CRIME RATE ESSENTIALLY UNCHANGED LAST YEAR
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
ADVANCE FOR RELEASE AT 5 P.M. EST
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1994
BUREAU OF JUSTICE STATISTICS
(202) 307-0784
CRIME RATE ESSENTIALLY UNCHANGED LAST YEAR
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The number of Americans who were the victims of
crime remained essentially unchanged last year, according to a
redesigned annual survey the Department of Justice published today.
The new format includes crimes not previously included, such as sexual
assaults other than rape.
Estimates, based on questioning 100,000 people, showed there were almost
500,000 sexual attacks last year, including 160,000 rapes, 152,000
attempted rapes, and 173,000 other sexual crimes. Other assaults,
including domestic assaults, were up about 8 percent.
Nationwide, there were approximately 44 million personal and household
crimes. However, there was no general trend up or down. Attempted
assaults without a weapon were up 11 percent. However, other petty
crimes, such as the theft of cash or property under $50, fell 7 percent.
The annual crime victimization survey, begun in 1972, is intended to
complement the Federal Bureau of Investigation's annual Uniform Crime
Reports (UCR). The UCR is a compilation of crimes reported to law
enforcement agencies, which, unlike the victimization survey, includes
murder and manslaughter. The victimization survey cannot measure
murder because of the inability to question the victim. However,
it counts all other crimes whether or not they are reported to
the police.
Violent crime victimizations continued a seven-year increase,
principally because of a rise in attempted assaults. Victimization
rates for personal crimes increased an estimated 5.6 percent between
1992 and 1993. Personal crimes consist of rape, other sexual attacks,
robbery, assault, and personal thefts (purse snatching and pocket
picking). The victimization rate for rape, as told to the survey's
interviewers, decreased in 1993, but was not significantly different
than in 1992, continuing the relatively constant rate shown in
earlier years.
The number of completed violent victimizations dropped slightly last
year. However, attempted violent crimes, which include threats
involving weapons as well as attempted assaults, continued to
increase slightly.
The property crime victimization rate, which includes household
burglary, motor vehicle theft and property theft, declined 1 percent
between 1992 and 1993.
The only victimizations that decreased by a significant amount were
thefts of cash or property valued under $50. Last year these thefts
had decreased by more than 7 percent--from 104 thefts per 1,000 to 97
per 1,000 households.
The data reflect a recent pattern in which the levels of certain
completed violent crimes, such as simple assault completed with injury,
have been declining or holding steady while the levels of attempted
victimizations, such as attempted simple assault without a weapon,
have generally been on the increase.
The estimates are from the Bureau of Justice Statistics(BJS) National
Crime Victimization Survey, which is the government's second largest
household survey. It is administered for BJS by the Bureau of the
Census each year to approximately 100,000 people age 12 and older in
about 50,000 households.
Attached is a table of selected survey data prepared by BJS
statistician Lisa D. Bastian. A comprehensive report, describing
methodological and other technical changes, will be published
later this year. For more information about the survey's redesign
call Jay Hoover of BJS, on 202-307-1132.
Other BJS statistical reports, may be obtained from the BJS
Clearinghouse, Box 179, Annapolis Junction, Maryland 20701-0179.
The telephone number is 1-800-732-3277. Fax orders to 410-792-4358.
To receive a fax copy of 20 pages of background information on the
redesigned report call 301-216-1827.
After hours contact:
Stu Smith 301-983-9354
Note to readers: Because of the redesign of the National Crime
Victimization Survey (NCVS), these figures are not directly
comparable to those found in previous NCVS publications.
Number of victimizations (1,000's)
Victimization
rates (per 1,000)
1992 1993 % change 1992 1993 %change
1992-93 1992-93
All crimes 42,912 43,622 1.7% ... ... ...
Personal crimes* 10,692 11,409 6.7% 51.1 53.9 5.6%
Crimes of violence 10,317 10,896 5.6% 49.3 51.5 4.5%
Rape/Sexual assault 607 485 -20.1% 2.9 2.3 -20.9%
Completed rape 175 160 8.3 0.8 0.8 -9.2
Attempted rape 200 152 -23.7 1.0 0.7 -24.5
Sexual assault** 233 173 -25.8 1.1 0.8 -26.6
Robbery 1,293 1,307 1.0% 6.2 6.2 0 %
Completed 862 826 4.2 4.1 3.9 5.2
Attempted 431 481 11.6 2.1 2.3 10.4
Assault 8,416 9,104 8.2% 40.2 43.0 7.1%
Aggravated 2,317 2,578 11.3 11.1 12.2 10.2
Completed
with injury 671 713 6.3 3.2 3.4 5.2
Attempted assault
with weapon 1,646 1,865 13.3 7.9 8.8 12.2
Simple 6,099 6,525 7.0% 29.1 30.8 5.9
Completed
with injury 1,445 1,358 -6.0 6.9 6.4 -6.9
Attempted assault
without weapon 4,655 5,167 11.0b 22.2 24.4 9.9
Property crimes 32,220 32,213 0 % 325.3 322.4 -.9%
Household burglary 5,815 5,995 3.1% 58.7 60.0 2.2%
Completed 4,756 4,835 1.7 48.0 48.4 .8
Forcible entry 1,845 1,858 .7 18.6 18.6 -.2
Unlawful entry
without force 2,911 2,977 2.3 29.4 29.8 1.4
Attempted
forcible entry 1,059 1,160 9.6 10.7 11.6 8.6
Motor vehicle theft 1,838 1,967 7.0% 18.6 19.7 6.1%
Completed 1,203 1,297 7.8 12.1 13.0 6.9
Attempted 635 670 5.5 6.4 6.7 4.6
Theft 24,568 24,250 -1.3% 248.0 242.7 -2.2%
Completed*** 23,474 23,033 -1.9 237.0 230.5 -2.7
Less than $50 10,313 9,642 -6.5b 104.1 96.5 -7.3a
$50-$249 7,976 7,688 -3.6 80.5 76.9 -4.5
$250 or more 4,144 4,264 2.9 41.8 42.7 2.0
Attempted 1,094 1,217 11.3 11.0 12.2 10.3
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Note: The redesign in 1992 used a sample half the normal size.
Therefore, fewer changes are statistically significant.
Victimization rates are calculated on the basis of the number
of victimizations per 1,000 persons age 12 or older or per 1,000
households.
a = Significant at the 95% confidence level.
b = Significant at the 90% confidence level. ...Not applicable.
* = Personal crimes include purse snatching and pocket picking, not
shown separately.
** = Questions about crime included in this category were added in
July 1992, covering the previous 6 months. The data used to
develop these estimates do not constitute a complete year.
*** = Completed theft includes victimizations for which a dollar amount
of loss was not available.
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What is the National Crime Victimization Survey?
The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is one of two Justice
Department measures of crime in the United States. A pioneering effort
when it was begun in 1972, the survey was intended to complement what is
known about crime from the FBI's annual compilation of information
reported to law enforcement agencies. The survey, which also counts
incidents not reported to the police, provides a detailed picture of
crime incidents, victims, and trends from the victim's perspective.
Data are collected every year from a sample of approximately 50,000
households with more than 100,000 individuals age 12 or over.
Victimizations are categorized as personal or property crimes. Personal
crimes, including attempts, involve incidents with direct contact between
the victim and offender. (Murder is not measured by the NCVS because
of the inability to question the victim.) Property crimes do not
involve personal confrontation and include such crimes as household
burglary, theft, and motor vehicle theft.
Why redesign?
o Criticism of the earlier survey's capacity to gather
information about certain crimes, including sexual
assaults and domestic violence, prompted numerous
improvements.
o Improved survey methodology enhances the ability of
people being interviewed to recall events.
o Public attitudes toward victims have changed, permitting
more direct questioning about sexual assaults.
What is the redesign?
The new methodology was systematically field tested and introduced
starting in 1989, and its results are being published for the first
time this year. New questions were added to accommodate heightened
interest in certain types of victimizations. Improvements in technology
and survey methods were incorporated in the redesign. The extended
effort to improve the survey is paying off, as the numbers from the
redesign will be available in October 1994. An advisory panel of
criminal justice policymakers, social scientists, victim advocates,
and statisticians oversaw the work of a consortium of criminologists
and social and survey scientists who conducted research on the
improved procedures.
What are the results of the redesign?
Victims are now reporting more types of crime incidents to the survey's
interviewers. Previously undetected victimizations are being captured.
For example, the survey changes have substantially increased the number
of rapes and aggravated and simple assaults reported to interviewers.
For the first time, other victimizations, such as non-rape sexual
assault and unwanted or coerced sexual contact that involves a threat
or attempt to harm, are also being measured.
Why are survey participants reporting so many more victimizations?
The survey now includes improved questions and cues that aid victims in
recalling victimizations. Survey interviewers now ask more explicit
questions about sexual victimizations. Advocates have also encouraged
victims to talk more openly about their experiences. Together, these
changes substantially improve reporting for many types of personal
and household crime.
Can the new results be compared with previous years'?
Measuring annual change in crime victimization is one of the most
important uses of NCVS. The transition to the redesigned survey
preserved the ability to detect annual change. Both versions of the
survey were used simultaneously to collect data for 1992-93. The
overlap also permits measuring the differences between the old and
new surveys to show whether the1992-93 differences were due to changes
in crime or changes in the survey.
Why did the Justice Department pick this time to release these findings?
Annual change estimates of crime victimizations are regularly published
in the fall. For the first time, data collected with the redesigned
survey are available for two consecutive years. The transition to
the redesigned survey began in 1989, and this release has been planned
since that time.
What do the results of the redesign tell us about the adequacy of
information from the original survey?
o Number of victimizations. The original National Crime
Victimization Survey (NCVS) benefited from survey methods
that were state of the art at the time it was developed.
The improvements in survey procedures for the redesigned NCVS
have resulted in increased reporting of victimizations.
Because victims are reporting more victimization experiences,
the redesigned survey is in fact producing a more comprehensive
picture of the overall volume of crime.
o Characteristics of victimizations. The standards the NCVS uses
to define different types of victimizations remain largely the
same in the redesigned survey. Details other than what happened
to the victim, such as age, race, victim-offender relationship,
and location of the offense, are also comparable with
information provided by the original survey. Consequently,
data collected about the characteristics of crime incidents are
equally reliable, regardless of which questionnaire was used
to collect it.
o Annual change estimates. Year-to-year victimization comparisons
have always been calculated on data collected with like
questionnaires and procedures. Comparisons for 1991-92 were
calculated using the old questionnaire, and those for 1992-93
were prepared with information from the new questionnaire.
Consequently, any published findings of differences between years
should be considered reliable.
For more information about the NCVS
redesign, contact Jay Hoover, Bureau
of Justice Statistics, 202-307-1132.
***************************************************************
Bureau of Justice Statistics Fact Sheet
NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMIZATION SURVEY REDESIGN
October 30, 1994 NCJ-151170
The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) in the Department of Justice
collects and analyzes statistics from all aspects of the criminal
justice system. The NCVS data are collected and processed by the
Bureau of Census. In addition to the National Crime Victimization
Survey, BJS collects and disseminates information regarding
corrections, law enforcement, prosecution, drugs, and justice
expenditure and employment. For more information call the BJS
Clearinghouse at 1-800-732-3277.
Date Published: October 30, 1994