Sociology Writing Assignment
This is a writing assignment for sociology class and the length should be 2-3 pages.
Short Essay #5: Crime Statistics
Crime statistics are a useful way for social scientists to study criminal deviance in society. One primary collection of crime statistics is the Crime Data
Crime statistics are a useful way for social scientists to study criminal deviance in society. One primary collection of crime statistics is the Crime Data Explorer. which is compiled by the FBI based on crime reports from local law enforcement agencies. In this exercise you will use the Crime Data Explorer to compare two types of crime: burglary and robbery.
1- Use the links below to find the FBI Uniform Crime Report definitions for burglary and robbery. What is the difference between burglary and robbery?
Robbery link: https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2019/crime-in-the-u.s.-2019/topic-pages/robbery
Burglary link: https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2019/crime-in-the-u.s.-2019/topic-pages/burglary
2- Use this link to access crime rate data: https://crime-data-explorer.fr.cloud.gov/pages/explorer/crime/crime-trend
Scroll to the title “Trend of Violent Crime” and Select “Robbery” from the drop-down menu labeled “Crime Select.” Look at the figure that is presented and make note of the robbery rate over the most recent 5 years. Be sure to note the population used to create the rate (i.e. 1,000; 10,000; 100,000).
3- Next, repeat the steps from part 2, but instead focus on the burglary rate. From the link above, select “Burglary” from the drop-down menu labeled “Crime Select.” Look at the chart that is presented and make note of the burglary rate over 5 years. Be sure to note the population used to create the rate (i.e. 1,000; 10,000; 100,000)
4- Next, you will select one state to examine. You can either click on the map or use the drop down menu for “Location” at the top of the webpage. You can select Colorado or another state that is of interest to you. After you select the state, repeat steps for Part 2 and Part 3 and make note of robbery rates and burglary rates over the past 5 years. Be sure to note the population used to create the rate.
5- Write up a summary of your findings. Make sure to report the crime rates for each question. You might reflect on the following questions. Prior to the exercise what did you think robbery and burglary were? How do the two crime rates compare? What were the trends over time? Which is lower? Why might one crime rate be lower? What are the limitations of using the FBI Crime Data Explorer? Finally, how did the state crime rates compare to the national crime rates? Were they higher or lower? Why might there be a difference?