Statistical Analysis in Criminal Justice and Criminology: A User Guide

Statistics provide information about the nature of crime and exactly which factors should be addressed in the attempt to minimize its occurrence. Statistical analysis has far-reaching effects at all levels of the criminal justice system--from patrol officers to precinct captains to criminal courts to the Department of Justice. With the skills needed to detect and interpret statistical data criminal justice professionals can assess whether current practices are working and change the ones that are not. Written for undergraduates with little or no background in statistics, this text clearly explains how to use statistical tools to organize and interpret data and then to reach conclusions based on statistical analysis. The authors draw from their longtime classroom experiences to present difficult concepts in an understandable way. They avoid a comprehensive approach common to many statistics texts and instead focus on statistical tools typically used in the social sciences. New to this edition is the accompanying CD that contains five criminal justice data sets. Students use the data sets to answer the questions in end-of-chapter exercises and data analysis sections. These hands-on, real-world activities provide a variety of opportunities to use statistical tools and understand their applicability.

Title of related interest also by Waveland Press: Soderstrom-Blevins, Introductory Criminal Justice Statistics and Data Analysis, Second Edition (ISBN: 9781478627098).