Studying Crime

Studying Crime

How do you explain why crime occurs? Is it because people have the inner need to do something wrong? Or is it because a man wants to provide for his family? Criminologists have looked inside and out to find answers to these questions. Throughout their research they have attempted to break down crime statistics and place them in several different categories. They feel that age, race, region, season, social class as well as gender all play a role in crime rates. Crime may be committed on all levels of society however it is clear that several factors play a role in crime statistics.

Age plays a huge factor in how many crimes are committed. According to the text, Criminology, The Core, written by Larry Siegel, crimes are committed by young people. It has been found that kids at the ages of 15-18 make up only 7% of the United States population however make up 12% of part 1 violent crime arrests and 18% of property crime arrests. On the other hand, adults at the ages of 45 and up make up a huge portion of our population at roughly 33% and only account for 10% of arrests. Senior citizens are virtually absent from crime only making up 1% of arrests. A key factor criminologists point to is a term labeled "aging out" where as a teenager matures into adulthood they often grow out of committing crimes in order to create a family and find a stable job.

Males commit more crimes than females. The UCR (Uniform Crime Report) has determined that the overall arrest ratio is at a 4 to 1 level comparing males to females. An even staggering statistic is that the level of violent crimes between males and females is at a 5 to 1 level. Furthermore the murder rates are at and 8 to 1 level. Typically females will be arrested for what are known as status offenses such as prostitution. Mainly what are considered to be non-violent and victimless crimes.

As far as region and social class are concerned it has been determined that more crimes occur in large urban areas of the country. Mainly states in the western and southern regions of the United States tend to have higher crime rates than those of the north and Midwest. Regarding social class, Larry Siegel labels crime as a "lower class phenomenon." Although crime is committed on all income levels more serious crimes such as robbery, rape and murder occur in lower class areas. Simply put, people who have no money simply have more incentive to commit crimes. These types of crimes are labeled as instrumental crimes where criminal activity occurs in an attempt to improve either the financial or social class situation of the offender.

The season of the year has been determined to have an impact on crime rates as well. Criminologists have determined that the majority of crime occurs in the summer during the months of July and August. They believe this occurs due to the fact more people are out of their

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