USE OF DELPHI METHODOLOGY IN ASSESSING KEY ATTRIBUTES OF URBAN CRIME

• NCJ Number: 61552
• Author(s): H P HOLEMAN
• Date Published: 1978
• Length: 128 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY - DOCTORAL DISSERTATION

Annotation

THE UTILITY OF DELPHI METHODOLOGY IN DEFINING CHARACTERISTICS OF CRIME IN AN URBAN SETTING IS DEMONSTRATED. THE STUDY WAS LIMITED TO URBAN CALIFORNIA.

Abstract

IT WAS DESIGNED TO IDENTIFY AND SELECT KEY ATTRIBUTES OF CRIME AS IMPORTANT DATA FOR BASING CRIME REDUCTION PROGRAMMING IN URBAN CALIFORNIA, PARTICULARLY THE URBAN CENTERS OF THE LOS ANGELES-LONG BEACH AND THE SAN FRANCISCO-OAKLAND STANDARD METROPOLITAN STATISTICAL AREAS. THE FOLLOWING OBJECTIVES WERE PARAMOUNT: (1) EXPLICATE THE UTILITY OF THE UNIFORM CRIME REPORTS (UCR) CRIME INDEX AS A TYPOLOGY FOR ASSESSING THE CRIME PROBLEM IN AN URBAN COMMUNITY, (2) DETERMINE THE UTILITY OF DELPHI METHODOLOGY FOR EXPANDING BEYOND THE ATTRIBUTE TYPOLOGY OF THE UCR CRIME INDEX BY IDENTIFYING OTHER CRIME ATTRIBUTES WHICH COULD SERVE AS ADDITIONAL INDICATORS OF THE LEVELS OF CRIME AT WORK IN AN URBAN SETTING, AND (3) DETERMINE THE UTILITY OF DELPHI METHODOLOGY FOR EVALUATION AND SELECT FROM THE ATTRIBUTES IDENTIFIED THOSE IMPORTANT AS DATA UPON WHICH TO BASE CRIME REDUCTION PROGRAMMING. A FLOW CHART DEPICTS THE NINE-STEP DELPHI PROCESS AS IT WAS USED IN THE STUDY. DELPHI PANEL SELECTED 23 ATTRIBUTES, OUT OF 43 PRESENTED, AS IMPORTANT REDUCTION PROGRAMMING. OF THESE, NINE ATTRIBUTES WERE CRIME-SPECIFIC IN NATURE: WILLFUL HOMICIDE; FORCIBLE RAPE; ROBBERY; AGGRAVATED ASSAULT; BURGLARY; MOTOR VEHICLE THEFT; BUYING, RECEIVING, AND POSSESSING STOLEN PROPERTY; ARSON; AND VANDALISM. OTHER ATTRIBUTES REFLECTED THE IMPACT OF CRIME ON GROUPS OF VICTIMS AND THE MEANS BY WHICH CRIME IS COMMITTED BY SPECIFIC GROUPS. SOME OF THE CONCLUSIONS REACHED WERE THAT RESEARCHERS NEED TO GO BEYOND THE UCR CRIME INDEX TO ASSESS URBAN CRIME, AND THAT THE RELATIVE IMPORTANCE AMONG ATTRIBUTES FOR CRIME REDUCTION PROGRAMMING NEEDS TO BE DISTINGUISHED. THE STUDY RECOMMENDS THAT A CROSS-CLASSIFICATION TYPOLOGY BE USED WITH THE ATTRIBUTE DATA IN THE TYPOLOGY SELECTED THROUGH DELPHI METHODOLOGY. FIGURES, TABLES, AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY ARE INCLUDED. (PRG)