Research Methods for Criminal Justice and Criminology (with InfoTrac)

, by Maxfield, Michael G.; Babbie, Earl R.

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ISBN: 9780534516642 | 0534516645
Cover: Paperback
Copyright: 8/9/2000

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You'll feel like an actual participant in the research process with this bestseller's unique over-the-shoulder vantage point and practical, example-filled discussions drawn from various facets of criminal justice research. Prominent criminologist Michael G. Maxfield and acclaimed research methods author Earl Babbie guide you in effectively applying research methods to the study of crime and criminal justice policy. Conversational and learner-friendly, RESEARCH METHODS FOR CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND CRIMINOLOGY includes many study tools, examples, and exercises to help you do well on exams and excel in this course.

Preface

PART 1 AN INTRODUCTION TO CRIMINAL JUSTICE INQUIRY

(72)

Crime, Criminal Justice, and Scientific Inquiry

(27)

Introduction: Why Study Research Methods?

(1)

What Is This Book About?

(1)

Two Realities

(1)

Box: Home Detention

(2)

The Role of Science

(1)

Personal Human Inquiry

(2)

Tradition

(1)

Authority

(1)

Box: Arrest and Domestic Violence

(1)

Errors in Personal Human Inquiry

(3)

Inaccurate Observation

(1)

Overgeneralization

(1)

Selective Observation

(1)

Illogical Reasoning

(1)

Ideology and Politics

(1)

To Err Is Human

(1)

The Foundations of Social Science

(7)

Theory, Not Philosophy or Belief

(2)

Regularities

(1)

What About Exceptions?

(1)

Aggregates, Not Individuals

(1)

A Variable Language

(1)

Variables and Attributes

(1)

Variables and Relationships

(2)

Purposes of Research

(2)

Exploration

(1)

Description

(1)

Explanation

(2)

Application

(1)

Differing Avenues for Inquiry

(4)

Idiographic and Nomothetic Explanations

(2)

Inductive and Deductive Reasoning

(1)

Quantitative and Qualitative Data

(2)

Why Did Crime Go Down (or Up)?

(1)

Ethics and Criminal Justice Research

(2)

Knowing Through Experience: Summing Up and Looking Ahead

(1)

Main Points

(1)

Key Terms

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

(1)

Additional Readings

(2)

Theory and Criminal Justice Research

(22)

Introduction

(1)

The Creation of Social Science Theory

(8)

The Traditional Model of Science

(4)

Two Logical Systems

(4)

Box: Grounded Theory and Community Prosecution

(4)

Terms Used in Theory Construction

(3)

Theory in Criminal Justice

(4)

Law Breaking

(2)

Policy Responses

(1)

Theory, Research, and Public Policy

(1)

New York's Secret? Purposive Action

(3)

Ecological Theories of Crime and Crime Prevention Policy

(1)

Main Points

(1)

Key Terms

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

(1)

Additional Readings

(1)

Causation and Validity

(22)

Introduction

(1)

Determinism and Social Science

(2)

Causation in the Natural Sciences

(1)

Finding Causes in Social Science

(1)

Reasons Have Reasons

(1)

Determinism in Perspective

(1)

Idiographic and Nomothetic Models of Explanation

(2)

Criteria for Causality

(2)

Necessary and Sufficient Causes

(2)

Box: Correlation and Causality

(2)

Molar, Not Micromedial, Causal Statements

(2)

Errors of Reasoning

(1)

Validity and Causal Inference

(4)

Statistical Conclusion Validity

(1)

Internal Validity

(1)

Construct Validity

(1)

External Validity

(1)

Causation and Declining Crime

(3)

Validity and Causal Inference Summarized

(1)

Does Drug Use Cause Crime?

(1)

Linking Measurement and Association

(3)

The Traditional Deductive Model

(2)

The Interchangeability of Indexes

(1)

Main Points

(1)

Key Terms

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

(1)

Additional Readings

(2)

PART 2 STRUCTURING CRIMINAL JUSTICE INQUIRY

(136)

General Issues in Research Design

(26)

Introduction

(1)

Units of Analysis

(6)

Individuals

(1)

Groups

(1)

Organizations

(1)

Social Artifacts

(1)

Units of Analysis in Review

(1)

The Ecological Fallacy

(1)

Reductionism

(1)

The Time Dimension

(1)

Cross-Sectional Studies

(1)

Box: Units of Analysis in the National Youth Gang Survey

(6)

Longitudinal Studies

(2)

Approximating Longitudinal Studies

(1)

Retrospective Studies

(3)

The Time Dimension Summarized

(1)

How to Design a Research Project

(7)

The Research Process

(2)

Getting Started

(1)

Conceptualization

(1)

Choice of Research Method

(1)

Operationalization

(1)

Population and Sampling

(1)

Observations

(1)

Data Processing

(1)

Analysis

(1)

Application

(1)

Review

(2)

The Research Proposal

(1)

Elements of a Research Proposal

(1)

Units and Time in New York

(1)

Answers to Units of Analysis Exercise

(1)

Main Points

(1)

Key Terms

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

(1)

Additional Readings

(2)

Concepts, Operationalization, and Measurement

100

(27)

Introduction

101

(1)

Conceptions and Concepts

101

(5)

Conceptualization

102

(1)

Indicators and Dimensions

103

(1)

Confusion Over Definitions and Reality

104

(1)

Creating Conceptual Order

104

(2)

Operationalization Choices

106

(2)

Measurement as ``Scoring''

107

(1)

Box: What Is Recidivism?

108

(2)

Exhaustive and Exclusive Measurement

108

(2)

Box: Jail Stay

110

(4)

Levels of Measurement

110

(2)

Implications of Levels of Measurement

112

(2)

What's a Police Activity?

114

(1)

Criteria for Measurement Quality

114

(7)

Reliability

116

(2)

Validity

118

(3)

Composite Measures

121

(3)

Typologies

121

(1)

An Index of Disorder

122

(2)

Measurement Summary

124

(1)

Main Points

124

(1)

Key Terms

125

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

125

(1)

Additional Readings

125

(2)

Measuring Crime

127

(30)

Introduction

128

(1)

General Issues in Measuring Crime

128

(2)

What Offenses?

128

(1)

What Units of Analysis?

129

(1)

What Purpose?

129

(1)

Box: Units of Analysis and Measuring Crime

130

(1)

Crimes Known to Police

131

(6)

Uniform Crime Reports

132

(1)

UCR and Criteria for Measurement Quality

133

(1)

Incident-Based Police Records

134

(1)

National Incident-Based Reporting System

134

(2)

NIBRS and Criteria for Measurement Quality

136

(1)

Measuring Crime Through Victim Surveys

137

(6)

National Crime Victimization Survey

137

(2)

NCVS Redesign

139

(2)

Community Victimization Surveys

141

(1)

Comparing Victim Surveys and Crimes Known to Police

142

(1)

Surveys of Offending

143

(4)

National Household Survey on Drug Abuse

144

(1)

Monitoring the Future

145

(1)

Validity and Reliability of Self-Report Measures

146

(1)

Self-Report Surveys Summarized

146

(1)

Drug Surveillance Systems

147

(3)

Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring

147

(1)

Drug Abuse Warning Network

148

(1)

Pulse Check

149

(1)

Measuring Crime for Specific Purposes

150

(2)

Crime Surveys

150

(1)

Incident-Based Crime Records

151

(1)

Observing Crime

151

(1)

Measuring Crime in New York

152

(2)

Measuring Crime: Summary

154

(1)

Main Points

155

(1)

Key Terms

155

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

155

(1)

Additional Readings

156

(1)

Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs

157

(30)

Introduction

158

(1)

The Classical Experiment

158

(5)

Independent and Dependent Variables

159

(1)

Pretesting and Posttesting

159

(1)

Experimental and Control Groups

160

(1)

Double-Blind Experiment

161

(1)

Selecting Subjects

162

(1)

Randomization

163

(1)

Experiments and Causal Inference

163

(8)

Experiments and Threats to Validity

164

(1)

Threats to Internal Validity

164

(3)

Ruling Out Threats to Internal Validity

167

(2)

Generalizability

169

(1)

Threats to Construct Validity

169

(1)

Threats to External Validity

170

(1)

Threats to Statistical Conclusion Validity

171

(1)

Variations in the Classical Experimental Design

171

(2)

Quasi-Experimental Designs

173

(10)

Nonequivalent-Groups Designs

173

(3)

Cohort Designs

176

(1)

Time-Series Designs

177

(3)

Variations in Time-Series Designs

180

(1)

Gun Control, Homicide, and Suicide

181

(2)

Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs Summarized

183

(1)

A Variety of Designs in New York

184

(1)

Main Points

184

(1)

Key Terms

184

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

184

(2)

Additional Readings

186

(1)

Ethics and Criminal Justice Research

187

(22)

Introduction

188

(1)

Ethical Issues in Criminal Justice Research

188

(9)

No Harm to Participants

189

(2)

Voluntary Participation

191

(1)

Anonymity and Confidentiality

192

(1)

Deceiving Subjects

193

(1)

Analysis and Reporting

193

(1)

Legal Liability

194

(1)

Special Problems

194

(3)

Promoting Compliance with Ethical Principles

197

(3)

Institutional Review Boards

197

(3)

Box: Ethics and Juvenile Gang Members

200

(1)

Institutional Review Board Requirements and Researcher Rights

200

(1)

Two Ethical Controversies

201

(1)

Trouble in the Tearoom

201

(1)

Confidentiality in Police Research

202

(4)

Simulating a Prison

204

(2)

Discussion Examples

206

(1)

Main Points

207

(1)

Key Terms

207

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

207

(1)

Additional Readings

208

(1)

PART 3 MODES OF OBSERVATION

209

(134)

Overview of Data Collection and Sampling

210

(35)

Introduction

211

(1)

Three Sources of Data

211

(2)

Asking Questions

211

(1)

Direct Observations

212

(1)

Examining Written Records

212

(1)

Using Multiple Data Sources

213

(1)

General Issues in Data Collection

213

(1)

Using Three Types of Data in New York City

214

(2)

Measurement Validity and Reliability

214

(1)

Obtrusive and Unobtrusive Measures

215

(1)

Box: Multiple Measures in Home Detention

216

(2)

Be Careful, But Be Creative

218

(1)

The Logic of Probability Sampling

218

(3)

Conscious and Unconscious Sampling Bias

218

(2)

Representativeness and Probability of Selection

220

(1)

Probability Sampling Theory and Sampling Distributions

221

(8)

The Sampling Distribution of Ten Cases

222

(1)

From Sampling Distribution to Parameter Estimate

223

(3)

Estimating Sampling Error

226

(2)

Confidence Levels and Confidence Intervals

228

(1)

Random Sampling and Probability Theory Summed Up

228

(1)

Populations and Sampling Frames

229

(1)

Types of Sampling Designs

230

(4)

Simple Random Sampling

230

(1)

Systematic Sampling

230

(1)

Stratified Sampling

230

(2)

Disproportionate Stratified Sampling

232

(1)

Multistage Cluster Sampling

232

(2)

Multistage Cluster Sampling with Stratification

234

(1)

Illustration: Two National Crime Surveys

234

(4)

National Crime Victimization Survey

236

(1)

British Crime Survey

236

(2)

Probability Sampling in Review

238

(1)

Nonprobability Sampling

238

(2)

Purposive or Judgmental Sampling

238

(1)

Quota Sampling

239

(1)

Sampling New York City Police Precincts

240

(2)

Reliance on Available Subjects

240

(1)

Snowball Sampling

241

(1)

Nonprobability Sampling in Review

242

(1)

Main Points

242

(2)

Key Terms

244

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

244

(1)

Additional Readings

244

(1)

Survey Research and Other Ways of Asking Questions

245

(32)

Introduction

246

(1)

Topics Appropriate to Survey Research

246

(3)

Counting Crime

246

(1)

Self-Reports

247

(1)

Perceptions and Attitudes

247

(1)

Policy Proposals

247

(1)

Targeted Victim Surveys

248

(1)

Other Evaluation Uses

248

(1)

General-Purpose Crime Surveys

249

(1)

Guidelines for Asking Questions

249

(5)

Open-Ended and Closed-Ended Questions

249

(1)

Questions and Statements

250

(1)

Make Items Clear

250

(1)

Short Items Are Best

250

(1)

Avoid Negative Items

250

(1)

Avoid Biased Items and Terms

251

(1)

Tips on Self-Report Items

251

(2)

Computer-Assisted Interviews

253

(1)

Questionnaire Construction

254

(4)

General Questionnaire Format

254

(1)

Contingency Questions

254

(2)

Matrix Questions

256

(1)

Ordering Questions in a Questionnaire

257

(1)

Self-Administered Questionnaires

258

(3)

Mail Distribution and Return

259

(1)

Warning Mailings, Cover Letters

259

(1)

Monitoring Returns

260

(1)

Follow-Up Mailings

260

(1)

Acceptable Response Rates

261

(1)

In-Person Interview Surveys

261

(3)

The Role of the Interviewer

261

(1)

General Rules for Interviewing

262

(1)

Coordination and Control

263

(1)

Telephone Surveys

264

(2)

Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing

265

(1)

Comparison of the Three Methods

266

(2)

Strengths and Weakenesses of Survey Research

268

(2)

Other Ways of Asking Questions

270

(2)

Specialized Interviewing

270

(1)

Focus Groups

271

(1)

Should You Do It Yourself?

272

(2)

Asking Questions in New York

274

(1)

Main Points

275

(1)

Key Terms

275

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

275

(1)

Additional Readings

276

(1)

Field Research

277

(34)

Introduction

278

(1)

Topics Appropriate to Field Research

279

(1)

The Various Roles of the Observer

280

(2)

Asking Questions

282

(2)

Preparing for the Field

284

(10)

Access to Formal Organizations

284

(3)

Access to Subcultures

287

(1)

Selecting Cases for Observation

288

(2)

Sampling in Field Research

290

(1)

Recording Observations

291

(2)

Field Notes

293

(1)

Structured Observations

293

(1)

Linking Field Observations and Other Data

294

(2)

Illustrations of Field Research

296

(2)

Shoplifting

297

(1)

Box: Conducting a Safety Audit

298

(6)

How Many People Wear Seat Belts?

300

(1)

``Driving While Black''

301

(1)

Bars and Violence

302

(2)

Field Research in New York

304

(2)

Strengths and Weaknesses of Field Research

306

(3)

Validity

306

(1)

Reliability

307

(1)

Generalizability

308

(1)

Main Points

309

(1)

Key Terms

310

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

310

(1)

Additional Readings

310

(1)

Agency Records, Content Analysis, and Secondary Data

311

(32)

Introduction

312

(1)

Topics Appropriate for Agency Records

312

(2)

Types of Agency Records

314

(8)

Published Statistics

314

(2)

Nonpublic Agency Records

316

(4)

New Data Collected by Agency Staff

320

(2)

Units of Analysis and Sampling

322

(2)

Units of Analysis

322

(1)

Sampling

323

(1)

Reliability and Validity

324

(2)

Sources of Reliability and Validity Problems

325

(1)

Box: How Many Parole Violators Were There Last Month?

326

(3)

Content Analysis

329

(6)

Units of Analysis and Sampling in Content Analysis

329

(3)

Coding in Content Analysis

332

(1)

Illustrations of Content Analysis

333

(2)

Secondary Analysis

335

(2)

Sources of Secondary Data

336

(1)

Advantages and Disadvantages of Secondary Data

337

(1)

Main Points

337

(1)

NYPD Agency Records

338

(2)

Key Terms

340

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

340

(1)

Additional Readings

340

(3)

PART 4 Application and Analysis

343

(77)

Evaluation Research and Policy Analysis

344

(35)

Introduction

345

(1)

Topics Appropriate for Evaluation Research and Policy Analysis

345

(4)

The Policy Process

346

(1)

Linking the Process of Evaluation

347

(2)

Getting Started

349

(7)

Evaluability Assessment

350

(1)

Problem Formulation

351

(2)

Measurement

353

(3)

Designs for Program Evaluation

356

(11)

Randomized Evaluation Designs

356

(3)

Home Detention: Two Randomized Studies

359

(2)

Quasi-Experimental Designs

361

(3)

Scientific Realism and Evaluation

364

(2)

Other Types of Evaluation Studies

366

(1)

Policy Analysis

367

(4)

Modeling Prison Populations

367

(3)

Other Applications of Policy Analysis

370

(1)

Political Context of Applied Research

371

(1)

Applied Research in the NYPD

372

(3)

Evaluation and Stakeholders

373

(1)

Politics and Objectivity

374

(1)

Box: When Politics Accommodates Facts

375

(1)

Main Points

376

(1)

Key Terms

377

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

377

(1)

Additional Readings

377

(2)

Interpreting Data

379

(41)

Introduction

380

(1)

Univariate Description

380

(8)

Distributions

380

(1)

Central Tendency

381

(2)

Dispersion

383

(2)

Comparing Measures of Dispersion and Central Tendency

385

(2)

Computing Rates

387

(1)

Detail Versus Manageability

388

(1)

Describing Two or More Variables

388

(4)

Bivariate Analysis

388

(3)

Multivariate Analysis

391

(1)

Box: Murder on the Job

392

(10)

Measures of Association

396

(6)

Analyzing NYPD Crime Data

402

(2)

Inferential Statistics

404

(13)

Univariate Inferences

404

(1)

Tests of Statistical Significance

405

(1)

The Logic of Statistical Significance

405

(5)

Visualizing Statistical Significance

410

(2)

Chi Square

412

(2)

Cautions in Interpreting Statistical Significance

414

(1)

Visualizing Discernible Differences

415

(2)

Main Points

417

(1)

Key Terms

418

(1)

Review Questions and Exercises

418

(1)

Additional Readings

418

(2)

Glossary

420

(9)

Bibliography

429

(13)

Name Index

442

(2)

Subject Index

444

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Research Methods for Criminal Justice and Criminology (with InfoTrac)

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials