NCJ Number
159625
Date Published
1995
Length
78 pages
Annotation
Most crime prevention evaluations are conducted with little regard for methodological probity; of work that aspires to methodological adequacy, standard designs are the before-after comparison group and the interrupted time series.
Abstract
Critical questions in crime prevention evaluations are whether a program has an effect, the extent of any effect achieved, and the means by which the effect was achieved. Crime reduction is an outcome measure, but other outcome measures are often used in evaluation studies. Distinct evaluation requirements attach to different types of crime prevention, and improvements in standard methodology and innovation by nonstandard approaches are needed. The "scientific realist" tradition argues against conventional, one-shot quasiexperimentation in favor of repeated manipulations leading to the cataloging of possible mechanisms and consistency in outcome patterns with presumed mechanisms. Different actors, such as practitioners, evaluators, and administrators, have different objectives and interests, and evaluators must consider these differences. The authors conclude that crime prevention advances only by the determination of how much interventions reduce crime or some other chosen variable. Appendixes contain information on the Safer Cities Program in England. 101 references, 42 footnotes, and 7 figures