Evaluation of different ways to define and measure crime
S N/A
P N/A
Defining crime:
Culture bias: Something that may be wrong in one culture, may not necessarily be wrong in another
culture. In India, public kissing is a crime that can result in jail time. A British couple were in fact arrested
I for doing that in Dubai. It’s illegal to have more than one wife/husband in the UK but not in other
countries.
A N/A
C N/A
Using official statistics to measure crime:
✘Lacks validity: Not all crime is reported. Domestic violence is often under-reported in men. They also
count the number of crimes rather than number of criminals which can be misleading.
✘Lacks reliability: Not all crime is put on record – e.g. Police sometimes don’t record theft if fine is
under £10.
Using victim reports to measure crime:
✘Higher in validity than official stats: Victims more likely to report trivial crimes they wouldn’t go to
E police with.
✘Retrospective: Respondents may get the years mixed up. Known as telescoping
✘Lacks validity: People may be unaware that they are a victim of crime. (E.g. being raped when blackout
drunk. Theft in garden sheds can be discovered months later).
Using offender surveys as a way of measuring crime:
Lack validity: Offender unlikely to reveal true extent of crime
All methods are hampered by the dark figure of crime (amount of unreported/undiscovered crime)
D N/A
S N/A
P N/A
Defining crime:
Culture bias: Something that may be wrong in one culture, may not necessarily be wrong in another
culture. In India, public kissing is a crime that can result in jail time. A British couple were in fact arrested
I for doing that in Dubai. It’s illegal to have more than one wife/husband in the UK but not in other
countries.
A N/A
C N/A
Using official statistics to measure crime:
✘Lacks validity: Not all crime is reported. Domestic violence is often under-reported in men. They also
count the number of crimes rather than number of criminals which can be misleading.
✘Lacks reliability: Not all crime is put on record – e.g. Police sometimes don’t record theft if fine is
under £10.
Using victim reports to measure crime:
✘Higher in validity than official stats: Victims more likely to report trivial crimes they wouldn’t go to
E police with.
✘Retrospective: Respondents may get the years mixed up. Known as telescoping
✘Lacks validity: People may be unaware that they are a victim of crime. (E.g. being raped when blackout
drunk. Theft in garden sheds can be discovered months later).
Using offender surveys as a way of measuring crime:
Lack validity: Offender unlikely to reveal true extent of crime
All methods are hampered by the dark figure of crime (amount of unreported/undiscovered crime)
D N/A
