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Catalano explains how changes in social perceptions of crime have contributed to increased correspondence in how both police and victims respond to crime. This correspondence between victim and police crime statistics raises important questions regarding public and official responses to crime over time. In addition, Catalano finds that increases in domestic violence legislation have contributed to increased police recording of aggravated assault.
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Criminal Justice Recent Scholarship Edited by Marilyn McShane and Frank P. Williams III A Series from LFB Scholarly This page intentionally left blank The Measurement of Crime Victim Reporting and Police Recording Shannan M. Catalano LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC New York 2006 Copyright © 2006 by LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC All rights reserved. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Catalano, Shannan M. The measurement of crime : victim reporting and police recording / Shannan M. Catalano. p. cm. -- (Criminal justice) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 1-59332-155-4 (alk. paper) 1. Victims of crimes surveys--United States. 2. Criminal statistics-United States. 3. Victims of crimes--United States--Statistics. 4. National crime victimization survey report. 5. Uniform crime reports (Washington, D.C.) I. Title. HV6250.3.U5C39 2006 362.88072'7--dc22 2006021760 ISBN 1-59332-155-4 Printed on acid-free 250-year-life paper. Manufactured in the United States of America. Table of Contents List of Figures List of Tables Preface Acknowledgements vii ix xi xiii CHAPTER 1: Victim Reporting and Police Recording 1 CHAPTER 2: The Two Measures of Crime The Uniform Crime Reports The National Crime Victimization Survey NCVS and UCR Comparability Counting and Definitions Between the NCVS and UCR 5 5 7 10 11 CHAPTER 3: Explaining the Convergence Changes in Policing Changes in Population Characteristics Changes in the Perception of Crime Changes in Methodological Design Methodological change in the UCR Methodological change in the NCVS 15 15 17 19 22 23 23 CHAPTER 4: Potential Factors Contributing to Convergence Disaggregated NCVS Measures Dependent Variables Explanatory Variables Demographic Variables Social Attitudes Design Changes 29 30 33 35 47 51 54 v vi CHAPTER 5: Hypotheses and Analysis Hypotheses Analytic Strategy Stage One Analysis Stage Two Analysis Table of Contents 61 61 64 65 74 CHAPTER 6: The NCVS and UCR Convergence Summary of Findings Limitations and Future Research Conclusion 99 101 105 107 Endnotes 111 Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Appendix 4 Appendix 5 Appendix 6 Appendix 7 115 183 192 194 196 197 203 References 205 Index 215 List of Figures Figure 1. Measures of serious violent crime, 1973-2002 Figure 2. Percent of serious violent crime reported to the police, 1973-2002 Figure 3. Rape (UCR/NCVS)*100 and social attitudes Figure 4. NCVS and UCR rape and social attitudes Figure 5. Rape (UCR/NCVS)*100 and NCVS response Figure 6. NCVS and UCR rape and NCVS response Figure 7. Aggravated assault and (UCR/NCVS)*100 and social attitudes Figure 8. NCVS and UCR aggravated assault and social attitudes Figure 9. Aggravated assault (UCR/NCVS)*100 and NCVS response Figure 10. NCVS and UCR aggravated assault and NCVS response vii 2 20 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 This page intentionally left blank List of Tables Table 1. Crimes measured by the NCVS and UCR Table 2. NCVS and UCR crime definitions and count protocol Table 3. Data sources used in the current research Table 4. Construction of dependent variables Table