Test Bank and Answer Key
TRUE/FALSE
1. Findings from Wolfgang’s landmark Delinquency in a Birth Cohort study contributed to a shift in
crime control policy from specific to general incapacitation.
2. Wolfgang’s original findings have been confirmed by other cohort studies.
3. Prevalence of criminality refers to participation in crime while persistence refers to continuing
criminal activity.
4. Wolfgang’s birth cohort study was published at a time when crime rates were slowly beginning to
increase.
5. Identifying and selectively incapacitating chronic offenders was difficult before the evidence-
based policy movement but has since become much easier.
6. Research indicates that the most accurate method of predicting chronic offending is the actuarial
approach.
7. The Texas death row inmate study relied on the clinical evaluation method of prediction.
8. The Sentencing Commission’s evaluation of federal sentencing guidelines found that as criminal
history scores increased so did recidivism rates.
9. The effectiveness of the Rand prediction scale was assessed by correlating predicting scores with
inmates’ actual reported criminal behavior.
10. The method of estimating annual offending rates in the Rand Inmates Survey was a major
advance over previous estimates because it relied on self-report data.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Wolfgang’s birth cohort research found what percent of the original cohort had at least one
officially recorded contact with the police?
a.
6%
c.
35%
b.
16%
d.
95%
2. One of the implications regarding Wolfgang’s use of officially recorded police contacts as the
measure of delinquency noted in the chapter was that
a.
this data did not capture property or violent crimes committed on school grounds
b.
the racial bias of police in Philadelphia resulted in arrest records for more minorities than
Caucasian boys in the cohort
c.
the prevalence of offending was likely higher since the data did not capture crimes
unknown to police
d.
all of the above
3. Wolfgang’s Delinquency in a Birth Cohort research uncovered some important offending trends
including which of the following?
a.
a small percentage of delinquents are responsible for the majority of all crimes
b.
reasons why most delinquents stop committing illegal acts at some point
c.
that most young males have at least one officially recorded act of violence
d.
failing liberal policies contributed to increased rates of chronic offending in the 1960s
4. Wolfgang labeled members of the cohort
a.
delinquents and recidivists
b.
low, medium, and high-rate offenders
c.
nonoffenders, part-time offenders, and repeaters
d.
one-time offenders, nonchronic recidivists, and chronic delinquents
5. Wolfgang’s follow–up study using a 1958 cohort found
a.
offenders in the 1958 cohort began their criminal careers at an earlier age than the 1945
cohort
b.
a small percentage of the cohort was chronic recidivists, but they committed more and
more serious crimes than the 1945 cohort
c.
the same pattern in chronic offending held for both boys and girls
d.
the original study was a fluke as similar patterns in chronic offending were not identified
6. Other cohort studies have found that
a.
chronic offending patterns in large urban areas differ drastically from those in small
Midwestern communities
b.
the proportion of chronic offenders in a cohort increases as the proportion of minorities in
an area increases
c.
a small group of offenders accounts for a high proportion of all crimes by the cohort
d.
chronic offending patterns in the U.S. are not found in other countries
7. One of the differences noted between the various cohort studies is that
a.
some rely on official records while others use self-report data
b.
some focus on violent offending while others focus on property offenses
c.
some emphasize the onset of criminal careers and others emphasize desistance from them
d.
some find chronic offending rates low as 5.8% and others as high as 9.5% in a cohort
8. Select the most accurate statement from the following list.
a.
criminal careers and career criminals are the same thing
b.
the prevalence of criminality refers to the rate at which criminals commit crimes
c.
persistence refers to the tendency for offenders to specialize in one type of crime
d.
all of the above
e.
none of the above
9. The research studies discussed in this chapter have provided information on
a.
the prevalence of criminality and seriousness of offending
b.
the onset and desistance of criminal careers
c.
the persistence and desistance of criminal careers
d.
the frequency of offending and career length
10. Policies inspired by the career criminal research include which of the following?
a.
random police patrols, career criminal prosecution and job corps
b.
pretrial detention, selective incapacitation and intensive probation
c.
diversion, pretrial detention and electronic monitoring
d.
community policing, speedy trials and restitution
11. Some say timing is everything. Wolfgang’s original study was published at a time when
a.
the public was tired of getting tough and sought to prevent chronic offending
b.
the public was eager to explore responses to crime that existed outside the CJS
c.
crime rates had been rising and the public was disillusioned with liberal policies
d.
all of the above
e.
none of the above
12. According to the text, the two serious problems involved in translating chronic offender research
into policy include
a.
identifying the chronic offenders and when they begin their careers
b.
the conflict between preventing chronic offending versus punishing it
c.
determining what kinds of crime they commit and why they stop
d.
the prediction problem and estimating how much crime they commit
13. Questions about chronic offenders that remain unanswered include
a.
when do they begin their criminal careers and can we identify them early?
b.
how much and what kinds of crime do career criminals commit?
c.
how long do chronic offenders remain active and when do they stop?
d.
all of the above
e.
none of the above
14. Traditionally, identification of repeat offenders was based on
a.
guesses that took seriousness and prior record into consideration
b.
finger prints and intensive surveillance
c.
prediction instruments based on characteristics of at-risk kids
d.
amount of time spent in jails in prisons
15. There are several basic methods for predicting criminal behavior including which of the
following?
a.
the actuarial method which is similar to presentence investigations
b.
the prior history method that sentencing guidelines are based on
c.
the clinical evaluation method which insurance companies use
d.
all of the above
e.
none of the above
16. The prediction instrument used in the Wenk study used which of the prediction methods?
a.
actuarial and clinical evaluation
b.
actuarial and prior history
c.
prior history and clinical evaluation
d.
actuarial, prior history and clinical evaluation
17. The prediction instrument used in the Wenk study
a.
identified more true positives than false negatives
b.
identified more true negatives than false negatives
c.
identified more false negatives than false positives
d.
identified more false positives than true positives
18. Select the most accurate statement regarding correct and incorrect predictions
a.
true positives are correctly identified as likely to commit a violent act
b.
false negatives are incorrectly predicted not to be violent
c.
false positives are incorrectly predicted as likely to become violent
d.
all of the above
e.
none of the above
19. Predictions of future dangerousness in the Texas death row inmate study
a.
were wrong in 95% of the cases
c.
resulted in 155 wrongful executions
b.
were right in 20% of the cases
d.
incorrectly gave 8 life sentences for each
correct death sentence
20. The prediction method that plays a role in the federal sentencing guidelines is
a.
actuarial
c.
clinical evaluation
b.
prior history
d.
all of the above
21. The problem with the Sentencing Commission study is that
a.
it ignores offenders’ prior histories
b.
it uses race as a factor to determine future dangerousness
c.
it is based on false evidence
d.
it gives only broad, instead of specific, predictions
22. The Sentencing Commission’s evaluation of federal sentencing guidelines tells us that
a.
this prediction instrument is more accurate at predicting chronic offending than what
judges were able to do
b.
this carefully designed prediction instrument is currently the most accurate method for
predicting chronic offending
c.
people with longer prior records are more likely to commit future crime than people with
shorter prior records
d.
prediction instruments are unnecessary, because chronic offenders are easily identified
based on prior record and the seriousness of offense
23. The Rand Inmate Survey used which prediction method?
a.
actuarial
c.
clinical evaluation
b.
prior history
d.
all of the above
24. Evaluations of the seven-point prediction scale generated by Rand found that
a.
it was correct 51% of the time but grossly wrong 7% of the time
b.
it produced twice as many correct predictions as judges were able to do
c.
it was able to predict chronic offending in juveniles more accurately than in adults
d.
it was highly racist which prevented an accurate evaluation of its effectiveness
25. Which of the following factors were NOT used in Rand’s seven-point prediction scale?
a.
incarceration
c.
employment
b.
Drug use
d.
race
26. The results of Rand’s second attempt at predicting career criminals were published in a report
entitled
a.
Selective Incapacitation
b.
Reducing the Prediction Problem
c.
Why the High-Rate Offenders Are Hard to Predict
d.
Delinquency in a Birth Cohort
27. The results of Rand’s second study that attempted to predict career criminals showed
a.
that self-reporting is a valid predictive method
b.
that arrest rates alone cannot predict high rate offenders
c.
that self-reporting is effective only among offenders who have graduated high school
d.
that arrest rates are a useful prediction tool
28. Estimates of annual offending rates from the Rand Inmate Survey are best described as
a.
low rates with consistent nationwide trends
b.
average rates with consistent nationwide trends
c.
high rates with state-to-state variations
d.
unable to assess due to the prediction problem
29. Various estimates of annual offending rates tell us that
a.
there is no average career criminal
c.
offenders average 50 felonies a year
b.
rates vary but within a narrow range
d.
official records provide the best estimates
30. Regarding the practical consequences of estimating annual offending rates to calculate the
amount of crime reduction we will get
a.
if lambda is large then the payoff will be much lower
b.
if lambda is large then we can expect a substantial reduction in crime
c.
if lambda is low then we can expect a substantial reduction crime
d.
none of the above
SHORT ANSWER
1. Compare and contrast Wolgang’s cohort study with Shannon’s cohort studies.
2. Distinguish between a criminal career and career criminal. Include in your answer the terms and
concepts, along with their definitions, that help in determining this difference.
3. Summarize the studies that have sought to assess the accuracy of predictions regarding criminal
behavior, and note which prediction methods were used in each study.
4. Compare and contrast the relative accuracy of predictions made in the various studies in the
chapter along with the accuracy of judges in predicting chronic offending.
5. Describe the variance between different estimates of annual offending rates.