Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Chapter 3 Gathering and Interpreting Crime Data “It’s elementary my dear Watson.” Sherlock Holmes
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Learning Objectives Understand the aims of research Understand and appreciate the purposes of crime data. Identify the main methods of counting crime. Recognize and have knowledge of the official and unofficial crime collection methods and their limitations. Realize the importance of an interdisciplinary, multi-method approach when collecting crime and criminal justice information.
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Is crime everywhere? 1991 Maclean’s found 62% said taking more precautions to ensure than used to Media distorts, exaggerates, biased Financial expenditures indicative? Need for objective and empirical reconstruction of crime
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc methods of counting crime Official sources Victimisation surveys Self-report studies Observational methods
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Aims of research through crime data Discovery and Demonstration Refutation and Replication To generate reliable (consistent) & valid (accurate) measures of behaviour, trends & patterns Cause vs. Probability
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Purpose of Crime Data Description Explanation Program evaluation Risk assessment Prediction
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Different types of crime data Official sources of crime data 3Ps – Police, Prosecution (court) and Prison (corrections) Unofficial sources of crime data Victimisation surveys Self-report data Observational methods
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Some terms Actual crime – all crimes that occur but are not necessarily detected, reported or processed by official CJS agencies Official crime – criminal events that have been detected, reported and recorded in some official fashion (police data, self-report data) Dark figure – criminal events that go undetected and/or underreported by official CJS agencies
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Official sources of crime data Language of stats is employed to sensationalise, inflate & oversimplify Most readily available & widely used Subjected to greatest criticism Most common measures of crime 3 types of official data (the 3Ps):
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Police data Most frequently used form of official crime data Based on criminal events known to police Dark figure exists Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) Box 3.6 standardised survey used by all police departments across Canada
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Prosecution (judicial, court) Historically, first type to be recorded Stopped in 1973 Collected again in 1991 To describe trends and patterns Conviction rates Median length of sentences Differences in gender, time, place, resources
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Prison (correctional) data Incarceration rates – gender, age, typology Supervision (parole, probation) information Expenditures and programs Canadian incarceration rates increasing - moving toward a more punitive and more expensive correctional system?
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Unofficial sources of crime data Victimisation data Self-report surveys Observational methods
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Victimisation Surveys 3 elements to describing a criminal event precursor; interactions among actors; aftermath 4 major objectives measure the extent & distribution of selected crimes measure impact assess risk of victimisation provide indicators of CJ functioning Methodological concerns Varying rates around the world
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Self-report data Inquiry to offender’s behaviour & motivation Shows gap in official statistics What about those not caught? Limitations and methodological concerns
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Observational Methods Field research understand event by placing oneself in the situation and trying to see it through their eyes immersion, social processes Symbolic interactionism & ethnomethodology Advantages and disadvantages
Copyright © 2006 Pearson Education Canada Inc Summary Describe & evaluate the 4 methods of gathering and interpreting data Each has strengths and weaknesses Depends on resources and objectives Criminologists take ‘sides’… Need for integration & interdisciplinary