Property Crimes in Texas

The study will focus on a literature review that will help guide the quantitative survey that will be followed by a brief qualitative interview. The research design is mixed methods and follows a case study methodology. Various sources will be collected from literature and compared with results from the interview questions designed. There will be a quantitative survey that will allow respondents to answer close-ended questions followed with a short interview where respondents answer open-ended questions. The case study is meant to give an understanding of a particular event or circumstance in one area such as Northern San Antonio, Texas. By focusing on participants within this area and collecting information in relation to other areas participating in similar or the same community programs, the aim is to deliver a well-constructed picture of what is happening in that community and what can be done to improve negative conditions.
A case-study is the best option for this kind of mixed-methods study because it provides an in-depth investigation of a specific topic. “A case study is an in-depth description and analysis of a bounded system. Part of the confusion surrounding case studies is that the process of conducting a case study is conflated with boy the unit of study and the product of this type of investigation” (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016, p. 37). Although case studies may at times be a confusing approach, because the study will focus on the community of Northern San Antonio, Texas, property crime, and the police handle property crime, it is important to stick to a qualitative approach for some of the information because is both insightful and allows the researcher to compare information from literature and other similar studies; while the quantitative aspect with the survey helps provide clear data that can be compared.
The case study will have a question and answer-type survey, allowing people to provide their personal opinions and experience related to property crime. However, the data for the questions will be analyzed quantitatively with a second interview to answer open-ended questions. The literature review will allow the direction of the survey to take shape and promote a focused perspective on the kind information needed to answer the hypotheses. “use the information from qualitative data gathering to select appropriate language and questions for the survey instrument. The aim is to get more credible numerical descriptions and testing of specific hypotheses about patterns of behaviors…” (Pelto, 2016, p. 35).
Design
The design involves the region of Northern San Antonio, Texas. People that have experienced property crime and/or participated in a community support program will be asked to participate in the survey and interview. Literature search criteria will include community support programs and their effectiveness as well as police intervention and improvement or not of property crime rates. Although participants will be asked questions regardless of gender or race/ethnicity, the ages will be 18 and up because ethical reasons and for purposes to identify program participation. All participants must live in Northern San Antonio, Texas.
It is important to gain primary information from participants, but also compare and contrast the information from the literature review. The hypothesis focuses on if people participate in at least one community support program, then property crimes (Property theft) will decrease by 10% within 12 months in Northeast San Antonio, Texas. This requires both quantitative and qualitative information to confirm efficacy. There needs to be an understanding of the influence and impact community support programs have on property crimes and whether police play a negative or positive role in reducing property crime rates.
Quantitative data will provide concrete information showing statistics that will either prove or refute the hypothesis. For example, if the results of the quantitative survey show statistics showing reduce crime rate, higher sense of safety in participants in relation to program participation, than that means the program is effective. To further support this conclusion, qualitative data from brief interviews will explain why these results point to this conclusion. The literature review can be used to decide if these answers are similar or an anomaly compared to other studies with similar research designs. These varying perspectives are used to create an objective view of the effects of community support programs on property crime.
Some major differences needed to discover to refute or confirm the hypothesis is if community support programs have no impact and the participation of participants in community support programs. Community support programs are believed to have a positive impact on crime and crime deterrence. However, if communities like Northern San Antonio, Texas are not participating in these programs, this may suggest these programs may be flawed or not at the level they need to be, to promote participation.
Analysis
The results will be analyzed looking for underlying themes in relation to the qualitative information. The literature review will be analyze as well allowing for reflexive exercises to find additional meaning in the quantitative and qualitative results (Liu, Lu, Lu, & Lin, 2013). Software can be used to further interpret qualitative information. “One genre of software, known as Qualitative Data Analysis Software (QDAS or QDA software), is specifically designed to support qualitative research, as opposed to tools primarily used for the collection of data (such as audio or video recorders), or presentation of findings (such as presentation or modeling software)” (Gilbert, Jackson, & Di Gregorio, 2013, p. The quantitative information will be analyzed by using descriptives and tabulating the data using statistical software (Kim & Skinner, 2013).
Results that confirm the hypothesis will learn towards reduced property crime rates. That means community support program participation is high and because of community support programs, there are less auto thefts, burglaries, and so forth. However, the hypothesis may be refuted if there is little to no participation in a community support program and/or if community support programs have no positive impact on reducing property crime rates in Northern San Antonio, Texas. As one study, proves, barriers can exist even when there is a desire to empower a community.
We found that community empowerment-based approaches to addressing HIV among sex workers were significantly associated with reductions in HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, and with increases in consistent condom use with all clients. Despite the promise of a community-empowerment approach, we identified formidable structural barriers to implementation and scale-up at various levels. These barriers include regressive international discourses and funding constraints; national laws criminalising sex work; and intersecting social stigmas, discrimination, and violence (Kerrigan et al., 2015, p. 172).
Significance/Conclusion
The research conducted for this study will have major improvement over original studies because it will focus on what effects (positive or negative) community support programs have on property crime. As one study mentions, these kinds of programs have not been adequately research and evaluated for efficacy especially relating to volunteering.
The introduction of VPCSOs was seen as successful by the Force involved which continues to develop the role as a useful ‘policing resource’. However, challenges to success were identified, not least the uncertainty surrounding the delegation of powers to volunteers that required a change in primary legislation (Strudwick, Jameson, & Rowe, 2017, p. 1).
The study will help identify gaps in research thanks to the literature review and provide first-hand information on the experiences of people in Northern San, Antonio regarding property crime rates and what if what is being done currently to help is working. Without this kind of information, future researchers will not have the information to further expand this topic.
Even sub-topics like volunteer-policing can be discussed and expounded on with the results of this study. Volunteer-policing has been part of the United States for quite some time. “Volunteer police have always been a part of policing, and currently field approximately 20% of the numbers of full-time paid officers in the United States. Given this long history and significant participation, it is surprising how little is known about this aspect of policing” (Dobrin & Wolf, 2016, p. 220). If community support programs motivate citizens to join in volunteer-policing, what other positive influences can community support programs offer? These are just a few of the different avenues that can be taken when considering this study and its possible future implications on research.





References
Dobrin, A., & Wolf, R. (2016). What is known and not known about volunteer policing in the United States. International Journal of Police Science & Management, 18(3), 220-227. doi:10.1177/1461355716660732
Gilbert, L. S., Jackson, K., & Di Gregorio, S. (2013). Tools for Analyzing Qualitative Data: The History and Relevance of Qualitative Data Analysis Software. Handbook of Research on Educational Communications and Technology, 221-236. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-3185-5_18
Kerrigan, D., Kennedy, C. E., Morgan-Thomas, R., Reza-Paul, S., Mwangi, P., Win, K. T., … Butler, J. (2015). A community empowerment approach to the HIV response among sex workers: effectiveness, challenges, and considerations for implementation and scale-up. The Lancet, 385(9963), 172-185. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(14)60973-9
Kim, J. K., & Skinner, C. J. (2013). Weighting in survey analysis under informative sampling. Biometrika, 100(2), 385-398. doi:10.1093/biomet/ass085
Liu, J. S., Lu, L. Y., Lu, W., & Lin, B. J. (2013). Data envelopment analysis 1978–2010: A citation-based literature survey. Omega, 41(1), 3-15. doi:10.1016/j.omega.2010.12.006
Merriam, S. B., & Tisdell, E. J. (2016). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Pelto, P. J. (2016). Applied ethnography: Guidelines for field research. Routledge.
Strudwick, K., Jameson, J., & Rowe, J. (2017). Developing Volunteers in Policing: Assessing the Potential Volunteer Police Community Police Officer. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice. doi:10.1093/police/pax056