Chapter Pretest
Test your knowledge of this chapter’s material by determining whether the following statements are true or false. Be sure to compare your answers with the answers on page 90.
1. The best way to create a good statistic is to interview everyone you can about the topic.
2. Quantitative and qualitative data are equally good at describing trends over time.
3. The Uniform Crime Report data are a measure of both crimes known to police and arrests in the United States.
4. The National Crime Victimization Survey is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau.
5. Class is the strongest correlate of delinquency.
6. According to the arrest data, juveniles were less violent in 2014 than at any time since 1980.
7. According to the arrest data, juveniles were more likely to engage in property crime in 2014 than in 1980.
8. Both the arrest trends and the self-report trends show that blacks are more likely to engage in drug crimes than whites.
Discussion Question
1. Using the suggestions from the Children’s Defense Fund concerning ways to destroy the cradle-to-prison pipeline, give three real-world examples (from three of the five areas) of programs/policies that address this pipeline.
Source: Children’s Defense Fund, www.childrensdefense.org
Discussion Question
1. Follow one of the organizations on Twitter. How well do you think they use social media to get their point across? Which recent story most caught your eye, and why?
Source: Adapted from Center for Court Innovation. (2012). Angela Irvine Interview: Improving Youth Programming: The Role of Research. Retrieved from http://www.courtinnovation.org/research/improving-youth-programming-role-research-0?
url=research%2F9%2Fall&mode=9&type=all&page=4
Discussion Questions
1. What else might you want to know to help determine if this is an example of a tyranny of small numbers or a true “violence epidemic”?
2. Critique the language of the article. How are all the numbers in the article used to make the case for a worrisome new trend in female violence?
Source: Ironside, R. (2010). Bad girls: Online fights blamed for frightening rise in violent young females. The Courier Mail (Australia), January 12, p. 1.
Discussion Question
Using the Uniform Crime Reports and U.S. Census Bureau websites, find the violent crime and immigration rates for 10 cities. Is there a relationship? Can a relationship be documented over time for any of the cities?
Discussion Questions
1. Compare the trends in drug-related delinquency according to the UCR and self-report surveys. What events or behaviors is each measuring? Are the race and gender differences in these trends the same for the UCR and self-report data?
2. You are interested in finding out whether living on the East or West Coast has an impact on gender differences in delinquency. Which type of data might best answer this question? Why?
3. Explain the strengths and weaknesses of the UCR, the NCVS, and self-report data.
4. While on the bus, you overhear a conversation in which one person is lamenting how much more delinquent juveniles are today than they were 30 years ago. What would you say to this person?
Chapter Pretest Answers
1. False
2. False
3. True
4. True
5. False
6. True
7. False
8. False
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