies of Violent Crime • Exchange confidentiality for honesty • Ask subjects not to talk about planned violence

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