RCRJ 203 Criminology Cynthia Najdowski 2 4 14 Sources of crime statistics The federal bureau of investigation uniform crime report The bureau of justice stats national crime victimization survey Uniform crime report FBI More than 18 000 agencies across the US representing approximately 94 Reports on known defenses and arrests for part 1 and arrests for part 2 Produces crime rate based on number of part 1 crimes per 100 000 of the population population National Crime Victimization Survey Based on bi annual interviews of individuals aged 12 and up I based 50 000 Reports rape robbery assault theft and burglary Produces crime rate based on of crimes per 1 000 populations aged 12 and households up Self Report Measures Criminologists asks people if they commit crimes Suggests a lot of criminality Race and Crime African Americans make up 12 of the population but 27 of those are Assuming there is an annual difference in criminality between whites and arrested blacks Confounding factors Race is socially defined Disproportionate representation in the lower socio economic class Discrimination is Historical Institutional Individual Even unintentional Effects of stereotypes Blacks are depicted as criminals Stereotypes affect perceptions information process and decision Correl et al 2002 2006 Developed a first person shooter game Participants decides to shoot armed targets more quickly when black and are mad Stereotypical targets processed more quickly and accurately Race and Crime Stereotype threat produces nervous behavior Provides a social psychological explanation for why blacks are more likely than whites to be stopped and questioned frisked arrested etc Who is criminal Complex relation between society criminal behavior Depends on how society defines crime as serious Criminality is continuous no dichotomous variable Implications for dualistic fallacies When juvenile defenders become adults Most juvenile offenders do not become adult offenders Most adult offenders were juvenile defenders Career criminals Juveniles commit the types of crime that police concentrate on Juveniles maybe more likely than adults to be apprehended Adults have different opportunities to commit crime Crime switching Aging Out Social Explanation Age related norms Lack bonds to conventional adult institutions Emerging independence Protection from social and legal costs Psychological Explanation Heightened sensitivity to rewards Immature self regulation Still developing ability to control impulse foresee consequences and resist peer pressure Social Explanation Age related norms Peer associations Stronger social bonds Increased legal and social costs of crime Fewer illegitimate opportunities Greater access to legitimate goods and excitement Psychological explanation Improved cognitive abilities and logical reasoning Better able to process emotions and logical reasoning Better able to process emotions and engage in self control Better able to plan ahead weigh risks Juvenile Justice Criminal justice system Criminal sanctions should be proportional to the offense Focus on deterrence no rehabilitation Juvenile justice system Focus on rehabilitation and treatment Youth are different and behavior is malleable youth crime rights led to shift back towards treating juveniles as adults Juvenile transfer laws Process juveniles in the adult criminal justice system rather than juvenile court