Writing Assignment – Research Methods - CJ Department - SHSU Instructions Below are the instructions for your writing assignment. Follow the instructions below in that this is an exercise – purposed to teach you the components of a research paper. Generally, research begins with a question and for this exercise, you are provided the question that you are seeking to answer in the below scenario. Research papers follow a general outline – if the outlines are the same for all researchers, then readers can decide what part of your paper they want to read to save time (usually the abstract). We need to understand that readers have limited time and by following the same outline you make it easier for others to navigate your paper. Perhaps they may want to read only your abstract (condensed details of your research paper contents) to determine if the contents of your paper are applicable to their own research project. This should explain why you need to have an abstract.

Introduction Instructions 1. Here is the problem you are seeking an answer for. You are the Chief of Police in the City of Omaha, Nebraska with a population of 446,000. You are wanting to know if your department (your leadership) is having an adequate effect on the crime rate when compared to other cities of similar population. Perhaps if you find a city which has had a greater effect on the crime rate, you can explore to see what they are doing differently as they target crime in their city. a. You are interested in the rate of crime for the following crimes: murder, theft, aggravated assault, robbery, rape, auto theft, and burglary - plus the total of all crimes. b. for the years 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 a period of five years. c. You are interested in comparing the City of Omaha to 5 other cities of similar population to see if there is any difference between the rates of the different crimes over time. You will need to find cities of similar size and reporting their rate of crime at FBI UCR at the following link (you may have to explore). https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s d. This is your table (started below) with the crime data, the years and the cities (you pick) and the rate of change each year. Use the below tables – insert them in your paper. City Year Robbery Murder Agg Assault Rape Auto Theft Burglary Theft Total All Part 1. Crimes Omaha City 2013 2014 Rate of Change 2015 Rate of Change 2016 Rate of Change 2017 Rate of Change City Year Robbery Murder Agg Assault Rape Auto Theft Burglary Theft Total All Part 1. Crimes City #2 2013 2014 Rate of Change 2015 Rate of Change 2016 Rate of Change 2017 Rate of Change City Year Robbery Murder Agg Assault Rape Auto Theft Burglary Theft Total All Part 1. Crimes City #3 2013 2014 Rate of Change 2015 Rate of Change 2016 Rate of Change 2017 Rate of Change City Year Robbery Murder Agg Assault Rape Auto Theft Burglary Theft Total All Part 1. Crimes City #4 2013 2014 Rate of Change 2015 Rate of Change 2016 Rate of Change 2017 Rate of Change City Year Robbery Murder Agg Assault Rape Auto Theft Burglary Theft Total All Part 1. Crimes City #5 2013 2014 Rate of Change 2015 Rate of Change 2016 Rate of Change 2017 Rate of Change To calculate the percentage increase (rate of change): First: work out the difference (increase) between the two numbers you are comparing. Increase = New Number - Original Number Then: divide the increase by the original number and multiply the answer by 100. % increase = Increase ÷ Original Number × 100. If your answer is a negative number then this is a percentage decrease. To calculate percentage decrease: First: work out the difference (decrease) between the two numbers you are comparing. To calculate the percentage decrease (rate of change): Decrease = Original Number - New Number Then: divide the decrease by the original number and multiply the answer by 100. % Decrease = Decrease ÷ Original Number × 100 If your answer is a negative number then this is a percentage increase. Read more at: https://www.skillsyouneed.com/num/percent-change.html If you cannot do the math – the above web page has a place where you can input the values and they are calculated for you. Example: The 2014 number of robberies in Omaha is 455 The 2015 number of robberies in Omaha is 532 ((532 – 455) divided by 455) times 100 = x or ((532-455)/455) * 100 = x (77 divided by 455) times 100 = x .1692 times 100 = x X = 16.92% You had a 17% increase in robberies between year 2014 and 2015 If we reverse the values for the years 2014 and 2015, crime would had decreased, you would be reporting a -17%. For this assignment we are looking for the decreases. Literature Review Section You will need to write a literature review. This section of your paper contains discussion of the research of others who have also researched crime rate changes. You need to access the online library and find research reports that discuss the topic of crime rate increasing or decreasing over time.