NCJ Number
46905
Date Published
1976
Length
29 pages
Annotation
THE RELIABILITY OF CITIZEN REPORTS OF VICTIMIZATION IS EXAMINED BY MEANS OF THREE SURVEYS OF EACH OF THREE AREAS OF INNER LONDON.
Abstract
THE CITIZENS OF BRIXTON, HACKNEY, AND KENSINGTON WERE SURVEYED REGARDING REPORTED AND UNREPORTED CRIMES IN AN EFFORT TO GAUGE MARGINS OF ERROR FOR STATISTICS RELATING TO VICTIMIZATION. IN EACH OF THESE THREE AREAS, THREE INDEPENDENT SURVEYS WERE CONDUCTED BY INTERVIEWERS WITH NO PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF WHO IN THEIR SAMPLES HAD REPORTED VICTIMIZATIONS TO THE POLICE. THE FIRST SURVEY WAS A MAIN VICTIM (MV) SAMPLE, A REVERSE RECORD CHECK OF PEOPLE WHO HAD REPORTED AN INCIDENT OF ASSAULT, BURGLARY, OR THEFT DURING THE FIRST 10 MONTHS OF 1972. RESPONDENTS WERE ASKED DURING THE FIRST MONTHS OF 1973 ABOUT INCIDENTS THAT MIGHT HAVE OCCURRED DURING THE PREVIOUS 12 MONTHS WITH THE OBJECTIVE OF DETERMINING HOW MANY OF THE TARGET INCIDENTS WOULD BE RECALLED. THE SECOND SAMPLE WAS DESIGNATED THE TELESCOPING (T) SAMPLE AND CONSISTED OF SURVEYS OF A SMALL NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO HAD REPORTED INCIDENTS TO THE POLICE DURING OCTOBER THROUGH DECEMBER 1971 AND WAS AIMED AT DISCOVERING WHAT PROPORTION OF THE CITIZENRY WOULD INCORRECTLY REPORT THAT THEIR VICTIMIZATION HAD OCCURED IN 1972 -- A PHENOMENON KNOWN AS TIME TELESCOPING. THE THIRD SAMPLE WAS THE LARGEST AND CONSISTED OF SURVEYS OF PEOPLE CHOSEN AT RANDOM FROM THE ELECTORAL REGISTERS (R) FOR THE PURPOSE OF DETERMINING LEVELS OF UNREPORTED VICTIMIZATION. TABULAR BREAKDOWNS OF THE RESULTS OF THE THREE SURVEYS ARE PROVIDED. THE RESULTS OF THE REVERSE RECORD CHECK, THE ACCURACY OF VICTIMS' RECALL OF INCIDENT TIME FRAMES, AND THE INCIDENCE OF VICTIMIZATION IN THE R SAMPLE ARE DISCUSSED. A CROSS-COMPARISON OF THE RECALL AND REPORTING RELIABILITY OF THE CITIZENS OF EACH OF THE THREE AREAS WAS UNDERTAKEN ON THE BASIS OF THE STATISTICAL FINDINGS OF THE MV, T, AND R SAMPLES. THE RESIDENTS OF HACKNEY, A PREDOMINATELY WORKING CLASS NEIGHBORHOOD, DID SIGNIFICANTLY WORSE THAN RESIDENTS OF THE OTHER TWO AREAS IN TERMS OF RECALLING TARGET INCIDENTS. BRIXTON, THE SITE OF LONDON'S LARGEST CONCENTRATION OF WEST INDIANS, AND KENSINGTON, A PREDOMINATELY UPPERMIDDLE CLASS BOROUGH, SCORED ABOUT THE SAME IN TERMS OF THE MV SAMPLE. VERY FEW ATTRIBUTES, EITHER OF THE TARGET INCIDENTS OR OF THE RESPONDENTS, WERE SIGNIFICANTLY ASSOCIATED WITH ACCURACY OF TIME PLACEMENT; THERE WERE VERY FEW INCIDENTS TELESCOPED FORWARD. IT WAS ALSO FOUND THAT RESIDENTS OF THE VARIOUS COMMUNITIES PERCEIVED AND DEFINED VICTIMIZATION VARIOUSLY; OVER 80 PERCENT OF THE ASSAULTS REPORTED BY KENSINGTON RESIDENTS WERE IN FACT ONLY THREATS OR ATTEMPTS, WHILE IN HACKNEY ONLY 55 PERCENT OF THE REPORTED ASSAULTS WERE SO CLASSIFIED, AND IN BRIXTON, 62 PERCENT. A COMPARISON OF POLICE STATISTICS ON VICTIMIZATION AND THE FINDINGS OF THE SURVEYS IS PROVIDED. TABULAR DATA FOR ALL THE SURVEYS ARE INCLUDED, AS ARE REFERENCES. (KBL)