James P Lynch
Biographic Data
| ID | 178989 |
|---|---|
| NAME | James P Lynch |
| GIVEN NAMES | James P |
| FAMILY NAME | Lynch |
| SIGNATURE | LYNCH J P |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Maryland, College Park |
| ORCID | 0009-0006-9713-3951 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 23 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 207 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 21 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 2 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1978 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 7 |
The National Crime Victimization Survey at Fifty: Introduction to the Special Issue
The 50th Anniversary of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS): The Benefits of a Half Century of Measuring Crime from the Perspective of Victims
We use the fiftieth anniversary of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) as an opportunity to assess the contributions of the survey to our understanding of crime and its consequences, the nature of victimization, the development of criminological theory, and the advancement of survey methodology. Even though studies have established the limitations of official or police-recorded crime data in representing crime, it is not uncommon for d…
Understanding Misdemeanor Enforcement: The Roles of Calls for Service and Community Characteristics
This study examines the roles of calls for service (i.e., police‐related 911 calls) and community characteristics in explaining variation in enforcement rates for low‐level, misdemeanor offenses, which make up the large majority of police enforcement activity. The study site is Prince George's County, Maryland, and the unit of analysis is the police department's 65 patrol beats, studied over a 10‐year period, during 2006–2015. Overall, misdemeano…
Not Even Our Own Facts: Criminology in the Era of Big Data
Criminology is an applied discipline where the findings from the data collected and analyses conducted inform debates about policy and practice. For this to happen, a discipline must have an agreed‐upon set of facts to define the problem and suggest solutions. We can debate the soundness of fundamental data series, but these debates must take place within the confines of scientific inquiry and all data must be subjected to the same scrutiny. Data…
Second Major Redesign of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
Research Summary Since 1973, the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) has served as a key source of data on the level and nature of crime and its consequences. To keep pace with the changing landscape of crime, as well as with the technological advances in survey research, occasional “redesigns” of the survey are necessary to modernize and improve the utility of data collected. Policy Implications This article describes recent and ongoing e…
Crime Trends and the Elasticity of Evil: Has a Broadening View of Violence Affected Our Statistical Indicators
Macro-social theories posit that societies become more civil as they modernize. An open question is whether these changes affect major social indicators of crime. To produce level and change estimates, national data collection systems employ safeguards to promote stability. Cultural changes, though, might affect these systems in more subtle ways by affecting what citizens view as criminal violence and how these behaviors are recounted in crime su…
Criminologists on Terrorism and Homeland Security
This volume presents 19 original essays addressing what is widely regarded as the most serious problem confronting America today and for years to come – terrorism – from the unique perspective of criminology. The chapters collected here address such issues as the prevention of terrorism, the applicability of community policing and routine activities models of crime to the problem of terrorism, how to balance liberty and security, and how to think…
The National Crime Victimization Survey and the Gender Gap in Offending: Redux
Trends in the Gender Gap in Violent Offending: New Evidence From the National Crime Victimization Survey
Recent research has compared male and female trends in violent offending in Uniform Crime Report (UCR) arrest data with similar trends derived from victims' reports in the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) and has concluded that the two data sources produce contrary findings. In this article, we reassess this issue and draw different conclusions. Using pooled National Crime Survey (NCS) and NCVS data for 1973 to 2005, we find that the fe…
Understanding Crime Statistics: Revisiting the Divergence of the NCVS and the UCR
In Understanding Crime Statistics, Lynch and Addington draw on the work of leading experts on U.S. crime statistics to provide much-needed research on appropriate use of this data. Specifically, the contributors explore the issues surrounding divergence in the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) and the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), which have been the two major indicators of the level and of the change in level of crime in the United State…
Prisoner Reentry: Beyond Program Evaluation
Problems and Promise of Victimization Surveys for Cross‐National Research
In the late 1960s self‐report surveys of criminal victimization were controversial and new. Now, they are common, a mainstay of statistical systems and a familiar research tool. More complex questions have arisen concerning the validity and reliability of victim survey data, including whether they can be used in cross‐national comparisons of crime and criminal justice issues. Victim survey data are sufficiently valid and reliable for use in cross…
Reporting to the police in western nations: A theoretical analysis of the effects of social context
One of the most consistent findings in empirical studies using victimization data is that the decision to report victimization to the police is determined in large part by the seriousness of the crime. The police will be notified more often of crimes that involve more serious injury or greater monetary loss. These findings, however, may be due to the fact that most studies on reporting have been conducted using victimization surveys that devote a…
Assessing the Effects of Mass Incarceration on Informal Social Control in Communities
Research Summary: This paper reviews and evaluates the existing (and limited) evidence that increases in incarceration have affected the ability of residential neighborhoods to perform their traditional social control functions. It suggests that, although comparatively weak, the evidence points to the increases in the level and clustering in social and geographic space of incarceration as contributing to changes in the social organization of affe…
A Comparative Assessment of Public Opinion toward Immigrants and Immigration Policies
A Comparative Assessment of Public Opinion toward Immigrants and Immigration Policies
This article is part of a larger study of public attitudes toward immigration in seven countries that historically and currently have had different policies and practices vis-a-vis immigration. The countries involved are Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Japan and the United States. The time frame for which most of the public opinion data will be reported is from 1970 through 1995. The data have been collected from national surve…
Understanding Crime Incidence Statistics: Why the UCR Diverges from the NCS
Does a Difference Make a Difference? Comparing Cross‐national Crime Indicators
This study investigates the question of reliability among four widely used cross‐national data sets by constructing an error framework that relates types of errors to uses of the data. The findings indicate that (1) for nation‐by‐nation point estimation, the four data sets differ by varying degrees, (2) for aggregate point estimation in cross‐sectional descriptive and longitudinal descriptive studies, they are statistically similar, and (3) for a…
The Sociology of Law: Where We Have Been and Where We Might Be Going
This review of work and trends in the sociology of law makes no claims to being exhaustive or comprehensive. If it succeeds in pinpointing and highlighting major work, important problems, and gaps in the field, in showing trends that have developed, and in suggesting ideas for future direction, we shall have accomplished our objectives
A Review: An Evaluation of Lifetime Likelihood of Victimization
Journal Article THE POLLS—A Review: AN EVALUATION OF LIFETIME LIKELIHOOD OF VICTIMIZATION Get access JAMES P. LYNCH JAMES P. LYNCH Assistant Professor of Justice, Law and Society at American University Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Public Opinion Quarterly, Volume 53, Issue 2, Summer 1989, Pages 262–264, https://doi.org/10.1086/269507 Published: 01 January 1989
Response to Von Benda-Beckmann
Police Work: The Social Organization of Policing
Time Out: A National Study of Juvenile Correctional Programs . Robert D. Vinter
Trends in the Gender Gap in Violent Offending: New Evidence From the National Crime Victimization Survey
Recent research has compared male and female trends in violent offending in Uniform Crime Report (UCR) arrest data with similar trends derived from victims' reports in the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) and has concluded that the two data sources produce contrary findings. In this article, we reassess this issue and draw different conclusions. Using pooled National Crime Survey (NCS) and NCVS data for 1973 to 2005, we find that the fe…
Does a Difference Make a Difference? Comparing Cross‐national Crime Indicators
This study investigates the question of reliability among four widely used cross‐national data sets by constructing an error framework that relates types of errors to uses of the data. The findings indicate that (1) for nation‐by‐nation point estimation, the four data sets differ by varying degrees, (2) for aggregate point estimation in cross‐sectional descriptive and longitudinal descriptive studies, they are statistically similar, and (3) for a…
Assessing the Effects of Mass Incarceration on Informal Social Control in Communities
Research Summary: This paper reviews and evaluates the existing (and limited) evidence that increases in incarceration have affected the ability of residential neighborhoods to perform their traditional social control functions. It suggests that, although comparatively weak, the evidence points to the increases in the level and clustering in social and geographic space of incarceration as contributing to changes in the social organization of affe…
A Comparative Assessment of Public Opinion toward Immigrants and Immigration Policies
A Comparative Assessment of Public Opinion toward Immigrants and Immigration Policies
This article is part of a larger study of public attitudes toward immigration in seven countries that historically and currently have had different policies and practices vis-a-vis immigration. The countries involved are Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Japan and the United States. The time frame for which most of the public opinion data will be reported is from 1970 through 1995. The data have been collected from national surve…
The National Crime Victimization Survey and the Gender Gap in Offending: Redux
Second Major Redesign of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
Research Summary Since 1973, the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) has served as a key source of data on the level and nature of crime and its consequences. To keep pace with the changing landscape of crime, as well as with the technological advances in survey research, occasional “redesigns” of the survey are necessary to modernize and improve the utility of data collected. Policy Implications This article describes recent and ongoing e…
Problems and Promise of Victimization Surveys for Cross‐National Research
In the late 1960s self‐report surveys of criminal victimization were controversial and new. Now, they are common, a mainstay of statistical systems and a familiar research tool. More complex questions have arisen concerning the validity and reliability of victim survey data, including whether they can be used in cross‐national comparisons of crime and criminal justice issues. Victim survey data are sufficiently valid and reliable for use in cross…
Not Even Our Own Facts: Criminology in the Era of Big Data
Criminology is an applied discipline where the findings from the data collected and analyses conducted inform debates about policy and practice. For this to happen, a discipline must have an agreed‐upon set of facts to define the problem and suggest solutions. We can debate the soundness of fundamental data series, but these debates must take place within the confines of scientific inquiry and all data must be subjected to the same scrutiny. Data…
Prisoner Reentry: Beyond Program Evaluation
Understanding Misdemeanor Enforcement: The Roles of Calls for Service and Community Characteristics
This study examines the roles of calls for service (i.e., police‐related 911 calls) and community characteristics in explaining variation in enforcement rates for low‐level, misdemeanor offenses, which make up the large majority of police enforcement activity. The study site is Prince George's County, Maryland, and the unit of analysis is the police department's 65 patrol beats, studied over a 10‐year period, during 2006–2015. Overall, misdemeano…
Time Out: A National Study of Juvenile Correctional Programs . Robert D. Vinter
Police Work: The Social Organization of Policing
The Sociology of Law: Where We Have Been and Where We Might Be Going
This review of work and trends in the sociology of law makes no claims to being exhaustive or comprehensive. If it succeeds in pinpointing and highlighting major work, important problems, and gaps in the field, in showing trends that have developed, and in suggesting ideas for future direction, we shall have accomplished our objectives
A Review: An Evaluation of Lifetime Likelihood of Victimization
Journal Article THE POLLS—A Review: AN EVALUATION OF LIFETIME LIKELIHOOD OF VICTIMIZATION Get access JAMES P. LYNCH JAMES P. LYNCH Assistant Professor of Justice, Law and Society at American University Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Public Opinion Quarterly, Volume 53, Issue 2, Summer 1989, Pages 262–264, https://doi.org/10.1086/269507 Published: 01 January 1989
Response to Von Benda-Beckmann
Does a Difference Make a Difference? Comparing Cross‐national Crime Indicators
This study investigates the question of reliability among four widely used cross‐national data sets by constructing an error framework that relates types of errors to uses of the data. The findings indicate that (1) for nation‐by‐nation point estimation, the four data sets differ by varying degrees, (2) for aggregate point estimation in cross‐sectional descriptive and longitudinal descriptive studies, they are statistically similar, and (3) for a…
Understanding Crime Incidence Statistics: Why the UCR Diverges from the NCS
A Comparative Assessment of Public Opinion toward Immigrants and Immigration Policies
A Comparative Assessment of Public Opinion toward Immigrants and Immigration Policies
This article is part of a larger study of public attitudes toward immigration in seven countries that historically and currently have had different policies and practices vis-a-vis immigration. The countries involved are Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Japan and the United States. The time frame for which most of the public opinion data will be reported is from 1970 through 1995. The data have been collected from national surve…
Reporting to the police in western nations: A theoretical analysis of the effects of social context
One of the most consistent findings in empirical studies using victimization data is that the decision to report victimization to the police is determined in large part by the seriousness of the crime. The police will be notified more often of crimes that involve more serious injury or greater monetary loss. These findings, however, may be due to the fact that most studies on reporting have been conducted using victimization surveys that devote a…
Assessing the Effects of Mass Incarceration on Informal Social Control in Communities
Research Summary: This paper reviews and evaluates the existing (and limited) evidence that increases in incarceration have affected the ability of residential neighborhoods to perform their traditional social control functions. It suggests that, although comparatively weak, the evidence points to the increases in the level and clustering in social and geographic space of incarceration as contributing to changes in the social organization of affe…
Understanding Crime Statistics: Revisiting the Divergence of the NCVS and the UCR
In Understanding Crime Statistics, Lynch and Addington draw on the work of leading experts on U.S. crime statistics to provide much-needed research on appropriate use of this data. Specifically, the contributors explore the issues surrounding divergence in the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) and the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), which have been the two major indicators of the level and of the change in level of crime in the United State…
Prisoner Reentry: Beyond Program Evaluation
Problems and Promise of Victimization Surveys for Cross‐National Research
In the late 1960s self‐report surveys of criminal victimization were controversial and new. Now, they are common, a mainstay of statistical systems and a familiar research tool. More complex questions have arisen concerning the validity and reliability of victim survey data, including whether they can be used in cross‐national comparisons of crime and criminal justice issues. Victim survey data are sufficiently valid and reliable for use in cross…
The National Crime Victimization Survey and the Gender Gap in Offending: Redux
Trends in the Gender Gap in Violent Offending: New Evidence From the National Crime Victimization Survey
Recent research has compared male and female trends in violent offending in Uniform Crime Report (UCR) arrest data with similar trends derived from victims' reports in the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) and has concluded that the two data sources produce contrary findings. In this article, we reassess this issue and draw different conclusions. Using pooled National Crime Survey (NCS) and NCVS data for 1973 to 2005, we find that the fe…
Criminologists on Terrorism and Homeland Security
This volume presents 19 original essays addressing what is widely regarded as the most serious problem confronting America today and for years to come – terrorism – from the unique perspective of criminology. The chapters collected here address such issues as the prevention of terrorism, the applicability of community policing and routine activities models of crime to the problem of terrorism, how to balance liberty and security, and how to think…
Crime Trends and the Elasticity of Evil: Has a Broadening View of Violence Affected Our Statistical Indicators
Macro-social theories posit that societies become more civil as they modernize. An open question is whether these changes affect major social indicators of crime. To produce level and change estimates, national data collection systems employ safeguards to promote stability. Cultural changes, though, might affect these systems in more subtle ways by affecting what citizens view as criminal violence and how these behaviors are recounted in crime su…
Second Major Redesign of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
Research Summary Since 1973, the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) has served as a key source of data on the level and nature of crime and its consequences. To keep pace with the changing landscape of crime, as well as with the technological advances in survey research, occasional “redesigns” of the survey are necessary to modernize and improve the utility of data collected. Policy Implications This article describes recent and ongoing e…
Not Even Our Own Facts: Criminology in the Era of Big Data
Criminology is an applied discipline where the findings from the data collected and analyses conducted inform debates about policy and practice. For this to happen, a discipline must have an agreed‐upon set of facts to define the problem and suggest solutions. We can debate the soundness of fundamental data series, but these debates must take place within the confines of scientific inquiry and all data must be subjected to the same scrutiny. Data…
Understanding Misdemeanor Enforcement: The Roles of Calls for Service and Community Characteristics
This study examines the roles of calls for service (i.e., police‐related 911 calls) and community characteristics in explaining variation in enforcement rates for low‐level, misdemeanor offenses, which make up the large majority of police enforcement activity. The study site is Prince George's County, Maryland, and the unit of analysis is the police department's 65 patrol beats, studied over a 10‐year period, during 2006–2015. Overall, misdemeano…
The National Crime Victimization Survey at Fifty: Introduction to the Special Issue
The 50th Anniversary of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS): The Benefits of a Half Century of Measuring Crime from the Perspective of Victims
We use the fiftieth anniversary of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) as an opportunity to assess the contributions of the survey to our understanding of crime and its consequences, the nature of victimization, the development of criminological theory, and the advancement of survey methodology. Even though studies have established the limitations of official or police-recorded crime data in representing crime, it is not uncommon for d…
Criminology (17 works) · Political science (16 works) · Crime Patterns and Interventions (15 works) · Sociology (14 works) · Psychology (12 works) · Law (9 works) · Economics (6 works) · Law (6 works) · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis (5 works) · Demographic economics (5 works)