Download 26 th March Victims of crime

th
26
March Victims
of crime:
You will need to know:
1. Victims of crime – what evidence is there in
relation to victims in terms of age, class, gender,
ethnicity
2. What are the problems with statistics/ victim
surveys
Critical Victimology
• Based on conflict theories (Marxism and
Feminism)
• It focuses on two aspects of society
1. Structural – patriarchy and poverty
2.The power of the state to label/ not
label a victim
Where do the different strands of victimology get
their ideas from? The various victim surveys that are
carried out!
Victim surveys involve asking individuals about their
experiences of crime, their fears of crime and their
views on the criminal justice system.
Two main types of victim
surveys have been carried out
At a national level!
the British Crime
Survey is the most
common (BCS)
Done on a local level
Previous examples
include Islington
Crime Survey (ICS)
So who is more likely to
become a victim of crime
according to the BCS?
Class?
Gender?
Age?
Ethnicity?
Repeat victim?
Using your hand out mind
map out how the above
factors contribute to
someone becoming a victim
of a crime!
According to the BCS and other home
office statistics, minority groups are
more likely to be victims of most
crimes than whites. All minority groups
of likely to be victims of burglary and
vehicle theft than whites.
Black and Indian minorities are more
likely to be robbed. Blacks are more
likely than whites to be assaulted or
robbed.
Reasons for these differences
could include the areas where
ethnic minorities live, higher
rates of unemployment, the
number of younger ethnic
minorities compared to whites,
and the effect of gang activity to
black homicide rates
Gender and victimisation
Men are far more likely than
women to be victims of violent
street crimes,
but women are far more likely to
be victims of rape and domestic
violence.
According to the Home office figures domestic violence
accounts for 16% of all violent crimes. It affects 1 in 4
women and 1 in 6 men. 72% of all domestic violence victims
are women; there is one incident of domestic violence
reported to the police every minute and two women are
killed each week by a current or former partner
Age and victimisation
 An inescapable fact is under-16s are not interviewed in the
annual government surveys that are combined with police
statistics to provide a picture of crime and victimisation in
the UK.
 This is due to methodological reasons. They have been
included in the Crime and Justice Survey since 2005
 It found 35% of 10- to 15-year-olds had been victims of at
least one "personal" crime - assault, robbery or theft.
 16-25 year olds are 6x more likely to be victims of crime
than those aged 75 and over
 Young people find themselves in situations where they are
more likely to become victims
 43% of over British 60s feel very or a bit unsafe walking
alone after dark
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8T9LiPqw5w Effects of been a
victim
But what about other VCs? Realists
and feminists have developed an
alternative approach to the BCS
Although BCS addresses some of the limitations posed
by OCS as they provide vital information about the
social patterns of victimisation and the fear of crime.
Intrepretivist sociologists argue that unstructured
interviews can produce more validity in terms of the
quality of data because the interviewee at the centre of
the research. Unstructured interviews are not
restricted by a set format of questions and a tick list
of boxes.
Two alternatives to the
BCS
Realist victim
surveys
Feminist
victim surveys
Use the information in your handout to fill out the back sheet of
your booklet
British Crime Survey
A victim study which asks
people if they have been a
victim of a crime and the
circumstances of that
crime. It was conducted
every two years from 1982
-2000 then every year
since.
The study is based on a
representative sample of adults
living in private households in
England and Wales. In 2002 over
36,000 surveys were conducted.
Certain crimes are excluded due to
low reporting such as murder, drug
possession or dealing, fraud,
offences against businesses.
Trends and patterns
 BCS says 10.7 million crimes
committed, OS (4.7 million.
The majority of crime is
property related.
 Violent crime accounts for 1/5
of all crime
 Overall crime peaked in 1995
and has declined ever since.
 Men aged 16-24 most likely to
be a victim of violence.
BCS and Selfreport studies
BCS: includes unreported and
unrecorded crime but only
75% is comparable with police
statistics.
Self-report: Mainly street
crime (working class) excludes
hidden crimes like domestic
violence. Only gives a small
picture of criminal activity.
Self-report studies
Anonymous
questionnaires which ask
respondents if they have
committed a crime over
the past year.
They are usually based
on self-completed
questionnaires or
interviews which contain
a list of offences.
Respondents are asked
to highlight which they
have committed. Self
report studies show us
that most people commit
crime at some point in
their lives so crime is
normal.
Self-Report Studies
Ask people whether they have committed a series
of offences. Based upon a self-completed
questionnaire or interview.
Respondents are presented with a list of offences
and asked which they have committed over a period
of 12 months.
Results suggest that most of us have committed at least one crime
at some stage in our lives. This questions the view that a clear
distinction can be made between law-abiding people and offenders.
One may suggest that crime is normal. However most people
commit petty crime and frequent law-breaking is relatively rare.
Self-Report studies give an indication of the social characteristics
of an offender...
So can we rely on statistics for a
true picture of criminal activity in
society? Why?
What implications does this have
on how we view and understand
crime?
That’s right think about other areas of the topic as you’ll need to bring
in your notes on White Collar and Corporate Crime as these topics are
closely linked to the usefulness of Crime Statistics and ‘The Dark Figure
of Crime’.
 Also remember that the study of Official Crime Statistics makes up
part of your Methods in Context work!
What do we know?
Youth Crime Statistics
Facts
• 70% of youth crime committed by 7- 8%
youths
• Huge cost of incarceration
• 76% re-offend within two years
• £2,300 savings from preventing a single youth
crime (Cooper & Lybrand 1994)
• £1.5m annually to deal with crime related
damage in one street in Braunstone, Leics.
Youth Inclusion Programme (YIP)
UN Committee on the Rights of the
Child
Supervision Orders
Green Paper: Youth Matters 2005
Crime & Disorder Act 1998
14-19 Curriculum 2004
UN Convention on the Rights of the
Child
No More Excuses: A New
Approach to Tackling
Youth Crime
Detention and Training
Orders
Misspent Youth: Young People and Crime
1996
ISSP
Policy Related
to Young People
Children’s Act 2004
Anti Social Behaviour Act 2003
Parenting Order
Every Child Matters and
Youth Justice: The Next
Steps 2003
Crime (Sentences) Act
1997
Youth Justice and
Criminal Evidence Act
1999
Criminal Justice Act 2003
Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994
Secure training Orders
Education Reform Act 1988