- CRIME- an act or omission that constitutes an offence and is punishable by law
- Crime is deliberate and cause psychological or physical harm/ damage of a property and is
against the law
CULTURAL ISSUES WHEN DEFINING CRIME
- Laws and therefore what is considered a crime varies from each country
- Eg: having multiple wives is illegal in UK but legal in India
HISTORICAL ISSUES WHEN DEFINING CRIME
- Laws have changed over time meaning acts have been legal and others becoming illegal
- Eg: homosexuality was illegal, but is now legal in UK
WAYS OF MEASURING CRIME (OFFICIAL STATISTICS) AO1
- OFFICIAL STATISTICS- government records on the total number of rimes reported to the
police and recorded, which is published annually
- Provide an overall snapshot of crim level in the country as well as showing specific crime
rates in areas
- Helps to develop new policies and crime prevention strategies
- They rely on the public reporting crime and the police recording them
WAYS OF MEASURING CRRIME (OFFICIAL STATISTICS) AO3
LIMITATION
- Massively underestimate the true extent of crime
- Argued that at least 75% of crimes go unreported especially sexual assaults
- Official stats rely on the crimes being reported which in many circumstances they don't
- Farrington & Dowds found that Nottinghamshire police were more likely than others to
report thefts under £10
- This means that the statistics are unreliable as there are crimes happening which aren't
being recorded so not a true measure
WAYS OF MEASURING CRRIME (VICTIM SURVEYS) AO1
- VICTIM SURVEY- ask people whether they have been crime victims and the details of the
crime
- Crime Survey for England and Wales
- Randomly selects 50,000 households
- As of 2009 there is a separate survey for 15-19 year old's
WAYS OF MEASURING CRIME (VICTIM SURVEYS) AO3
- Provide a more realistic view than official statistics
- Victim surveys record many crimes that have gone unreported
- More realistic view on crime rates
- 2006/2007 official statistic stated 2% drop in crime, but victim survey reported 3% increase
- More likely to be a truer measure of crime
, WAYS OF MEASURING CRIME (OFFENDER SURVEYS) AO1
- OFFENDER SURRVEY- finding people to volunteer the details of their crime
- Given to groups of likely offenders based on risk factors eg: social background
- Offender surveys provide indicators of repeat offending
WAYS OF MEASURING CRIME (OFFENDER SURVEYS) AO3
- High risk of social desirability bias
- Offenders may lie o be unwilling to share details of their crime
- Offenders may overrepresent the characteristic they have become rather than criminal
behaviour
- Validity is lowered as high chance of lies
2 ways of profiling an offender
- Top down approach
- Bottom up approach
TOP-DOWN APPROACH TO MEASURING CRIME- OFFENDER PROFILING AO1
- OFFENDER PROFILING- a behavioural analysis tool that aims to help investigations narrow
down/ identify a suspect
- Achieved through the development of a profile which predicts the likely character
background of this crime
- Age, profession and chilhood are usually the main characteristics that are profiled
- TOP-DOWN APPROACH- identified three behavioural choices made by the offender
- Top-down approach developed in 70s in the USA by the FBI
Behavioural choice Definition
MODUS OPERANDI Method of operation that was used by the offender eg: the way of killing
(MO) his victims
VICTIMOLOGY Choice of victim eg: wealthy family or prostitutes
SIGNATURE Other unnecessary action taken by offender eg: postmortem mutilation
- Two other factors to consider are:
ORGANISED OFFENDER DISORGANISED OFFENDER
-Evidence of planning -Little evidence of planning
-Weapon and other materials -Spontaneous and opportunistic
-Deliberate target -Chaotic crime scene
-Forensic counter measures -Low IQ
-Above average intelligence -Dysfunction socially or sexually
-Unskilled work
TOP-DOWN APPROACH TO MEASURING CRIME- OFFENDER PROFILING AO3
LIMITATION
- Only applies to particular crimes
Alle Vorteile der Zusammenfassungen von Stuvia auf einen Blick:
Garantiert gute Qualität durch Reviews
Stuvia Verkäufer haben mehr als 700.000 Zusammenfassungen beurteilt. Deshalb weißt du dass du das beste Dokument kaufst.
Schnell und einfach kaufen
Man bezahlt schnell und einfach mit iDeal, Kreditkarte oder Stuvia-Kredit für die Zusammenfassungen. Man braucht keine Mitgliedschaft.
Konzentration auf den Kern der Sache
Deine Mitstudenten schreiben die Zusammenfassungen. Deshalb enthalten die Zusammenfassungen immer aktuelle, zuverlässige und up-to-date Informationen. Damit kommst du schnell zum Kern der Sache.
Häufig gestellte Fragen
Was bekomme ich, wenn ich dieses Dokument kaufe?
Du erhältst eine PDF-Datei, die sofort nach dem Kauf verfügbar ist. Das gekaufte Dokument ist jederzeit, überall und unbegrenzt über dein Profil zugänglich.
Zufriedenheitsgarantie: Wie funktioniert das?
Unsere Zufriedenheitsgarantie sorgt dafür, dass du immer eine Lernunterlage findest, die zu dir passt. Du füllst ein Formular aus und unser Kundendienstteam kümmert sich um den Rest.
Wem kaufe ich diese Zusammenfassung ab?
Stuvia ist ein Marktplatz, du kaufst dieses Dokument also nicht von uns, sondern vom Verkäufer courtneydurber22. Stuvia erleichtert die Zahlung an den Verkäufer.
Werde ich an ein Abonnement gebunden sein?
Nein, du kaufst diese Zusammenfassung nur für 4,32 €. Du bist nach deinem Kauf an nichts gebunden.