scholarly journals Official Crime Statistics versus Fear of Crime of the Citizens in a Hungarian Small Town

Author(s):  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ákos Jakobi ◽  
Andrea Pődör

This study evaluates fear of crime perception and official crime statistics in a spatial context, by applying digital sketch maps and statistical GIS methods. The study aims to determine explanatory motives of fear of crime by comparing results of selected large, medium and small sized Hungarian cities. Fear of crime information of residents were collected by using a web application, which gave the possibility to mark regions on a map, where respondents have a sense of safety or feel fear. These digital sketch maps were processed by GIS tools, and were converted to grid data, in order to calculate comparable explanatory variables for fear of crime analysis. The grid-based normalised model reflected some similarities and differences between the observed cities. According to the outcomes, examples were found both in coincidences and opposite correlations of crime statistics and perception of unsafe places, highlighting the importance of locality in fear of crime research. Additionally, the results mirrored that the size of the city or the respondent’s sex does not significantly influence the overall judgment of places, rather the absolute number of safe markings and the local number of registered crime events could affect local results.


Author(s):  
Mike Maguire ◽  
Susan McVie

This chapter provides a critical reflection on the nature and measurement of crime levels, patterns, and trends. It covers empirical and methodological questions about how much crime there is and how this changes over time and considers the relationship between what crime data are collected and published and changes in perceptions of and responses to the crime problem as a result of developments in the politics of crime control. The chapter is divided into three sections. The first provides a critical overview of the development of the ‘official’ crime statistics in England and Wales, highlighting some of the key decisions that are made about how to present statistics to the public and how to respond to legal changes, new sources of data, and the emergence of new kinds of criminal behaviour. The second section examines, and explores the reasons behind, a rapid growth in demand for new kinds of information about crime which has been evident since the 1970s. The final section summarizes challenges, dilemmas, and recent debates about the future of national crime statistics, including questions about how to maintain public trust and how to balance competing demands of relevance, comprehensiveness, and robust measurement of trends.


2002 ◽  
Vol 112 (477) ◽  
pp. F85-F106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ziggy MacDonald

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 399-419 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Lysova

Homicide statistics are often seen as the most reliable and comparable indicator of violent deaths around the world. However, the analysis of Russian homicide statistics challenges this understanding and suggests that international comparisons of homicide levels can be hazardous. Drawing on an institutionalist perspective on crime statistics, official crime-based homicide statistics in Russia are approached as a social construct, a performance indicator and a tool of governance. The paper discusses several incentives to misrepresent official homicide data in contemporary Russia, including politicization of homicide statistics as a legacy of the Soviet’ era’s falsified crime statistics and the role of policing. Mainly, the paper identifies and describes the exact legal, statistical and country-specific substantive mechanisms that allow homicide statistics to be distorted in Russia. By considering legal mechanisms alone, the more accurate homicide rate may be at least 1.6 times higher than that reported in the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Global Study on Homicide 2013.


2018 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 166-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arjen Leerkes ◽  
Ramiro Martinez ◽  
Pim Groeneveld

Author(s):  
Johan Burger

The South African Police Service (SAPS) released the official crime statistics for 2008/2009 on 22 September 2009. As usual the statistics drew huge media and public interest. This article provides an overview of the key trends and offers an analysis of the statistics. Key trends include that the overall crime rate, after a five-year respite in which there was a downward trend, is on the increase; as are the so-called 'trio crimes'  (house robberies, business robberies and car hijackings) and truck hijackings. This article briefly considers the controversy around the validity of the police's crime statistics and notes a few lessons from Colombia.


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