CHAPTER 3: ASSESSING THE EXTENT AND NATURE OF
VICTIMIZATION IN SA
DATA SOURCES OF CRIMINAL VICTIMIZATION:
Official data sources:
o Refer to usually quantitative data ( descriptive and explanatory) obtained
from government or government-approved agencies
Non-Official sources:
o Relate to non-government or non-government approved agencies and could
be either qualitative (explanatory) or quantitative in nature or combination
thereof
VALUE OF OFFICIAL CRIME STATISTICS BY REFERRING TO ACCURACY:
Official crime statistics are collected by government agencies to provide the crime
information required by the national government:
o for the purpose of formulating policy decisions and to facilitate the
appreciation of crime matters to government departments
Crime statistics is an area of shifting sands;
o One must be aware of the creation of new offences, or changes in legal
definitions or counting rules and practices
Criminal offences may be defined by law, but they are also socially defined and
constructed
o Moreover, the collection and presentation of data itself play a dynamic part
in the crime construction process
Both being influenced by and influencing current social concerns
Government departments possess a great deal of discretion about whether and how
to record possible offences which do come to their notice
o Decisions are made to which kinds of offences will be included or omit from
the official statistics and what counting rules do apply
o Figures also do not include offences known to the public
Which fail to come to the notice of the police and reports from the
public may be disbelieved = which result in offences not being
recorded at all
o Offences may also be excluded for the reason of being less defensible
Such as; avoiding effort to improve overall clear-up rate
VICTIMIZATION IN SA
DATA SOURCES OF CRIMINAL VICTIMIZATION:
Official data sources:
o Refer to usually quantitative data ( descriptive and explanatory) obtained
from government or government-approved agencies
Non-Official sources:
o Relate to non-government or non-government approved agencies and could
be either qualitative (explanatory) or quantitative in nature or combination
thereof
VALUE OF OFFICIAL CRIME STATISTICS BY REFERRING TO ACCURACY:
Official crime statistics are collected by government agencies to provide the crime
information required by the national government:
o for the purpose of formulating policy decisions and to facilitate the
appreciation of crime matters to government departments
Crime statistics is an area of shifting sands;
o One must be aware of the creation of new offences, or changes in legal
definitions or counting rules and practices
Criminal offences may be defined by law, but they are also socially defined and
constructed
o Moreover, the collection and presentation of data itself play a dynamic part
in the crime construction process
Both being influenced by and influencing current social concerns
Government departments possess a great deal of discretion about whether and how
to record possible offences which do come to their notice
o Decisions are made to which kinds of offences will be included or omit from
the official statistics and what counting rules do apply
o Figures also do not include offences known to the public
Which fail to come to the notice of the police and reports from the
public may be disbelieved = which result in offences not being
recorded at all
o Offences may also be excluded for the reason of being less defensible
Such as; avoiding effort to improve overall clear-up rate
