Measuring Crime
What does NIBRS stand for?
National Incident-Based Reporting System
What group receives the treatment or intervention in an experiment?
Experimental Group
What is the difference between a population and a sample?
A population is the entire group being studied, while a sample is a smaller group selected from that population.
What type of survey question allows respondents to answer in their own words?
Open-ended question.
What type of research focuses on understanding people's experiences, perspectives, and meanings?
Qualitative research.
What are the three main sources researchers use to measure crime?
Official police records, victimization surveys, and self-report surveys.
What group does not receive the treatment or intervention being tested?
Control Group
What sampling method gives individuals an equal chance of being selected through a random selection process?
Simple random sampling.
What type of survey question provides respondents with a list of answer choices?
Closed-ended question.
What type of interview uses prepared questions but allows the researcher to ask follow-up questions?
Semistructured interview.
A researcher wants to study how many people have experienced crimes that were never reported to the police. Which national survey would be most appropriate?
National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS).
A researcher randomly assigns 100 probationers to two groups. One group receives a new counseling program, while the other receives regular probation services. What is the independent variable?
Whether probationers receive the new counseling program or regular probation services.
A researcher obtains a list of 2,000 police officers and selects every 20th officer after choosing a random starting point. What sampling method is being used?
Systematic sampling
A researcher asks, "Do you believe police officers are fair and respectful?" What is wrong with this survey question?
It is double-barreled because it asks about fairness and respect in the same question.
During an interview, a formerly incarcerated individual says, "Finding a job after prison was really difficult." The researcher responds, "Can you tell me more about the challenges you experienced?" What interviewing technique is the researcher using?
Probing.
A researcher wants to study how often high school students engage in shoplifting, vandalism, or underage drinking. What type of data collection method would be most appropriate?
Self report survey
A researcher wants to determine whether a new rehabilitation program reduces recidivism. Participants are randomly assigned to either receive the program or continue with standard services. What is the purpose of randomly assigning participants to the two groups?
To make the groups more comparable and reduce selection bias, helping researchers determine whether differences in recidivism are due to the rehabilitation program.
A researcher wants to study attitudes toward police among college freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors. They divide students into these four groups and randomly select students from each group. What sampling method is being used?
Stratified sampling
A researcher asks participants to indicate whether they strongly agree, agree, neither agree nor disagree, disagree, or strongly disagree with the statement, "I trust police officers in my community." What type of scale is being used?
Likert scale.
A researcher interviews 25 probationers about challenges they experience. While reviewing the transcripts, the researcher labels statements as "transportation problems," "financial difficulties," and "employment conflicts." What process is the researcher using?
Coding
A city reports that burglaries decreased by 30% according to police records. However, a victimization survey suggests that burglaries have remained relatively stable. What is one possible explanation for the difference?
Some burglaries may not have been reported to the police, meaning official police statistics do not capture every crime.
A researcher is testing a rehabilitation program for incarcerated individuals. Halfway through the study, many participants in the treatment group are transferred to other facilities and cannot complete the study. What threat to internal validity does this represent?
Experimental mortality (attrition).
A researcher wants to interview individuals who currently sell illegal drugs. Because this population is difficult to identify, the researcher asks participants to refer other individuals who may be willing to participate. What sampling method is being used?
Snowball sampling
A researcher surveys college students about illegal drug use. Several students report that they have never used drugs because they are worried about appearing irresponsible or getting into trouble. What type of response bias might explain their answers?
Social desirability bias.
After interviewing formerly incarcerated individuals, a researcher notices that several participants discuss difficulty finding housing, obtaining employment, and accessing transportation. The researcher groups these related experiences under the broader idea of "Barriers to Successful Reentry." What has the researcher identified?
A theme