INTERNATIONAL CRIME AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE STATISTICS SOME CONCEPTUAL PROBLEMS AND POTENTIAL BENEFITS (FROM CRIMINAL JUSTICE STATISTICS ASSOCIATION, INC PROCEEDINGS... 1978 - SEE NCJ-63086)

• NCJ Number: 63087
• Author(s): B BURNHAM
• Date Published: 1978
• Length: 7 pages
• Corporate Author: Justice Research and Statistics Association
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Survey (Cross-Cultural)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

THE BENEFITS OF INTERNATIONAL CRIME AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE STATISTICS ARE DISCUSSED AGAINST THE BACKGROUND OF A UNITED NATIONS STUDY OF CRIME PREVENTION MEASURES IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES.

Abstract

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN AGENCIES, CULTURES, AND GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS WITH RESPECT TO THE REPORTING, RECORDING, AND DEFINING OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE STATISTICS HAVE CAUSED MANY TO REGARD INTERNATIONAL STATISTICAL STUDIES OF CRIME AS BEING PRACTICALLY USELESS. HOWEVER, A 1977 UNITED NATIONS STUDY OF CRIME PREVENTION MEASURES IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES SHOWS THE VALUE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES. THE STUDY DEALS WITH THE PROBLEM OF DIFFERING LEGAL CODES BY SUBSTITUTING BEHAVIORAL DESCRIPTIVE CATEGORIES OF CRIME FOR LEGAL DEFINITIONS AND FOCUSES ON 10 CATEGORIES OF CRIMES OF AGREED-UPON SEVERITY. THE STUDY IS BASED ON INFORMATION RECEIVED FROM THE GOVERNMENTS OF 62 MEMBER STATES AND 2 NONMEMBER STATES. A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IS FOUND BETWEEN THE INCIDENCE OF DIFFERENT CRIME TYPES AND TOTAL AGGREGATE CRIME AMONG THE ECONOMICALLY DEVELOPED AND ECONOMICALLY DEVELOPING COUNTRIES. PROPERTY CRIMES ARE MORE FREQUENT IN ECONOMICALLY DEVELOPED COUNTRIES, WHILE CRIME OF VIOLENCE ARE MORE PREVALENT IN THE UNDERDEVELOPED COUNTRIES. SEVEN MAIN INDICATORS OF SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ARE USED TO COMPUTE THE CORRELATION COEFFICIENTS WITH SELECTED CRIME RATES. THE SAME PROCESS IS REPEATED FOR ANY POSSIBLE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THESE INDICATORS AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM CHARACTERISTICS, ESPECIALLY THE DISTRIBUTION OF PERSONNEL. EVIDENCE EMERGES THAT CHANGES IN SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC GROWTH, PARTICULARLY SUDDEN ECONOMIC GROWTH, CORRELATE WITH INCREASING CRIME RATES AND CHANGES IN CRIME TYPES. THE NUMBER OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE PERSONNEL PER CAPITA IS HIGHER IS UNDERDEVELOPED COUNTRIES. THERE IS GENERAL AGREEMENT AMONG THE COMMENTATORS FROM THE VARIOUS COUNTRIES THAT CRIME PREVENTION SHOULD START EARLY IN THE LIFE OF A HIGH-RISK, POTENTIAL CRIMINAL. IF FURTHER SIMILAR STUDIES CAN GENERATE DATA WHICH ARE SUSCEPTIBLE TO ORTHODOX ANALYSIS INTERNALLY AND COMPARISON WITH THE DATA OF OTHER STUDIES, TRENDS AND PATTERNS OVER TIME MIGHT EMERGE AT THE MACRO LEVEL. (RCB)