NCJ Number
118979
Date Published
1989
Length
17 pages
Annotation
Data on crime and arrest rates from 31 nations from 1962 to 1980 formed the basis of an analysis of whether females are becoming increasingly involved in violent crime as some social scientists and theoretical approaches predict.
Abstract
The research focused particularly on whether increases have occurred in overall female criminality, whether the changes are concentrated in violent offenses, whether increased female involvement in violent crime has occurred in certain types of societies or across all societies, and whether any changes are associated with women's changing educational and occupational statuses. Interpol data provided measures of six aspects of crime. The social and demographic measures used included female enrollment in secondary educational institutions, female participation in the labor force, per-capita private consumption of the gross national product, and the percentage of the labor force in industry. The data were analyzed for three periods: 1962-65, 1969-72, and 1977-80. Results showed that comparable increases occurred among crime, arrest, and female arrest rates. Thus, women continued to have relatively minor roles in the violent criminal activities of the nations. Tables, notes, and 27 references.