The Mismeasure of Crime

Filled with real-world examples derived from media reports on crime trends and other sources, this updated Second Edition analyzes the specific errors that can occur in the three most common methods used to report crime—official crime data, self-report, and victimization studies. For each method, the authors examine strengths and weaknesses, the fundamental issues surrounding accuracy, and the method's application to theoretical and policy research. Throughout the book, the authors demonstrate the factors that underlie crime data and illustrate the fundamental links between theory, policy, and data measurement.

New To The Second Edition

New coverage includes an all-new section on crime mapping, as well as new material on web-based and e-mail surveys.

Coverage of recent developments on measuring crime includes new material on sexual assault on college campuses.

Chapter 6 includes expanded coverage of racial profiling.

Other important enhancements include increased discussion of sex offender registries and a new section and critique on the increasing use of "projected deviance" measures.

Current data and many new examples bring the book fully up-to-date.

Key Features

Coverage of the factors that underlie crime data and other measures of social phenomena helps readers learn to critically analyze social data.

The book's historical and international perspectives give readers a wider view of the problems in measuring crime.

A wide range of examples, including many that are derived from the popular media's reporting on crime trends, helps readers see the relevance of crime measurement data to the real word