Correspondence between youth report and census measures of neighborhood context

✍ Scribed by Todd I. Herrenkohl; J. David Hawkins; Robert D. Abbott; Jie Guo

• Book ID: 102308305
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2002
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 84 KB
• Volume: 30
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0090-4392
• DOI: 10.1002/jcop.10005

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Many studies that have examined neighborhood factors as predictors of crime have used census data. Exclusive use of these data limits the range of neighborhood factors that can be assessed and the frequency with which assessments can be made. Surveys of neighborhood residents provide an alternative data source. However, survey data have been viewed as reflecting the individual perceptions of respondents rather than characteristics of neighborhoods themselves. This study sought to determine whether survey data could be used to measure neighborhood context and whether data from nonrepresentative samples of youth are adequate to do so. This was achieved by examining the consistency between measures of neighborhood disadvantage/disorganization developed from the 1990 national census and from surveys of youth given in the same year as part of the Seattle Social Development Project (SSDP). The study found strong correspondence between the contemporaneous measures. The results suggest that survey data can be used to measure neighborhood factors. Advantages of this method are discussed. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.