Patterns of Criminal Victimization in a Rural Setting - The Case of Pike County, Indiana (From Rural Crime, P 34-49, 1982, Timothy J Carter, et al, ed. - See NCJ-88256)

• NCJ Number: 88259
• Author(s): J F Donnermeyer
• Date Published: 1982
• Length: 16 pages
• Sale Source: Allanheld, Osmun and Co Publishers, Inc
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Telephone interviews with adult members of 366 randomly selected households in Pike County, Ind., revealed that nearly one-fourth of the households in this mainly rural county experienced at least 1 criminal incident during 1978.

Abstract

Property crimes, especially larceny and vandalism, were the most common types of crimes reported. The rates of burglary and burglary attempts based on forcible entry were slightly higher than the national average and nearly equal to the rates for standard metropolitan statistical areas. However, household and personal larceny rates were lower than the national averages. Small towns in Pike County experienced higher property crime rates than did other locations in the county. In contrast to national data showing that victimization decreases as the age of the household head increases, Pike County experienced only slight victimization differences based on age. Similarly, Pike County experienced only slight differences in personal larceny based on sex, in contrast to national data showing that males have higher rates of personal larceny. Thus, crime in many rural communities today is at a level as high as that in the typical American urban community. However, rural communities must determine the nature of their local crime problems before attempting to deal with them. Victimization studies are particularly valuable in the design of crime prevention programs which seek to reduce the vulnerability of potential victims. Tables, notes, and 15 references are provided. (Author summary modified)