NCJ Number
91837
Journal
American Journal of Police Volume: 2 Issue: 2 Dated: (Spring 1983) Pages: 193-201
Date Published
1983
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This research note examines one aspect of the controversy in the measurement of police crime statistics, the relative contribution of each offense measured by official crime to the overall volume of crime, compared to that of survey crime. A difference between the two data sources may indicate bias in official data, thus rendering their use suspect.
Abstract
The note proposes a methodology in which each of six offenses (rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, and auto theft) will be examined to determine the extent to which it contributes to its respective overall rate. For each offense, a formula will be calculated that places the individual offense rate in the numerator and the total number of Part I offenses in the denominator. This will produce a figure that represents the occurrence of an offense relative to all offenses. For example, the burglary rate for official crime will be divided by the overall Part I official rate. With the exception of auto theft, each offense accounted for a strikingly similar proportion of the overall rate of survey or official crime. One table, 3 footnotes, and 19 references are supplied.