Constructing an index of officially recorded crime: The use of confirmatory factor analysis

Researchers using officially reported crime statistics must frequently combine rates of individual crimes into a single composite. The most popular composite is the FBI Crime Index, which is the sum of the seven “Part I” crimes; alternatives include forming separate indices for personal and property...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Parker, Robert Nash (Author)
Contributors: McDowall, David
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 1986
In: Journal of quantitative criminology
Year: 1986, Volume: 2, Issue: 3, Pages: 237-250
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Keywords:
Confirmatory Factor Analysis
Crime Statistics
LISREL
measurement models
Description
Summary:Researchers using officially reported crime statistics must frequently combine rates of individual crimes into a single composite. The most popular composite is the FBI Crime Index, which is the sum of the seven “Part I” crimes; alternatives include forming separate indices for personal and property crimes and weighting the crime categories by their seriousness before summing them. In this paper we construct crime composites through the use of confirmatory factor analysis methods. The results suggest that the measurement assumptions of conventional crime indices are problematic and demonstrate how more satisfactory alternatives can be developed with confirmatory factor analysis techniques.
ISSN:1573-7799
DOI:10.1007/BF01066528