module k: crime and punishment

crime

a violation of the law

uniform crime report (UCP)

data voluntarily submitted to it by about 17,000 local law enforcement agencies. To generate the data, law enforcement agencies are given specific definitions and guidelines to follow.

national crime victimization surveys (NCVS)

a large survey of randomly selected American households regarding crime victimization. Household respondents are asked to report if they have been victims of assault, burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, rape, or robbery.

psychic rewards 

non-pecuniary benefits like social prestige or social disapproval

punishment by the state

the primary cost for one who is convicted of a crime

economic opportunity costs

what a person gives up in legitimate income for the benefit associated with the crime.

social costs

consequences of crime such as ostracism from a group or shame

capital

a resource used in pursuit of an end

financial capital

if a business has a large amount of ______, it has a lot of money that it can invest to improve its product.

human capital

an individual’s skill set

social capital

social networks that have value

criminal capital

human or social capital that enhances a person’s ability to profit from illegal activity

opportunity cost of crime

the net benefit of the legal activity forgone while planning, performing and concealing the criminal act

recidivism

repeat offending

three strikes laws

require judges to give a mandatory extended sentence to anyone convicted of three serious offenses.

truth-in-sentencing

requires that a person serve at least 85 percent of their sentence.

broken windows theory

the theory that crime had increased because policing strategies had changed away from foot patrols and community control.

endogeneity

a suggested cause may be the effect (i.e. X does not cause Y, but Y causes X) or caused by some other variable.

externalities

effects that are directly intended