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U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
Bureau of Justice Statistics

Bureau of Justice Statistics Fact Sheet

National Crime Victimization Survey Redesign

October 1995, NCJ-151170

Full text with tables available from:
Bureau of Justice Statistics Clearinghouse
800-732-3277
Box 179
Annapolis Junction, MD. 20701-0179
FAX Number (for report orders and mail list signup
only): 410-792-4358

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What is the National Crime Victimization Survey?
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The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is
one of two Justice Department measures of crime in
the United States.  A pioneering effort when it
was begun in 1972, the survey was intended to
complement what is known about crime from the
FBI's annual compilation of information reported
to law enforcement agencies.  The survey which
also counts incidents not reported to the police,
provides a detailed picture of crime incidents,
victims and trends from the victim's perspective. 
Data are collected every year from a sample of
approximately 50,000 households  more than 100,000
individuals age 12 or over. 

Victimizations are categorized as personal or
property crimes.  Personal crimes, including
attempts, involve incidents with direct contact
between the victim and offender.  (Murder is not
measured by the NCVS because of the inability to
question the victim.)  Property crimes do not
involve personal confrontation and include such
crimes as household burglary, theft, and motor
vehicle theft.

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Why redesign?
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* Criticism of the earlier survey's capacity to
gather information about certain crimes, including
sexual assaults and domestic violence prompted
numerous improvements.

* Improved survey methodology improves the ability
of people being interviewed to recall events.

* Public attitudes toward victims have changed,
permitting more direct questioning about sexual
assaults. 

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What is the redesign?
----------------------

The new methodology was systematically field
tested and introduced starting in 1989, and its
results are being published for the first time
this year.  New questions were added to
accommodate heightened interest in certain types
of victimizations.  Improvements in technology and
survey methods were incorporated in the redesign. 
The extended effort to improve the survey is
paying off, as the numbers from the redesign will
be available in October 1994.  An advisory panel
of criminal justice policymakers, social
scientists, victim advocates, and statisticians
oversaw the work of a consortium of criminologists
and social and survey scientists who conducted
research on improved procedures.    

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What are the results of the redesign?
---------------------------------------

Victims are now reporting more types of crime
incidents to the survey's interviewers. 
Previously undetected victimizations are
being captured.  For example, the survey changes
have substantially increased the number of rapes
and aggravated and simple assaults reported to
interviewers.  For the first time, other
victimizations, such as non-rape sexual assault
and unwanted or coerced sexual contact that
involves a threat or attempt to harm, are also
being measured.

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Why are survey participants reporting so many more
victimizations?
--------------------------------------------------

The survey now includes improved questions and
cues that aid victims in recalling victimizations. 
Survey interviewers now ask more explicit
questions about sexual victimizations. 
Advocates have also encouraged victims to talk
more openly about their experiences.  Together,
these changes substantially improve reporting for
many types of personal and household crime. 

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Can the new results be compared with previous
years'?
-----------------------------------------------

Measuring annual change in crime victimization is
one of the most important uses of NCVS.  The
transition to the redesigned survey preserved the
ability to detect annual change.  Both versions of
the survey were used simultaneously to collect
data for 1992-93.  The overlap also permits
measuring the differences between the old and new
surveys to show whether the 1992-93 differences
were due to changes in crime or changes in the
survey.

--------------------------------------------------
Why did the Justice Department pick this time to
release these findings?
--------------------------------------------------

Annual change estimates of crime victimizations
are regularly published in the fall.  For the
first time, data collected with the redesigned
survey are available for two consecutive years. 
The transition to the redesigned survey began in
1989, and this release has been planned since that
time.

--------------------------------------------------
What do the results of the redesign tell us about
the adequacy of information from the original
survey?
--------------------------------------------------

* Number of victimizations.  The original National
Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) benefited from
survey methods that were state-of-the-art at the
time it was developed.  The improvements in survey
procedures for the redesigned NCVS have resulted
in increased reporting of victimizations.  Because
victims are reporting more victimization
experiences, the redesigned survey is in fact
producing a more comprehensive picture of the
overall volume of crime.  

* Characteristics of victimizations.  The
standards the NCVS uses to define different types
of victimizations remain largely the same in the
redesigned survey.  Details other than what
happened to the victim, such as age, race,
victim-offender relationship, and location of the
offense, are also comparable with information
provided by the original survey.  Consequently,
data collected about the characteristics of crime
incidents are equally reliable, regardless of
which questionnaire was used to collect it.  

* Annual change estimates.  Year-to-year
victimization comparisons have always been
calculated on data collected with like
questionnaire and procedures.  Comparisons for
1991-92 were calculated using the old
questionnaire, and those for 1992-93
wre prepared with information from the new
questionnaire.  Consequently, any published
findings of differences across years should be
considered reliable.

For more information about the NCVS redesign,
contact Jay Hoover, Bureau of Justice Statistics,
202-307-1132.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) in the
Department of Justice collects and analyzes
statistics from all aspects of the criminal
justice system.  The NCVS data are collected and
processed by the Bureau of Census.  In addition to
the National Crime Victimization Survey, BJS
collects and disseminates information regarding
corrections, law enforcement, prosecution,
drugs, and justice expenditure and employment. 
For more information call the BJS Clearinghouse at
1-800-732-3277.

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END OF FILE
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