Question 1

Which of the following is an accurate statement concerning the use of content analysis?
A) content analysis involves a statistical study of messages
B) content analysis involves a systematic study of messages and the meaning that those messages convey
C) content analysis involves only the analysis of speeches given concerning criminal justice issues
D) content analysis methods can only be used with agency reports to determine their applicability

Accepted Answer

Content analysis involves a systematic study of messages and the meaning that those messages convey. It can be used to analyze various types of messages, including speeches, news articles, social media posts, and more. While statistical analysis may be used as part of content analysis, it is not the sole focus. Additionally, content analysis can be used to study a wide range of topics beyond criminal justice issues, and it is not limited to agency reports.

Question 2

A researcher is interested in using content analysis to determine how the United States Supreme Court has changed its interpretation of the 4th Amendment's "unreasonable" search and seizure prohibition over time.Which of the following are the units of analysis?
A) individual justices
B) court decisions in 4th Amendment cases
C) the dissenting opinions
D) the concurring opinions

Accepted Answer

The unit of analysis in this research question are court decisions in 4th Amendment cases, as the researcher is interested in analyzing how the Supreme Court's interpretation of the "unreasonable" search and seizure prohibition has changed over time. Individual justices, dissenting opinions, and concurring opinions are not the focus of this study.

Question 3

Which of the following would not be an appropriate target of content analysis?
A) speeches
B) newscasts
C) constitutions
D) number of domestic violence arrests

Accepted Answer

The number of domestic violence arrests is not a form of communication or media content and therefore cannot be analyzed through content analysis. Content analysis is used to analyze communication artifacts such as speeches, news broadcasts, or written documents like constitutions.

Question 4

Which of the following is not an advantage of using secondary data?
A) reduction in validity threats
B) it is cheaper than collecting original data
C) it is faster than collecting original data
D) the researcher may benefit from the work of others established in their fields

Accepted Answer

Secondary data may not always reduce validity threats because the data was not originally collected with the current research question in mind, which can introduce biases or limitations not present in primary data collection.

Question 5

It is often said that agency data are not designed for research purposes.Which of the following support that statement?
A) some criminal justice agencies collect data because they are legally required to do so
B) often the data collected by criminal justice agencies is not covered under privacy regulations
C) because variable definitions are consistent from agency to agency
D) all of the above

Accepted Answer

A) Agencies often collect data due to legal requirements, not with the intention of facilitating research, which supports the statement that agency data are not designed for research purposes. Choices B and C do not support this statement; B is incorrect because most agency data are indeed subject to privacy regulations, and C is incorrect because variable definitions often vary between agencies, which is a challenge for research but not mentioned in the options as supporting the statement.

Question 6

Coding in content analysis involves the logic of conceptualization and:
A) application
B) operationalization
C) validity
D) generalization

Accepted Answer

Coding in content analysis requires the operationalization of concepts, which involves defining them in a clear and measurable way. This is a crucial step to ensure consistency in the coding process and accurate analysis of data. The other options (application, validity, and generalization) are also important in content analysis, but they are not directly related to the logic of conceptualization and coding.

Question 7

Which of the following is an example of content analysis in criminal justice research?
A) counting the number of stories devoted to the coverage of crime in your local newspaper
B) counting the number of robberies that happen in your city
C) measuring the average length of time from arrest to disposition in your city
D) determining the average number of inmates housed in your city's jail on a daily basis

Accepted Answer

Content analysis involves the systematic analysis of media content, such as newspaper articles, to identify patterns and trends in reporting. Counting the number of stories devoted to crime coverage in a local newspaper is an example of content analysis. The other options do not involve content analysis.

Question 8

Which of the following would not impact the validity and reliability of a study using agency records?
A) discretion of prosecutors in who to charge and what counts to add
B) decisions that are made by police officers to arrest verses give a warning
C) recognition on the part of the researcher that criminal justice data is a composite of criminal behavior, ability to detect that behavior and decisions about system response to that behavior
D) decisions made by probation officers to revoke on new crimes and not technical violations

Accepted Answer

The recognition that criminal justice data is a composite of criminal behavior, ability to detect that behavior, and decisions about system response to that behavior is a factor that would impact the validity and reliability of a study using agency records. However, the other options (A, B, and D) involve decisions made by criminal justice actors (prosecutors, police officers, and probation officers) that could potentially bias the data and therefore decrease the validity and reliability of the study.

Question 9

In Sherman and colleagues' research dealing with crime hot spots they chose to use 'calls for service' to local law enforcement as a means of measuring where different types of crimes happened with greatest frequency.They noted some problems with the use of calls for service.Which of the following represents those problems?
A) there is a potential for duplicate calls to local law enforcement for any one event
B) there may be false reports, in other words no crime happened
C) there can be misleading findings such as parking lots or hospitals may appear to be hot spots when in fact they are not
D) all of the above

Accepted Answer

All of the listed problems are potential issues with using calls for service to measure crime hot spots. Duplicate calls can make it seem like there is more crime happening in an area than there actually is, false reports can inflate crime statistics, and certain locations (like hospitals or parking lots) may generate more calls without actually experiencing high levels of criminal activity.

Question 10

Secondary analysis encompasses which of the following sources of criminal justice data?
A) content analysis of agency records
B) UCR
C) self-reports
D) NCVS

Accepted Answer

The answer of Secondary analysis encompasses which of the following...

Question 11

They underlying meaning of a communication is it's:
A) latent content
B) manifest content
C) coding content
D) coding scheme

Accepted Answer

The underlying meaning of a communication is the latent content, which is the hidden and unconscious meaning behind the manifest content. The manifest content refers to the explicit and surface-level message being conveyed. The other options, coding content and coding scheme, are not relevant to the distinction between latent and manifest content.

Question 12

If you wanted to measure the number of date and acquaintance rapes that happen in this country and use UCR data as your source,what is likely to be your most significant problem?
A) generalizability
B) validity
C) reliability
D) applicability

Accepted Answer

UCR data only collects crimes that have been reported to law enforcement, which means that many cases of date and acquaintance rape that were not reported to police would not be included in the data. This limits the validity of the data as a measure of the true prevalence of these types of crimes.

Question 13

Which of the following statements is most accurate?
A) once units of analysis are defined, sampling agency records is relatively simple
B) once units of analysis are defined, sampling agency records is quite complicated
C) there is no relationship between the units of analysis used in agency records and the sampling techniques used
D) you must use all agency records and cannot select a subset since that will lead to incomplete conclusions

Accepted Answer

Once the units of analysis are defined, sampling agency records becomes relatively simple because researchers can determine which records are relevant to their research questions and then select a representative sample from those records.

Question 14

Which of the following situations would not have an impact upon error in agency records?
A) computers have the capacity to magnify clerical error
B) a single crime could be recorded by two agencies, thus making that event over-represented
C) having very little data to input
D) even rare events can be recorded improperly

Accepted Answer

Having very little data to input would not have an impact on error in agency records as there would be less room for error due to the smaller amount of data to input. The other options all have the potential to contribute to error in agency records.

Question 15

Which of the following is not accurate concerning validity and reliability of agency records?
A) the shorter the time intervals under study the greater the concern about procedure changes
B) longitudinal researchers must be concerned about changes in operational definitions over time
C) longitudinal researchers must be concerned about changes in procedures over time
D) the longer the time interval under study the greater the concern about procedure changes

Accepted Answer

The shorter the time intervals under study, the less concern there is for procedure changes since changes are less likely to occur in a short period of time. The longer the time interval under study, the greater the concern for procedure changes. Longitudinal researchers must also be concerned about changes in operational definitions and procedures over time.

Question 16

Which of the following is accurate concerning having agencies collect original research data?
A) cooperation to add research questions is not as likely to be successful if you are asking for a major additional effort on the part of the agency staff
B) the cooperation of the staff and their organizations are directly proportional to the intrusiveness of the data collection
C) if the research project is likely to save the agency money or improve staff performance the chances of enlisting assistance is greater
D) all of the above are accurate

Accepted Answer

Each statement accurately reflects considerations in enlisting agencies for original research data collection. A) highlights the challenge of adding significant extra work, B) suggests that the more intrusive the data collection, the less likely staff cooperation, and C) indicates that projects promising benefits to the agency are more likely to gain support.

Question 17

Which of the following is not a concern about the use of agency records?
A) since most agencies are computerized, there is little cause to be concerned about the quality of the data
B) expect the expected, it is the unexpected findings that are worrisome
C) changes in record-keeping practices can affect the measurement
D) data will be accurate because agency data has to be

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following is not a...

Question 18

In the text,an example was given concerning the difficulty in trying to measure how much crime happened to victims who were not residents of South Florida.Since police only routinely kept records on where victims stayed locally (such as hotel addresses)researchers could have an additional question added to the incident recording form asking for the victim's permanent address.All of the following would be benefits of that except:
A) it is much cheaper to add a question to a form than collecting the data oneself
B) it is much more expensive to add a question to a form because it requires all the forms to be reprinted
C) it allows for more control over the measurement process
D) it enhances the reliability of data collection

Accepted Answer

Adding a question to a form is generally a cost-effective method compared to collecting data independently. The other options (A, C, D) are benefits because they improve data collection efficiency, control, and reliability.

Question 19

In Widom's research on the relationship between early child abuse and later delinquency or adult criminal behavior which of the following were considered to be either validity or reliability problems?
A) using public school records and birth records from local hospitals to select the sample
B) by using law enforcement data to assess delinquent and criminal behavior, Windom only identified those who were caught for their behavior not those who were criminally active but were not caught
C) by using court data to identify those for the sample who were abused, Windom only knew about those cases where abuse came to the attention of the public officials, not all the cases that go unreported
D) all of the above

Accepted Answer

All of the above options were considered to be either validity or reliability problems in Widom's research on the relationship between early child abuse and later delinquency or adult criminal behavior. Selecting the sample using public school records and birth records from local hospitals may not have captured all instances of abuse, using law enforcement data only identified those who were caught for their behavior, and using court data only captured cases where abuse came to the attention of public officials.

Question 20

Which of the following represent reliability or validity concerns when a researcher uses agency records?
A) the number of general clerical staff since too few is not good
B) changes in the operational definitions the agencies use to specify key terms
C) maintaining consistent procedures the agency uses to collect the data over time
D) agency records are generalizable to similar agencies

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following represent reliability or...

Quiz 12: Agency Records Content Analysis And Secondary Data

Which of the following is an accurate statement concerning the use of content analysis?

A researcher is interested in using content analysis to determine how the United States Supreme Court has changed its interpretation of the 4th Amendment's "unreasonable" search and seizure prohibition over time.Which of the following are the units of analysis?

Which of the following would not be an appropriate target of content analysis?

Which of the following is not an advantage of using secondary data?

It is often said that agency data are not designed for research purposes.Which of the following support that statement?

Coding in content analysis involves the logic of conceptualization and:

Which of the following is an example of content analysis in criminal justice research?

Which of the following would not impact the validity and reliability of a study using agency records?

Secondary analysis encompasses which of the following sources of criminal justice data?

They underlying meaning of a communication is it's:

If you wanted to measure the number of date and acquaintance rapes that happen in this country and use UCR data as your source,what is likely to be your most significant problem?

Which of the following statements is most accurate?

Which of the following situations would not have an impact upon error in agency records?

Which of the following is not accurate concerning validity and reliability of agency records?

Which of the following is accurate concerning having agencies collect original research data?

Which of the following is not a concern about the use of agency records?

In Widom's research on the relationship between early child abuse and later delinquency or adult criminal behavior which of the following were considered to be either validity or reliability problems?

Which of the following represent reliability or validity concerns when a researcher uses agency records?