Chapter 3The Nature and Extent of Crime

© 2004 Wadsworth Publishing Co.

Criminology: Theories, Practices and Typologies 8/e

By

Larry J. Siegel

Slides prepared by:

Larry Bassi, SUNY Brockport

Methods of Measuring Crime

Official DataOfficial Data

Victim DataVictim Data

Self-report DataSelf-report Data

Uniform Crime Reports

Based on Crimes Reported to the Police

Based on a population unit of 100,000 peopleNumber of Report Crimes x 100,000 = Rate per 100,000 Total U.S. Population

Divided into two representativecategories: Indexed and non-Indexed

Categories counted differently

Many problems with accuracy

Uniform Crime Reports

• Indexed Crimes– Criminal Homicide– Forcible Rape– Robbery– Aggravated assault– Burglary– Larceny/theft– Motor vehicle theft– Arson

• Non-Indexed Crimes– All others

ViolentViolent Crime Crime

Non-violentNon-violentCrimeCrime

Problems With The Uniform Crime Reports

• Experts agree that there are many problems with the accuracy of the Uniform Crime Reports due to:– Reporting practices– Methodological

problems

The Future of the Uniform Crime Reports

• National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)

• Maintained by the F.B.I.• Twenty-two crime categories• More information on each crime in each

category• Data compiled based on incidents, not

arrests.

1. Asks victims about their encounters with criminals2. Uses sampling techniques3. May also describe people most at risk 4. Potential measurement problems include:

Over and Under reportingSampling errorsInadequate question formatInability to record activity

Crime Victim Surveys

Self Reported Crime

• Participants reveal information about their violations of the law

• Helps to get at “Dark Figure of Crime”• Supplement and expand official data• Validity and reliability better than expected by many• Accuracy for chronic offenders and drug abusers

may be limited

• Participants reveal information about their violations of the law

• Helps to get at “Dark Figure of Crime”• Supplement and expand official data• Validity and reliability better than expected by many• Accuracy for chronic offenders and drug abusers

may be limited

Self-Report Surveys

• Most often a survey is administered to a group

• Most are anonymous

• Numerous questions exist about survey reliability and validity

Figure 3.2 Self-Report Survey Questions

Dark Figure of Crime

A ship’s captain canonly see that part of aniceberg that is above thewater. Likewise, the public only sees visible,or reported crime. Thedark figure of crime isthat which the public doesnot see.

Unreported Crime

Less than half of all violent crime

1/3 of personal thefts reported

Half of household thefts are reported

National Crime Victim Surveys finds that many crimes gounreported to the police

Explaining Crime Trends

• Age• The economy• Social malaise• Abortion • Guns

• Gangs• Drugs• Media• Justice Policy

Some of the importantcritical factors that havebeen used to explain the

puzzle of crime rate trends.

Figure 3.3 Crime Rate Trends

Current Crime Trends

• Final data released by the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program in the annual publication Crime in the United States, 2001 indicate that:– The estimated 11.8 million Crime Index offenses (murder,

rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft) in the Nation in 2001 represented a 2.1-percent increase over the 2000 estimate, the first year-to-year increase since 1991.

Trends in Violent Crime

• Estimated violent crime in 2001 rose 0.8 percent over 2000 estimates. – Estimated aggravated assault volumes

decreased 0.5-percent from 2000 data – Robberies increased 3.7 percent, murders rose

2.5 percent – Forcible rapes increased 0.3 percent in volume

Trends in Property Crime

Estimated property crimes were up 2.3 percent over 2000 estimates. Motor vehicle thefts increased 5.7 percent, burglaries rose 2.9 percent, and larceny-thefts increased 1.5 percent.

Self Reported Criminal Activity Trends and Victimizations

• Data indicates that the number of people who break the law is far greater than official statistics

• Offenders seem to engage in a “mixed bag” of crime and deviance

• The decline in victimizations parallels changes in the official crime rates.

Figure 3.5 Victimization Rate Trends, 1973-2000

Crime Patterns

Are there any main traits and patterns in crimestatistics that can help us understand the causes?

Race Age

Gender Ecology

Social class

Guns and Crime

• What relationship exists between the availability of guns and the number of guns used in crimes?

• What would it take to “control guns” as a crime control measure, yet “maintain our right to bear arms” as guaranteed in the constitution?

Social Class and Crime

• Expressive CrimeThese crimes provide a means of expressing one’s rage, frustration and anger against society. Rape and assault are thought to be such crimes

• Instrumental CrimeThese crime may provide the resources to obtain desired goods and services through conventional means

Figure 3.6 The Relationship between Temperature and Crime

Age and Crime

• Regardless of economic status, marital status, race, and sex, younger people commit crime more often than their older peers; research indicates this relationship has been stable across time periods ranging from 1935 to the present

Gender and Crime

• All data sets support the theory that male crime rates are much higher than those of females. What accounts for female crime?– Masculinity hypothesis– Chivalry hypothesis– Socialization and

development

Longitudinal Birth Cohort Research

Research that tracks an identifiablegroup of individuals over a long periodof time. What are some of the advantagesof this kind of research? Disadvantages?

Research that tracks an identifiablegroup of individuals over a long periodof time. What are some of the advantagesof this kind of research? Disadvantages?

After following a birth cohort of 9,945 boysborn in Philadelphia in 1945, Wolfgang and his associates found that 6% of the total samplewere responsible for 51.9% of all offenses.These were referred to as chronic offenders orcareer criminals. Similar research has resultedin similar findings.

After following a birth cohort of 9,945 boysborn in Philadelphia in 1945, Wolfgang and his associates found that 6% of the total samplewere responsible for 51.9% of all offenses.These were referred to as chronic offenders orcareer criminals. Similar research has resultedin similar findings.

The “Chronic 6%”

Continuity of Crime

The cohort follow-ups clearly show thatchronic juvenile offenders continue theirlaw-violating careers as adults.

Implications of the Chronic Offender Concept

• Traditional theories of criminal behavior have failed to distinguish between chronic and occasional offenders.– Why do some continue on in crime while others

do not?

• If we can identify chronic offenders, what should we do about them before and/or after they commit an offense?

• Traditional theories of criminal behavior have failed to distinguish between chronic and occasional offenders.– Why do some continue on in crime while others

do not?

• If we can identify chronic offenders, what should we do about them before and/or after they commit an offense?