Ranks a List of Crimes

¶ … ranks a list of crimes from "least severe" to "most severe" is operating at the

nominal

ordinal the answer is ordinal because on a scale, the difference between each rank is not necessarily the same

interval/ratio

All of the above

A scale designed to measure the degree of empathy for crime victims is scored from 1 to 10. This scale is probably working at the level of measurement.

nominal

ordinal This is ordinal because there is no independent thing saying that the gap between 1 and 2 is the same as the gap between 9 and 10, even though Likert scales may seem to be intervals

interval/ratio

All of the above

The race of police officers in a major Southwestern city includes members from Asian (1), Black (2), Hispanic (3), White (4), and other groups. This classification is working at the level of measurement.

a. nominal This is nominal because the races are discrete groups, but they do not have a number ranking.

b. ordinal

c. interval/ratio

d. All of the above

4. A criminologist studied fear of crime, age, and gender of people who were present for Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. The dependent variable in this study is

a. age.

b. fear of crime. Fear of crime is the variable that is changeable.

c. gender.

d. Hurricane Katrina.

5. Every time researchers test hypotheses on a sample, they must decide whether

a. It is accurate to generalize to the entire population. Researchers must determine if the sample is representative of the population described by the research.

b. It is accurate to generalize to the entire sample.

c. To focus on people or variables.

d. The dependent variable is organized.

6. A criminologisl undertakes a variety of studies to investigate various aspects of violence. For each of tin- following research situations, identify the .inh sh;iie ('v (expeinnenl. quasi-experiment.

survey, content analysis, or participant observation), and the independent and dependent variables:

a. Female offenders have historically been perceived as less of a problem than male offenders. A researcher wonders though whether women in her city are becoming more violent in their offenses. The researcher collects 100 arrest reports involving women from the past year and 100 arrest reports from 25 years ago. She records and compares the types of criminal offenses, the language used to describe the level of violence (if any), and the level of resistance to arrest.

Content analysis

Independent variable: when the offense occurred

Dependent variables: type of criminal offense level of violence, level of resistance to arrest

b. Does violence in video games produce violent behavior among high school students? To find out, researchers placed video games that could be used for free in high school cafeterias. Five schools were randomly assigned to receive violent video games and five received non-violent programs. They then compared the number of violent incidents within the schools in the two groups over a 4-month period.

Experiment

Independent variable: Violent or non-violent games

Dependent variable: Number of violent incidents

c. Are panhandlers more violent at night? To find out, the researcher spends his weekends in a downtown location near bars and restaurants in a location that city leaders have described as a "problem" area. He dresses as a tourist in a loose fitting shirt and becomes one of the crowd. At the same time, he observes and compares the number of panhandling incidents, counts loud confrontations, and compares day-versus night-time.

Participant observation

Independent variable: day or night

Dependent variable: number of panhandling incidents and loud confrontations

d. Is income level related to attitudes toward stiffer sentences for gun crimes? To find out, the researcher calls by telephone a random sample of adults. Included in the telephone question-naires are items asking people to report their household income and to rate on a 10 point scale their approval of stiffer sentences for persons who commit felonies using guns.

Survey

Independent variable: household income

Dependent variable: gun crimes

e. Are Hollywood films becoming more violent? To find out, the researcher takes a random sample of 50 films from each period, 1995-1996, 2000-2001, and 2005-2006, and studies the number of violent incidents in each.

Content analysis

Independent variable: timer period

Dependent variables: number of violent incidents in each