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European Sourcebook on Crime and Criminal Justice Statistics

NCJ Number
165881
Journal
International Criminal Justice Review Volume: 6 Dated: (1996) Pages: 103-110
Author(s)
G C Barclay
Date Published
1996
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This note presents the background to and current progress in a project undertaken by the Council of Europe to develop a European sourcebook on crime and criminal justice statistics; first results from the work in progress are included, highlighting the difficulties of such comparative studies and the need to match statistical data with background definitional information.
Abstract
The expert committee assigned the task of developing the sourcebook began work in September 1993. It was composed of representatives from the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Hungary, Sweden, The Netherlands, and Switzerland. At its first meeting the committee decided that the best way to conduct a feasibility study would be to produce a model sourcebook based on such 1990 data as were currently available to the committee members. Accordingly, information was collected from committee members' countries as well as Norway, Italy, and Ireland. The main features of the sourcebook developed are the use of national and regional correspondents to ensure a high level of quality in the information collected and the use of regularly published data and definitions instead of an attempt to collect data according to a standard definition. Like the UN survey, it lacks central resources to produce data and relies on goodwill among participating countries. The sourcebook must establish itself in the international criminal justice community in such a way that the contribution of information will be viewed by ministers and senior officials in member countries as an essential requirement. 2 tables and 5 references