crime
human conduct that violates the criminal laws of a state, the federal government, or a local jurisdiction that has the power to make and enforce laws
criminalize
to make an act illegal
deviant behavior
human activity that violates social norms
statute
a formal written enactment of a legislative body
delinquency
violations of the criminal law and other misbehavior committed by young people
consensus perspective
a viewpoint that holds that laws should be enacted to criminalize given forms of behavior when members of society agree that such laws are necessary
pluralist perspective
a viewpoint that recognizes the importance of diversity in our society and says that behaviors are typically criminalized through a political process
criminologist
a person trained in the field of criminology who studies crime, criminals, and criminal behavior
criminalist
a specialist in the collection and examination of the physical evidence of crime
criminology
the scientific study of crime and criminal behavior, including their manifestations, cause, legal aspects, and control
criminal justice
the scientific study of crime, criminal law, the criminal justice system, police, courts, and correctional systems
theoretical criminology
the type of criminology that is usually studied in colleges and universities, describes crime and its occurrence, and offers explanations for criminal behavior
general theory
a theory that attempts to explain most forms of criminal conduct through a single, overarching approach
unicasual
of or having one cause, theories posing one source for all that they attempt to explain
integrated theory
an explanatory perspective that merges concepts drawn from different sources
social relativity
the notion that social events are interpreted differently according to the cultural experiences and personal interests of the initiator, observer, or recipient of that behavior
National Crime Victimization Survey
an annual survey of selected American households conducted by the BJS to determine the extent of criminal victimization (especially unreported victimization) in the United States
Uniform Crime Reporting Program
an FBI statistical reporting program that provides an annual summation of the incidence and rate of reported crimes throughout the United States
National Incident-Based Reporting System
a new and enhanced statistical reporting system that collects data on each single incident and arrest within 22 crime categories, NIBRS expands the data collected under the UCR programs
Part I offenses
the crimes of murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft, as defined under the FBI's UCR Program; major crimes
clearance rate
the proportion of reported or discovered crimes within a given offense category that are solved
dark figure of crime
the large number of unreported and undiscovered crimes that never make it into official crime statistics
self-report surveys
a survey which anonymous respondents, without fear of disclosure or arrest, are asked to report confidentially any violations of the criminal law they have committed
evidence-based criminology
a form of contemporary criminology that makes use of rigorous social scientific techniques, especially randomized controlled experiments, and the systematic review of research results; knowledge-based criminology
translational criminology
a form of contemporary criminology that seeks to translate research findings in the field into practical and workable policy initiatives
social policy
a government initiative, person, or plan intended to address problems in society