NCJ Number
130176
Journal
Justice Quarterly Volume: 7 Issue: 4 Dated: (December 1990) Pages: 655-671
Date Published
1990
Length
17 pages
Annotation
The National Crime Survey (NCS) fails to operationalize rape in a meaningful manner because the screening question designed to measure rape never asks directly about rape, and respondents are not asked to describe the incidents they report as rape.
Abstract
Low estimates of rape reinforce the myth that rape is a rare occurrence. It also promotes the reluctance in society to talk about rape and serves to minimize the extent of violent crime as a whole. There appears to be widespread ignorance of the NCS design and the screening questions that fail to address rape specifically. The solution to the problem is to redesign the instrument. The new design asks whether "anyone has attacked or threatened you by a sexual attack." Respondents should have less difficulty in making the connection between the new screening question and sexual victimization, although rape still is not mentioned specifically. The survey still fails to define sexual attack for the respondents. In order to gather high-quality data on rape, the NCS needs to add screening questions that define rape and ask whether respondents have experienced such an incident. 14 notes and 71 references. (Author abstract modified)