Using existing statistics,Professor Ford finds that areas with low median incomes tend to have higher crime rates than areas with high median incomes.Ford concludes that poor people are more likely to commit crimes than high income people.Ford is
A)Committing the ecological fallacy
B)Using verstehen
C)Doing content analysis
D)Developing ideal types
E)Doing replication

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Professor Ford is committing the ecological fallacy because he is making an inference about individuals based on aggregate-level data. Just because lower-income areas have higher crime rates does not mean that individual people living in those areas are more likely to commit crimes. It is possible that other factors, such as limited access to resources and opportunities, contribute to higher crime rates in those areas. Therefore, the conclusion that poor people are more likely to commit crimes than high income people is an overgeneralization based on ecological-level data.

Using Existing Statistics,Professor Ford Finds That Areas with Low Median