Heuni

Background information

HEUNI has a tradition since the first UN Crime trends survey to validate and complement the data received and to analyse the results. Also profiles of the criminal justice systems in Europe and North America have been published. This project reports the results of four surveys for Europe and North America. For the first time, a ten-year time series (1995-2004) is described.

A meeting of experts was organised in January 2007 to discuss the form of further steps to be taken in the context of the project during 2007-2008. The second meeting of the project was held in September 2007 and the last one in January 2008. The report covering the 7th, 8th and 9th surveys has been published in 2008 as No 55 in the HEUNI Publication Series.

Main findings of the project:

• The report combined crime variables and external variables, finding that high scores on different welfare-related characteristics are found in the cluster of Western/North American countries, while low scores point to the east. Of the crime variables, e.g. victimisation scores are high in the cluster of West/North America, but satisfaction with the police is high and the feeling of security is high, while in Southern Europe satisfaction with the police scores low, and the feeling of insecurity is high. The East has high scores on homicide and prisoner rates.
• Comparing the trends from the CTS and victimisation surveys, property crimes (thefts, automobile thefts and burglaries) decrease according to both data sets. In robberies the trend is according to victimisation surveys decreasing slightly in Europe and North America. The trend in police-recorded assaults is, in contrast to the CTS results, decreasing according to victimisation surveys.
• Overall, “traditional” property crimes seem to decrease according to both data sets. A weak area in the victimisation surveys has, in addition to drug-related crimes, consisted of crimes that are relatively rare and therefore difficult to grasp with population surveys, such as fraud, embezzlement, bribery and kidnapping. The volume of suspects in all of these types of crime has increased according to the CTS.

For more information:

Markku Heiskanen
markku.heiskanen(at)om.fi