Jamey attends a public high school. One day, he arrives at school to find that the students are completing a survey in homeroom. It is a self-report survey, which contains a variety of questions regarding delinquent behavior. Jamey knows that he is certainly not the only student to have been involved in criminal behavior, but, even though he is assured the surveys will remain anonymous, he is uncertain whether or not he should answer the questions honestly.
You are now a crime analyst with the local police department and it is your responsibility to analyze and report on juvenile crime in Detroit. You can choose to use data from the self-report surveys given in the local high schools or you can choose to use official arrest data. What is your decision?
You decide to use data from official arrest records.
You decide to use the data from the self-report surveys.