Introduction to Criminology Exam
Preparation Guide
Course Introduction
Introduction to Criminology provides a comprehensive overview of the scientific study of crime, criminal behavior, and the criminal justice system. The course explores the origins and development of criminological theories, examines patterns and types of criminal activity, and investigates the social, psychological, and economic factors influencing criminal behavior. Students will gain insight into the methods criminologists use to study crime, critique the effectiveness of various justice policies, and assess how society responds to crime and deviance. By the end of the course, students will have a foundational understanding of key concepts, perspectives, and contemporary issues within the field of criminology.
Recommended Textbook
Basics of Research Methods for Criminal Justice and Criminology 3rd Edition by Michael G. Maxfield
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11 Chapters
602 Verified Questions
602 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: Criminal Justice and Scientific Inquiry
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53 Verified Questions
53 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Things we consider real because we've been told they are real is which type of reality?
A)agreement reality
B)expressed reality
C)assumed reality
D)experiential reality
Answer: A
Q2) Scientists must have which two types of support before they will agree on the reality of something?
A)epistemological and methodological
B)logical and hard facts
C)logical and empirical
D)hard facts and complete data
Answer: C
Q3) Manipulation of the collected data for the purpose of drawing conclusions is known as _____________.
Answer: analysis
Q4) _____________ means repeating a study, checking to see whether similar results are obtained each time.
Answer: Replication
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Chapter 2: Ethics and Criminal Justice Research
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55 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The word ethical means:
A)conforming to the standards of conduct of a given profession or group
B)conforming to the standards of conduct of religion
C)conforming to the norms or standards of royal family
D)conforming to the standards of conduct of what is seen in the media
Answer: A
Q2) A group of researchers from an urban institute want to employ some target hardening techniques in their area.Which of the following might they expect?
A)an immediate increase in crime in their area
B)a decrease in crime in surrounding areas
C)an increase in crime in surrounding areas
D)crime rates staying the same since target hardening has been proven time and again to be ineffective
Answer: C
Q3) The benefits and burdens of participating in research should be distributed fairly.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
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4
Chapter 3: General Issues in Research Design
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Sample Questions
Q1) A major midwestern university does annual surveys of its alumni.These surveys are designed to gauge the attitudes that alumni hold about the university, its academic programs, and the major team sports.These surveys have been an annual event for the last two decades and represent which type of study?
A)cohort study
B)panel study
C)trend study
D)cross-sectional study
Answer: C
Q2) After careful study of the relationship between the economy and arson, the conclusion was drawn that when the economy is poor and unemployment is high, the arson rates go up.The researcher concluded that unemployed people are more likely to commit arson than are those who are employed. What error was just committed?
A)the ecological fallacy
B)reductionism
C)using the wrong time dimension
D)an internal validity threat
Answer: A
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Chapter 4: Concepts, Operationalization, and Measurement
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Sample Questions
Q1) Every variable should have two important qualities: their attributes should be exhaustive as well as mutually exclusive.
A)True
B)False
Q2) An indicator of the dimension "victim harm" is _____.
A)economic gain
B)gender of victim
C)physical injury
D)location of injury
Q3) Particular empirical measures may or may not agree with common understandings of our individual mental images about a specific concept. This is known as _____.
A)reliability
B)validity
C)accuracy
D)face validity
Q4) Conceptualization is the process by which we specify precisely what we mean when we use particular terms.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 5: Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is an inaccurate statement?
A)The independent and dependent variables must be operationally defined for the purposes of experimentation.
B)The independent and dependent variables are most often operationally defined before the experiment begins.
C)It is possible for the independent and dependent variables to be operationally defined after a wide variety of observations are made.
D)The independent and dependent variables can never be operationally defined after a wide variety of observations occur.
Q2) External validity in an experimental design refers to _____.
A)the researcher's ability to be sure that they are measuring what they think they are measuring
B)the lack of concern with issues internal to the study
C)the ability to apply findings to other populations
D)instrumentation
Q3) Describe an experimental design to test the causal hypothesis that D.A.R.E.reduces drug use.Is your experimental design feasible? Why or why not?
Q4) Explain the role of randomization in classical experiments.
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Page 7
Chapter 6: Sampling
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following illustrates a population where cluster sampling would be the best choice?
A)law enforcement officers in the United States
B)Uniform Crime Reports
C)convicted violent criminals
D)news paper reports
Q2) Which of the following statements is true concerning the relationship between standard error and sample size?
A)there is a positive relationship
B)there is an inverse relationship
C)As sample size decreases, the standard error decreases.
D)As sample size increases, the standard error increases.
Q3) A sample element is that unit about which information is collected and that provides the basis of analysis.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The primary goal of _______________________ is homogeneity.
Q5) The unit about which information is collected and that provides the basis of analysis is called the ______________________.
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Chapter 7: Survey Research and Other Ways of Asking Questions
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Sample Questions
Q1) What is CATI? What advantages and disadvantages does it offer for researchers?
Q2) One technique borrowed from market research is the ______________ which uses somewhere between 8 and 15 people.
Q3) Identify the strengths and weaknesses of each of the following:
a.open-ended questions
b.closed-ended questions
Q4) The subsequent questions in a series are called contingency.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Surveys tend to be high on reliability and generalizability, but can have a weak point in __________________.
Q6) Bias in questions can be established in which of the following ways?
A)questions that encourage particular responses
B)do not identify the name of either a prestigious or unpopular agency in the question
C)do not identify the name of either a prestigious or unpopular person in the question
D)questions that are unambiguous and clear
Q7) Identify the strengths and weaknesses, in general, of survey research.
Page 9
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Chapter 8: Field Research
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Sample Questions
Q1) To gain access to a formal criminal justice organization for the purpose of conducting field research, which of the following steps should be followed?
A)find an informant and then send a letter to gain access
B)find a sponsor, send a letter, follow up with a phone call and then set up a meeting
C)telephone the agency and speak with the director and set up a meeting
D)field research cannot be done in formal criminal justice organizations, only use of written records is allowed
Q2) Field observation is not the preferred data collection method for obtaining information about physical or social settings, behavior, and events.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which of the following is not correct concerning structured observations?
A)they enable the researcher to generate numeric measures of observed conditions
B)they are best suited for studies where a researcher is expected to encounter a wide variety of situations
C)they are more reliable than other methods
D)they require careful training
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Chapter 9: Agency Records, Content Analysis, and Secondary Data
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Q1) Using agency records (published statistics, nonpublic agency records and new data collected by agency staff);content analysis and secondary analysis give an example of an applied research project that would use each of the identified methods.
Q2) Which of the following is not accurate concerning validity and reliability of agency records?
A)the shorter the time intervals under study the greater the concern about procedure changes
B)longitudinal researchers must be concerned about changes in operational definitions over time
C)longitudinal researchers must be concerned about changes in procedures over time
D)the longer the time interval under study the greater the concern about procedure changes
Q3) Data collected by or for public agencies is readily available and researchers have tight control over the actual data collection process.
A)True
B)False
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11
Chapter 10: Evaluation Research and Problem Analysis
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Q1) Relating to randomization, which of the following statements is inaccurate?
A)as the number of exceptions to random assignment increases, the statistical equivalence of the experimental and control groups decreases
B)when exceptions to random assignment are made, no bias enters the selection process
C)randomization in experiments for evaluation purposes are best suited for programs where exceptions are at a minimum
D)Random assignment of people to receive some especially desirable or punitive treatment may not be possible for legal, ethical, and practical reasons.
Q2) Program evaluation is designed to link the intended actions and goals of criminal justice policy to __________.
A)empirical evidence that supports them having the desired effects
B)policies that are made to benefit communities
C)implementation of policies
D)randomized field experiments
Q3) The __________________ refer to the basic question of what a policy action is trying to achieve.
Q4) Learning policy goals is a key first step in doing ________________.
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Page 12
Chapter 11: Interpreting Data
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Q1) A(n)________ indicates what percentage of cases fall at or below some value.
Q2) Of the three measures of central tendency, which one takes into account extreme values?
A)mode
B)median
C)mean
D)mode and median
Q3) The most frequent attribute, the __________ can be reported from either grouped or ungrouped data.
Q4) Which statement is true regarding rates?
A)Rates are fundamental inferential statistics in criminal justice research.
B)Rates are used to standardize some measure for comparative purposes.
C)In criminal justice crime rates per 100,0000 population is a common convention in reporting.
D)These are the only governmental statistics that are calculated to discuss crime
Q5) In univariate analysis, missing data can be reported in several different ways.
A)True
B)False
Q6) The standard deviation is the square root of the _______________.
Page 13
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