SOC 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Victimless Crime, Juvenile Delinquency, Cybercrime
Document Summary
3 types of statistics used to measure crime: official statistics, problems , many crimes are unreported, reported crimes are not recorded, rates may be exaggerated, victimization surveys. Interviewers collect info about victims" backgrounds: self-report offender surveys, ask offenders about behavior, subject to exaggerations/concealment. Note: virtually every adult has engaged in some type of criminal activity. Violent crime homicide, assault, rape, robbery: homicide: willful killing of human (least common, acquaintance rape committed by someone known to victim. Least likely to be reported: robbery use of force/threat of force to steal. Property crime: vice crime victimless crimes. Drug use, gambling, prostitution: organized crime - mafia, gangs, white-collar crime - embezzlement, avoiding taxes, computer crime - hacking, juvenile delinquency. How to be labeled as a criminal: behavior becomes known, polices filed report, investigates, makes an arrest, arrestee goes through trial. Crime rates: # of particular crimes per 100,000 people in a population. Takes into consideration differences in population size; more accurate.
