Crime statistics and patterns

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  • Created by: Ally
  • Created on: 12-11-12 13:00

Sociologists see crime statistics as a social construction. This means that the only certainty they tell us is who produced them and how they are calculated. Sociologists emphasise the 'dark side' or 'hidden figure' of crime statistics between the official crime rate and the true rate. Due to not all crime being reported and recorded by the police, official statistics are viewed as misleading since they underestimate the true rate of crime. However, we shouldn't dismiss statistics totally. There is some value in them as they can indicate trends and patters of crime.

Police Recorded Crime (PRC)

The 'official' crime rate is published by the Home Office in the form of Police Recorded Crime (PRC). In 2010 this recorded crime at 4.3 million cases. Police Recorded Crime has a significant advantage over the British Crime Survey as the PCS record crime against commercial and public sector bodies as well as victimless crimes (such as drug possession). However, critics have argued that this figure is significantly beneath…

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