Deck 2: How Is Delinquency Measureding the Extent of Rape

Question 1

The most commonly used official statistics are:

A) referral data from juvenile courts
B) confinement data from the juvenile corrections system
C) arrest data from the police
D) conviction data from juvenile courts

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following is TRUE?

A) The majority of crimes known to the police are cleared by arrest.
B) The number of crimes cleared by arrest equals the number of people arrested.
C) The number of crimes known to the police equals the number of crimes cleared by arrest.
D) All of the above are true.
E) None of the above is true.

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT a Part I offense?

A) arson
B) motor vehicle theft
C) larceny-theft
D) burglary
E) vandalism

Answer 3

E

Question 4

A teenage neighbor steals laptops and other electronic equipment from parked cars. This is:

A) receiving stolen property
B) larceny-theft
C) robbery
D) burglary
E) motor vehicle theft

Question 5

The advantages of FBI Crime Report data include which of the following?

A) provide long-term information on trends in crime
B) give accurate estimates of the extent of violent crime
C) include crimes reported and unreported to police
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 6

Major problems associated with arrest data include the fact that:

A) most crimes are not reported to the police
B) it is difficult for police to detect most crimes on their own, even crimes occurring in public
C) police have a difficult time catching offenders
D) police often release suspected offenders
E) all of the above

Question 7

Researchers attempt to discover if juveniles are telling the truth on self-report surveys by:

A) threatening the use of lie-detector tests
B) using drug tests
C) asking friends and family about the juveniles' delinquent behavior
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 8

A major disadvantage of self-report studies is the fact that:

A) most juveniles substantially underreport their delinquent activities
B) the studies collect information only on delinquent acts that are reported to the police
C) there are few long-term, nationwide self-report surveys
D) most studies focus on serious offenses

Question 9

_________ data provide the most accurate estimate of the extent of MINOR delinquency.

A) Arrest
B) Victimization
C) Observational
D) Self-report

Question 10

The National Crime Victimization Survey measures crimes like:

A) murder
B) drug use
C) shoplifting
D) all of the above
E) none of the above

Question 11

Respondents in the National Crime Victimization Survey include:

A) a representative sample of all individuals throughout the United States
B) individuals ages 12 and older
C) people in prison and mental institutions
D) a sample of businesses
E) all of the above

Question 12

The Uniform Crime Reports (published by the FBI) include the following information:

A) number of arrests
B) number of crimes
C) characteristics of the people who were arrested
D) all of the above

Question 13

Overall research has shown that ______ of crimes known to the police are cleared by arrest.

A) 5%
B) 20%
C) 55%
D) 90%

Question 14

Which statement is TRUE regarding the FBI arrest data?

A) The FBI arrest data include only crimes that have been cleared by arrest.
B) The FBI arrest data report only the most serious crime per individual arrest.
C) Police data reported to the FBI are always accurate.
D) The FBI arrest data include information on crimes that are not reported to police.

Question 15

Which statement is TRUE regarding juveniles who underreport serious offenses in self-report surveys?

A) These individuals may possess low self-control.
B) These individuals may have various cognitive limitations.
C) These individuals may be uneasy about revealing personal information.
D) All of the above statements are true.

Question 16

What is the most common reason why individuals do not report victimizations to the police?

A) Victims believe that the police will not arrest the offender.
B) Victims believe that the police will hold them (the victims) accountable for the crime.
C) Victims view the victimization as a personal or private matter.
D) Victims have a criminal record themselves.

Question 17

What of the following is a disadvantage of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)?

A) Homeless people, transients, and institutionalized persons are undersampled.
B) Many crime victims report their victimizations to the police.
C) Wording of the survey has changed.
D) The NCVS includes information on status offenses.

Question 18

In 2015, ___of violent crime victimizations were reported to the police.

A) 3%
B) 47%
C) 80%
D) 99%

Question 19

When did the federal government start compiling victimization data on an annual basis through the administration of the National Crime Victimization Survey?

A) late 1940s
B) early 1970s
C) late 1980s
D) 2000

Question 20

What is one of the problems with sampling school students?

A) Students are typically unreliable sources.
B) Students typically refuse to take surveys.
C) Researchers miss students who are truant.
D) all of the above

Question 21

Describe the strengths and weaknesses associated with FBI Crime Report data, particularly arrest data. Focus your discussion on how these strengths and weaknesses affect estimates on the extent of delinquency and trends in delinquency.

Question 22

A major problem associated with arrest data is the fact that most delinquent acts do not become known to the police. Identify the reasons why police do not discover most delinquent acts and explain how this affects estimates on the extent of delinquency and trends in delinquency.

Question 23

Describe two methods discussed in the text that police may use to distort crime data.

Question 24

Identify three methods used by researchers to establish the extent of juveniles' truthfulness on self-report surveys.

Question 25

Describe the strengths and weaknesses associated with self-report data. Focus your discussion on how these strengths and weaknesses affect estimates of the extent of delinquency and trends in delinquency.

Question 26

Why do self-report surveys often underestimate the extent of serious delinquency?

Question 27

Examine ways to improve the accuracy of self-report data in terms of sampling and questionnaire design and implementation. Consider how researchers could get a more representative sample of the juvenile population, as well as how they could design and administer the surveys to increase the truthfulness of responses.

Question 28

Discuss at least three ways that some recent self-report surveys attempt to correct problems associated with earlier self-report studies.

Question 29

Describe the strengths and weaknesses associated with victimization data. Focus your discussion on how these strengths and weaknesses affect estimates of the extent of delinquency and trends in delinquency.

Question 30

Arrest and self-report data are used to estimate the extent of delinquency much more often than victimization data. Why might this be the case?

Question 31

Imagine that you are a juvenile delinquency expert who is head of a juvenile delinquency reduction task force. One of your tasks is to estimate the extent of delinquency in your city. How do you recommend that the task force best estimate the extent of delinquency, and what problems do you foresee with the accuracy of the estimates? In your answer, clearly describe the methodologies that will provide the most accurate estimates of juvenile offending and explain the extent to which these estimates should be accurate.

Question 32

Briefly discuss the three major methods of measuring delinquency. Provide examples of each measure.

Question 33

List the eight Part I/Index Offenses of the FBI Crime Reports. Provide a definition of each of the eight offenses.

Question 34

Describe Part II offenses of the FBI Crime Reports. Provide a few examples of these offenses.

Question 35

List and describe the major factors that influence the police's decision to make an arrest.

Question 36

Agnew and Brezina acknowledge that "despite recent advances in forensics and other crime-fighting technologies, the arrest and punishment of offenders remain far from certain." In general, why is the certainty of arrest and punishment relatively low? Do offenders realize that arrest and punishment are far from certain? How does this affect offenders' decisions to commit future crimes?

Question 37

Describe ONE of the new methods of administering self-report surveys that appears to substantially reduce the amount of underreporting. What are the strengths of this new method?

Question 38

As discussed by Agnew and Brezina, "We often hear a lot about delinquency from family members, friends, the news media, and politicians. Unfortunately, a lot of the information that is presented is misleading or wrong." What are the three things you should be wary of when others are discussing delinquency?

Question 39

Define the following offenses and explain how these offenses differ from one another: larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, burglary, and robbery. According to the UCR, are these Part I or Part II offenses?

Question 40

Why are some victims wary of reporting the crime committed against them? Have there been any attempts to increase reporting? Explain.