Comparative research in criminology and criminal justice

¶ … Criminological and Criminal Justice Research

Comparative research

Comparative research is a technique in the social sciences that seeks to draw comparisons across different cultures or countries.

What led to its use in criminology?

The comparative methodology is not new to research studies in the social science field. In 1889, E.B. Taylor recognized the profits of comparative research in his presentation to the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain. Nonetheless, with a couple of prominent special cases, his call for comparative studies went unheeded by non-anthropological analysts until the mid-1950s (Bennett, 2009). At that point, scientists in psychology, political science and sociology started utilizing comparative approaches to develop and test theories in their disciplines. Not until the late 1970s and early 1980s did criminologists, start investigating crime comparatively. Since then, there has been a gradual expansion of criminological literary works, which utilizes comparative techniques.

The September 2001 events altered the way Americans viewed the world and how different the justice systems in different countries address issues of global terrorism. The mainstream media that published criminal justices practices and systems in some nations highlighted the recently discovered interest. It was once perceived as a topic of debate in annual meetings but developed into front-page headlines. Since the 9/11 terror attack, academically focused studies on these topics has grown (Winterdyk, Reichel & Dammer, 2009). For instance, the European Society of Criminology (ESC) has expanded generously every year since then. Right now, the International Division of the ASC has the biggest participation of any division across the society.

Such increased focus towards global terrorism and comparative research has never been a surprise. The terror attacks stirred European and American publics' attention and interest to something, which remains a major security concern across the world for a year.

The design of comparative research

A comparative study exists when a researcher endeavors to answer questions concerning the distinctions between two or more groups or countries. The comparative research design holds defined aspects that hold accurate over all types of comparative exploration. These qualities permit the researcher to utilize their research in a statistically valid and objective manner (Cohen, 2008).

Types of data are used in comparative research

Official Data

Most research studies about comparative crime depend on official information. This information is gathered for utilization by the criminal agencies in a jurisdiction or country. The needs and concerns of researchers concentrating on the correlates of criminal justice and crime are irrelevant. This information is then transmitted to a supra-national information center and distribution office where descriptions of crime must be uniform instead of in strict arrangement with every country's definitions based upon its punitive law (Bennett, 2009).

Survey Data

An exceptional emerging addition to a toolbox of a comparative researcher is the crime victim survey. While this approach is consistent in many countries, there is a variance in the sampling when undertaken within a country. Some countries can use nationwide samples while others will only confine their studies to cities with largest populations only. Data collected in the survey questionnaires is then translated into the dialect of the country by professionals from that country who then regulate the fielding of the study in their country of origin (Cohen, 2008).

Conclusion

I conquer with the writer's conclusion that the increase in global crime and terrorism has attracted a rise in comparative research. In a series of decades, there has been a sharp increase in interest towards comparative criminal justice. This has resulted in the publication of general texts hence an expanded field of comparative research (Cohen, 2008). Currently, we have witnessed a broad coverage of both comparative criminal justice and comparative criminology among researchers. Besides comparing scientific nations, key aspects of criminal justice have also been compared (corrections, courts, police and law). This has enabled us to understand how various aspects work in different countries. Internet based infrastructures have increased popularity in this section as websites as the best examples of quick access to relevant criminal data.