Do members of the public in Wakefield and surrounding areas believe that poverty is the causal factor for offenders committing Theft?

Do members of the public in Wakefield and surrounding areas believe that poverty is the causal factor for offenders committing Theft?

Alastair Griffiths: 17000753

Module Leader: Jamie Carruthers

Contents

Abstract page 3

Introduction. page 4

Literature Review... page 5

Methodology... page 13

Results. page 18

Discussion and Findingspage 25

Conclusion and Recommendations.page 31

References..page 34

Bibliographypage 38

Appendices.page 39

Abstract

The topic of this study is surrounding the possible link between absolute poverty and theft committed within the Wakefield district. This dissertation will focus on how the public perceive those that live within absolute poverty and find out what contributing factors cause people to commit theft. Pratt and Cullen (2005) found through meta-analysis that those who lived within absolute poverty had a higher chance of going on to commit theft and similar crimes. Whereas Jones (2021), argues that people born into misfortune are not destined to commit crime instead other external factors including social aspects are what cause someone to commit crime. The study carried out by the researcher, shows that most people agree with Pratt and Cullen (2005) with the biggest external factor for people committing crime being a low income.

This study will discuss the ideal methodology for carrying out this research before comparing the results found by the researcher with previous findings and discussing how these findings can help benefit future researchers within the conclusion.

Introduction

Poverty and crime have always been a part of human society as some people are born at a socioeconomic disadvantage, this has led to many theories explaining what the common cause of crime is. Wilson (2014) argues that theft is only committed to close the barriers between the different economical classes within society. The researcher aims to discover whether members of the public in West Yorkshire believe that absolute poverty is a causal factor for offenders committing theft and similar related crimes, or if the members of the public believe that there are different reasons for people turning to committing theft and financially related crimes. To achieve the aims of this research the researcher will look at the members of the public in West Yorkshire and see if they are aware of their local poverty levels. Furthermore, the researcher will analyse the opinions of people in West Yorkshire to discover whether the local community believe that those suffering from absolute poverty are more likely to commit crime. The opinions of the local community will be obtained through online questionnaires through quantitative data, whilst past findings will be meta-analysed to discover if there is a direct correlation between lesser developed communities and financial crimes. The researcher will also analyse the current financial crime rates and see if the financial crime rates have increased or decreased over the past few years. Along with the rise or decline in theft and similar crime rates, the researcher will observe the current procedures carried out by the West Yorkshire authorities to help combat financial crime and absolute poverty.

Since Cesare Lombroso (1876) created the first theory linking absolute poverty and crime together in 1876 within the book Criminal man the subject area has been heavily debated and criticised by other researchers. Eriksson (2011) argues that crime is not necessarily impacted by poverty, instead Eriksson believes that theft is based upon the rewards being far greater than the risks. Despite the different theories explaining why crime is committed, absolute poverty stands out to be the main casual factor of financial crime. This research will look at the West Yorkshire authorities and analyse how they use theories to both explain how crime is committed and how to prevent crime by using these theories. The researcher will examine the relationship between the local community and the West Yorkshire authorities to see if this has an impact upon peoples opinions on absolute poverty causing financial crime. Furthermore, this study will look at the relationship between theft on a local level and on a national scale.

The researcher wants to investigate the opinions of people in West Yorkshire and how these opinions correlate with the statistics on both crime and poverty whilst analysing the methods local authorities use to prevent both these crimes and the poverty within West Yorkshire. This research is important as the results of this research will help determine whether the public blame absolute poverty for crime and if theft and financial crime is as dangerous as it is believed to be by the public. Furthermore, during Covid-19 a substantial amount of the United Kingdom were put out of work. Due to the loss in jobs the United Kingdom Government ran a coronavirus job retention scheme (LordsLibrary, 2021). However, when people did not qualify for this scheme, they may have become more tempted to commit crime therefore, this research could help point out the correlation between the increase in poverty and crime during Covid-19. This research could help those in poverty as 14.3 million people are living below the poverty line since 2010 (Full fact, 2019).

In theory the evidence found within this research could be used by the West Yorkshire Police Force to help theft within the Yorkshire County. Furthermore, if the correlation between theft and the rise in poverty is found then the research can be used to help educate people on how to help those below the absolute poverty line. This research could be used to help stop as many thefts from occurring as the authorities could help those in poverty to prevent people from ever turning to a life of crime.

However, there are limitations to the research carried out. The researcher will be limited by their positionality of a student. As a student at Wakefield University the researcher will be subject to a local bias therefore, they must make all questions within the questionnaire unbiased. Furthermore, this research has never been carried out within West Yorkshire however, this could be a disadvantage within the research as the sample area is not large enough to give a nation-wide correlation between crime and poverty. The size of the sample will also be a limitation as not everyone will have access to social media to participate within the questionnaire. Due to needing permission to have the vulnerable answer the questionnaire the researcher will not be allowed to ask this sample of people limiting the opinions involved within the research. Both time and money could be a limitation within this research as the researcher is a student therefore, the researcher may not have access to a limited amount of resource or time to carry out more questionnaires. Finally, a limitation towards this research is that the research only covers financial crime therefore, this research cannot fully explain if poverty is the causal factor for all crimes.

Overall, the researcher will be using various methods to collect data to help determine whether poverty is the causal factor for financial crime whilst completing a set of objectives to reach the overall aim of the research. The literature review will take past researchers answers and meta-analyse them to obtain a correlation between poverty and crime for this research.

Literature review

There are many theories explaining how poverty can potentially cause people to commit theft and other crimes. Cesare Beccaria helped develop the rational choice theory, this theory states that people will examine the pros and cons of committing a crime before carrying it out (Zey, 1998). This theory can explain why people in Wakefield and surrounding areas may commit crime, as those who become desperate will be more willing to take the risk and commit theft. Cornish and Clarke (1986) state that there are many factors for people to consider before going ahead and committing a crime. Specifically, the duo focusses on theft and burglary pointing out that theft committed within a lower-class area cannot be compared to theft committed within a middle-class area. Furthermore, Piquero and Tibbetts (2002) expand upon this research by carrying out a meta-analysis examination upon theft within multiple locations across America. This research concluded that those with a lower-class background are more likely to commit crime against other lower-class areas with those from a slightly higher class are more likely to commit crime against the middle-class. The meta-analysis conducted could potentially help explain why theft in the Wakefield area occurs. However, Piquero, Tibbetts, Cornish, and Clark, carried out their research in the United States of America which can be argued does not apply to the Wakefield area.

The office for national statistics, recorded that since 1981 there has been a downward trend from cases in theft (ONS, 2020). However, despite their being no change within statistics on theft between 2018 and 2019, there was an 8% increase in theft offences between September 2016 and September 2018. The West Yorkshire Police service (2020) state that there is not enough evidence to show a change in the current downward trend despite this, the 8% increase could begin to possibly show a gradual upward trend. Furthermore, the UK Crime Stats (2020) show that within the Wakefield area there has been a steady increase in theft since November 2020. Ariely (2008) predicts that the current rise in theft and other crime could be from people having more irrational decisions rather than rational ones. Ariely also states that the rational choice theory has its disadvantages as humans are more likely to give into irrational choices when outside factors for instance if sexual arousal is involved. This research and the statistics show that people are becoming more willing to choose the irrational choice and commit theft. Furthermore, the statistics could potentially go up within the current climate as the impacts of covid-19 begin. However, (Marks, 2018) argues that the rational choice theory cannot explain why people who are not in absolute poverty commit theft, according to rational choice theory only those in absolute poverty should see the advantage of committing theft however, this is not the case. Banduras behavioural theory claims that people commit crime after witnessing those that inspire them commit crime, this applies to theft within Wakefield as the Wakefield district has different socio-economic areas and therefore, all theft committed cannot be due to people suffering in absolute poverty (Bandura, 1986). Clarke and Felson (1993) explain how those in poverty may weigh up the pros and cons and then become inspired by those around them to finally commit theft.

If the rational choice theory is correct than those who are stuck in absolute poverty should be more inclined to commit theft during celebratory events of the year, such as Christmas and New Years Eve. Bamfield (2012), found that over the Christmas period up to 350,000 was stolen, with the most offences occurring between 15:00 and 16:00. Furthermore, Bamfield states that the rise in offences during peak hours correlate with the lifestyles of semi-professional criminals. A recent study made by the Centre for Retail Research (2012) found that, retailers in the United Kingdom lose around 1 billion during the Christmas period from shoplifting. This paired with the average consumer spending an extra 60% of their average shop could explain why some people become desperate and resort to stealing. The relative deprivation theory agrees with the research carried out by the Centre for Retail Research. Suls, Collins and Wheeler (2019), explain that the relative deprivation theory applies to those who perceive themselves to have a lack of resources to maintain a good quality of life. Therefore, those that cannot provide for themselves, or their family may become more inclined to commit theft during the holidays when it becomes socially expected to provide gifts and non-essential items (Walker et al, 2002). Furthermore, whilst the Centre for Retail Research (2012), found that alcohol and technology were shoplifted the most, absolute poverty and absolute deprivation could help explain why those who are in need will commit theft. People that are in absolute poverty are perceived to be living within the worst conditions in society therefore, it is plausible that these people will be more willing to steal food, drinks, or medication around holiday periods as potential resentment against those spending money on gifts builds up says Brady and Burton (2016).

Despite deprivation theory potentially explaining why people in worse conditions may feel the need to steal, it fails to explain why the crime statistics are not the same all year around if people are needing to commit theft to have a good standard of living. Crime Rates (2019) states that there is a 45% decrease in 2020 however, this could be explained by the national lockdowns in place by the United Kingdom Government. Furthermore, Segrave (2012) explains that the rise in theft and other crimes may only increase around major holidays because security around shopping centres increases leading to more people being caught when attempting to commit theft.

A study conducted in America by C + R Research (2017) found that during the Christmas period over 31% of Amazon deliveries are stolen from peoples houses. This relates back to relative deprivation theory, as it shows people are more willing to commit theft during the holidays as only 5% of packages become stolen throughout the rest of 2017 (C + R Research, 2019). Furthermore, this research relates back to the rational choice theory, those in absolute poverty may see more benefits to stealing packages rather than shoplifting. Gilboa (2010) states that a person will commit a low-level crime when they feel abandoned by society and when the odds are in their favour. With the chances of being caught stealing a package from someones doorstep being so low criminals will be more inclined to commit this type of theft over shoplifting. Those in absolute poverty may feel trapped and will resort to committing theft and similar offences whilst those who are feeling deprived will escalate these results around the holidays as they begin to feel a need to provide for their family and friends.

Absolute poverty in the UK is defined as a household income which has an income below 60% of the national average (Sedmak et al, 2020). Leeds Observatory (2020) found that between 2019 and 2020 over 9.2 million people in the UK lived in absolute poverty, over 18% of these people were living in the city of Leeds. Furthermore, Schramm and Pogge (2016) point out that since 2009/2010 the amount of people living in absolute poverty has fallen by 0.7 million with 500,000 people breaking above the absolute poverty line within 2017. However, whilst these stats create a good base for predicting how many people live in absolute poverty, they cannot account for the decline or rise in the homeless and do not account for the regions within local areas. For example, a lower-class area in Leeds may be deemed as living in absolute poverty whilst a lower-class area in Kent maybe seen as a standard way of living (House of Commons, 2021). These statistics show that whilst there may be a slight decline in the people living in absolute poverty, there is still a prominent poverty trap within West Yorkshire and the surrounding areas.

When people are born or forced into the poverty trap it can become increasingly harder to get out as they attempt to reach the national average standard of living (Hoff et al, 2016). The social identity theory can help explain why some people would prefer to stay in the poverty trap than get a job as people begin to identify themselves with a group membership, this membership can become more important than ones own identity (Abrams, 1990). If people begin to feel like they belong in absolute poverty, then they may be unwilling to make changes to their lives. Furthermore, Ron Jones carried out an experiment in California based around the idea of fascism, this experiment named the third wave showed that when a group is formed individuals become attached and begin to defend their group (Tajfel, 2010). This experiment can be applied to people committing theft, if those stuck in the poverty trap begin to feel like they belong with other criminals then they may easily be persuaded into a life of crime.

The poverty trap can be a term used to describe situations in an economy where people feel financially better off being unemployed than being in full time employment (Mosley et al, 2012). These pull factors make the idea of being unemployed better than going to work therefore, these factors cause the poverty trap cycle to continue. Barrett, Chavas and Carter (2019), explain that those who are in absolute poverty will get help by the government however, this help can become more appealing than finding a job as life can be seen as easier without a job. Furthermore, Waddell (2006), states that the conditions of a workplace available to those with a low skill set can be a push factor as workers do not feel appreciated within their work. Additionally, Rowntree (2018) sates that after a person in absolute poverty pays their bills, they may not have enough money to save to improve their lives. Therefore, the idea of staying on benefits will be more appealing.

Research into new neuroscience discoveries by Dr Eamon McCroy from the University College London, shows that the brains development during childhood can be greatly impacted by their surroundings (McCroy, 2010). The psychodynamic theory connects to this study as (Higdon, 2011) states that humans are often driven by unconscious motivations and that adult personality and relationships are often the result of childhood experiences. This cycles back to the poverty trap as if someone is brought up around the ideology of living off benefits instead of getting a job then they may subconsciously be keeping themselves stuck within the poverty trap. Furthermore, if those in absolute poverty are prone to committing crime then those growing up in that environment may become more susceptible to committing theft. Edwards at al (2010) claims that when someone is surrounded by crime it becomes a normality and therefore, people become numb to the act of committing theft. A research study looking into high crime neighbourhoods and children concludes that, areas with high crime conviction rates for adults do not influence the youth to commit crime, However, areas with high conviction rates of youth help breed more crime between other adolescents (Damm, 2012). Whilst this agrees with psychodynamic theory, claiming that it is the people around you during childhood that help shape who you become. Crowell et al (2001) show that despite both males and females growing up around youth offenders, it is in fact predominantly males which turn to committing crime. This argues against the psychodynamic theory as if that theory was applied it would create an equal amount of both male and female youth offenders.

Within Wakefield and the surrounding areas, there are areas with high deprivation levels. This map created by Wakefield JSNA (2019) shows the levels of deprivation within the Wakefield area:

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Furthermore, this map shows that the areas which occupy a dense population also have the higher rate of deprivation. This map also correlates with the West Yorkshire Police (2019) street crime map:

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Both maps show that within the Wakefield city centre and the surrounding areas of Lupset and Thornes have the highest rate of street crime. This rise in street crime also correlates with the high deprived areas. The correlation between these two maps relate back to the relative deprivation theory, if these areas are experiencing a higher rate of poverty, then this theory states that there should be a higher rate of crime (Townsend, 1979) as the maps show. Furthermore, the West Yorkshire Police map (2019) states that the main crimes committed are Theft and Burglary. This correlation can help determine that those in absolute poverty will commit crime for financial gain. However, despite the information these maps provide they can not be one hundred percent accurate. A study carried out by Krieken et al (2013), shows that over 70% of street crimes including theft, rape and burglary do not get reported to the Police either due to embarrassment or bad relations between the West Yorkshire Police and the public. This study shows that the data within these maps could be false depending on whether the public within the surrounding areas of Wakefield reported all crimes committed. Furthermore, the areas which appear to be above absolute poverty with relatively no crime may be an area which is starting to develop crime however, these crimes may not have been recorded by the West Yorkshire Police yet as more than 800,000 crimes do not get recorded by the police per year BBC (2014).

Despite the critiques, the correlation between deprived areas and high crime rates can be explained through the social learning theory. The Social learning theory suggests that children will observe and copy the behaviours of others within a social context (Bandura, 1977). Furthermore, Akers (2017) states that, children will pick up on aggressive behaviour if they routinely experience aggressive behaviour from their social peers. Akers (2017) also believes that this aggressive behaviour can shape the skills and ambitions within children. This connects to crime being committed within deprived areas as children born within the poverty trap will witness their social peers acting within a particular way and begin to copy these behaviours potentially leading to children committing crime at an early age (Jensen, 2017). However, Parke (2014) explains that whilst children may copy their peers behaviours it does not necessarily mean that they will adopt the same lifestyle. This correlates with the downward trend in absolute poverty, as more people begin to live above the poverty line there is a potential for more people to stop committing theft and similar crimes.

With the potential decline in absolute poverty but the rise within theft and similar crimes it can be argued that the ones carrying out these crimes are not dedicated criminals but are instead situational. Cornish (2003) argues, that even when people are in an improving situation, they may still feel desperate and therefore, if a situation arises people may act as a criminal. To combat this occurrence the West Yorkshire Police Force, use situational crime prevention techniques. Situational crime prevention techniques are based off the situational crime prevention theory. Clarke et al (2016) explains that situational crime prevention theory is the idea behind creating deterrences to make it more difficult for someone to commit crime. Furthermore, Clarke and Tilley (2013) state that when police focus on the environment instead of the motivation then the criminals surroundings will change causing them to migrate. Crime Prevention techniques (Farrington et al, 2014), include target hardening, this includes making items within shops harder to reach. The increase of security cameras increases the risk of committing crime and the introduction of hostile architecture can stop criminals from hanging around specific areas (Records Finder, 2018). Within Wakefield and the surrounding areas there are examples of situational crime prevention techniques, including hostile architecture. The Wakefield City Council (2016) argue that There is nothing the council can do because its on private property. However, this architecture can be seen within public owned areas, for example benches in both the city centre and local parks are designed to be uncomfortable if slept upon. Krohn et al (2009) suggests that councils across the UK purposefully allow this type of crime prevention as it gets rid of any homeless people sleeping within cities. This shows that whilst using situational crime prevention techniques does stop certain criminals from acting upon a crime in that area, it can also have a negative effect on non-criminals. Rosenberg (2017) argues that situational crime prevention techniques such as hostile architecture does not stop crime but instead disperses the crime over multiple areas, this then leads to other communities becoming affected by these crimes. Furthermore, when looking at the West Yorkshire Police (2019) and the poverty created by Wakefield JSNA (2019), it is clear to see a direct correlation between the dispersing of crime from the city centre and the dispersing of poverty. This correlation could be a direct impact from hostile architecture within Wakefield causing criminals to disperse. The continued use of hostile architecture shows that the local authorities partially blame those within absolute poverty for criminal acts committed within city centres argues Kayden et al (2000).

This past research has encouraged the researcher to continue exploring this theory. The researcher will use an online survey to discover whether the past research correlates with any new evidence found from within Wakefield and the surrounding areas.

Methodology

Within this research the aims and objectives are to find the opinions on the correlation between poverty and people committing theft or similar crimes. To effectively complete these objectives the researcher has chosen to focus on quantitative data. Furthermore, the researcher aims to find a correlation between lesser developed areas and the rise in crime therefore, the researcher will be using an online survey to reach a wider audience and collect a vast number of public opinions on whether poverty links to theft and similar crimes. The researcher has chosen to use quantitative data as Cohen et al (2010), states that quantitative data can be straight forward with less room for error. However, Denscombe (2014) argues that quantitative data can become deceptive as the statistics can be used to exaggerate the results. Despite this the researcher believes that quantitative data is best suited for this research as it allows the researcher to gather clear statistics on poverty, crime, and its implications on the public.

The researcher planned to carry out the research by analysing past literature and comparing these previous findings to the public opinion on poverty causing theft and similar crimes. To find an accurate opinion on the public within the Wakefield area the researcher chose to use online surveys produced by Google forms and published by Facebook. For the aims and objectives of this research, an online survey is the most efficient method to obtain the true opinions of the public. The self-perception theory explains that people who partake in online surveys will take this opportunity to manifest generous qualities (Ritter et al, 2011). This theory suggests that when people are filling out surveys, they will feel generous and will therefore carry out the questions in a professional order. Furthermore, an online survey works well for this research as Myers (2009) states that unlike interviews, online surveys do not create a sense of pressure upon the people partaking within them. If people believe that there is no pressure when taking part in the survey, then they are more likely to answer honestly.

When planning this research there are limitations to using online surveys. Whilst the self-perception theory states that people will be eager to fill out online surveys, it could also lead to people faking their responses to make themselves appear more generous and kinder (Ritter et al, 2011). Furthermore, the online survey could be biased as it is uploaded to Facebook which is personalised to the researchers preference. As the objectives aim to get the opinion of people in the Wakefield area using the researchers Facebook is an efficient method however, people on Facebook may be from areas outside Wakefield which would cause the results to be inaccurate. Robson (2011) States that online surveys can be at a disadvantage as if people are not being monitored then they may not answer all the questions presented to them. To avoid some of these limitations the researcher will only allow 20 people to answer the survey, this is intended to keep the sample of people within the Wakefield area. Furthermore, google forms can make it a requirement for participants to answer questions, this should ensure that everyone answers making less outliers. An online survey allows the researcher to create a defined schedule to help keep track of progress whilst allowing quantitative data to be effectively analysed.

Research schedule Deadline

Research proposal approved 10/10/2021

Produce online survey 19/10/2021

Pilot study

27/10/2021

Update online Survey 03/11/2021

Hand out online survey 07/11/2021

Gather online survey data 07/12/2021

Analyse quantitative data 20/12/2021

Gather a conclusion 05/01/2022

Once the researcher proposal is approved, the researcher will begin to develop an online survey using Google forms. Google forms will allow both open and closed questions to be used to create quantitative data. After the online survey has been created a pilot study will be formed to find any faults with the current survey. After the pilot study any alterations to the online survey will be made before being handed out to the Wakefield public. After either 20 people answer the online survey or the survey has been up for a month the answers will be gathered and analysed. The quantitative data will be assessed to find a conclusion from the online surveys.

The pilot study for this research included creating an online survey on Google forms, this form was then sent to a fellow researcher who answered the online survey whilst reporting feedback to the researcher. The researcher found that whilst Google forms is an effective method there was room for improvement within the survey. After being given feedback, the researcher adjusted the online survey by updating questions to give a more defined answer from participants. Furthermore, some questions were given more choices by adding different types of questions such as ordinal and interval scale questions. Google forms was also adjusted in the settings to ensure that participants must answer each question in order, to stop participants from accidentally creating outliers or creating false answers. After these changes were made to the online survey another pilot study was conducted with another researcher. After receiving positive feedback and reliable data from the participant, the researcher was able to publish the online survey to the public of Wakefield.

For the sample of participants, the researcher used convenient sampling as Lavrakas (2008), states that convenience sampling offers a way to receive specific feedback from a select group of people at a fast pace. This type of sampling allows the researcher to focus on the aims and objectives of gaining the opinion of participants from the Wakefield area. Furthermore, the researcher will be uploading the online survey to social media specifically Facebook. Uploading the survey to social media allows the researcher to get participants from people aged 18 and upwards. The researcher will also aim to find the opinion of participants from all social classes and genders. There is a need for the researcher to look at the opinions of participants from different ethnic backgrounds and different genders as these participants may have experienced crime differently depending on their situations. Webster (2007) states that someone from a lower class will experience and view crime in a different light to those in a higher class. The Wakefield area is built up of multiple classes which will allow the researcher to get a wide range of opinions relating to poverty and its connection to theft and similar crimes. The researcher will be using the triangulation of these different perspectives to find a more comprehensive understanding of poverty and crime within the Wakefield district.

To ensure that the researcher correctly follows the ethical boundaries, they will be following the guidelines set out in the Data Protection Act 2018 (Carey, 2009). The researcher will be focusing on chapter 5 of the Data Protection Act 2018, as Carey (2019) explains that chapter 5 outlines the appropriate safeguards needed to protect both the researcher and participants taking part in the research. When handling data obtained from the research the researcher must follow the UK Public Generals Acts 2018 (Legislation.Gov, 2018). The information gained from this research must be used fairly and lawfully to stop it from being used for personal gain. The Uk Public Generals Act (2018) further explains that the information obtained must be open to both the researcher and participant to allow those involved to know what information will be used. Carey (2009) also states that the information obtained must not be kept any longer than necessary.

The researcher must also take the mental health of the participants into account, the Mental Health Act 1983 clearly outlines what sensitive information includes (Department of Health, 2008). Sensitive information within the Mental Health Act 1983 includes religious beliefs, sex life, political opinions, and race (Department of Health, 2008). To ensure that the mental health of participants is protected the researcher will allow participants to stay anonymous whilst also having the option to withdraw from the research at any point. Furthermore, attached to the beginning of the survey will be a consent from for participants to sign. The consent form will include all information about the research highlighting the summary of the study and its reasons for taking place.

After carrying out the pilot study the researcher found problems and limitations within the methodology. To avoid these limitations the researcher has adjusted the research and its methodology. During the pilot study it was discovered that some of the questions within the survey leaned more towards qualitative data therefore, the questions were slightly changed to give more statistical answers. Kaplan (2004) explains that quantitative questions will allow researchers to obtain a wide view of opinions with minimal personal bias. To help decrease any biased opinions within the research the researcher had to re-evaluate their method of uploading the surveys.

One problem with the surveys was that with them being uploaded to the researchers Facebook profile, the people answering the questions knew the researcher personally. The use of Facebook also only allowed a small group of people to complete the surveys, with multiple of these participants living outside of the Wakefield area causing outliers to form in the research. To change how the surveys were introduced the researcher will upload the improved surveys to a Wakefield city Facebook group under an anonymous profile therefore, stopping any bias towards the researcher whilst keeping the answers contained within the Wakefield community.

Originally, the researcher aimed to hand out the surveys on the 5th of June 2021 however, due to outside factors such as Covid-19 the deadlines for the research were extended to allow the researcher to obtain the best set of results without any external factors causing outliers. The new deadline for handing out surveys was extended to the 7th of November 2021.

Another limitation found within the research was the participants involved, originally the researcher wanted over 50 participants to answer the surveys to get a wide range of results. However, due to new Covid-19 restrictions and deadlines it was not possible to get this many participants without increasing the chance of outliers and misinformation. Therefore, the researcher stopped the surveys after 20 participants had completed the forms. Lavrakas (2008), states that on average if a researcher has a sample of 1000 people, then it is estimated that only 10% of participants involved will answer the survey honestly. Therefore, the researcher has decided to only use 20 people within the survey as this should create honest answers which will represent the Wakefield area.

2921030506200Results and findings

Figure 5.1 shows the gender percentage of the participants involved within the online survey carried out by the researcher. A participant sample of 20 was used to create the data from within these charts.

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Figure 5.2 depicts the age range of participants involved within the online survey using a percentage pie chart.

Figure 5.3 depicts the education level of each participant involved within the online survey carried out by the researcher.

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Figure 5.4 depicts the percentage of which the public believe that poverty causes crime.

center000Figure 5.5 depicts the justification for why the participants believe that poverty causes crime using an open answer format.

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Figure 5.6 depicts how bad crime is within the local area of the participants using a 1-10 scale to average the percentage of crime within the area.

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Figure 5.7 depicts the justification behind why people believe crime is bad within their area, the researcher offered six outcomes for the participants to choose to obtain an overall dominant percentage from the pie chart.

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Figure 5.8 uses a pie chart to depict the different regions of Wakefield in which the participants live within.

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Figure 5.9 shows the percentage of participants who believe that those who are poor are more willing to break the law.

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Figure 5.10 depicts the reasoning behind the participants answers from figure 5.9.

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Figure 5.11 depicts if the participants believe that Christmas and other holiday periods throughout the year can cause financial crime including theft to rise.

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Figure 5.12 depicts the justification from each participant as to why they agree or disagree with figure 5.11.

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Figure 5.13 shows what percentage of crimes the participants believe are related to financial gain, including theft, burglary, and robbery.

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Figure 5.14 depicts what the participants believe can be done to help change the statistics on how much crime is related to financial gain.

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Figure 5.15 depicts the publics opinion on how much the public services do to support those who are living within absolute poverty.

Discussion and findings

The purpose of this study was to find a direct correlation between absolute poverty and criminal activities regarding theft and similar crimes, whilst also discovering whether the publics perception on absolute poverty being a causal factor for theft aligns with studies taken and statistics found. The results of this study created by the researcher shows that most participants believe that absolute poverty does have a direct link to people committing theft. Figure 5.4 shows that 75% of participants believe that those which come from a financial disadvantage are more likely to commit crime. The researcher accepts the hypothesis created from the literature review as the results of this research show that the hypothesis between the publics perception of crime and the statistics on crime are correct, with both the literature review and online survey finding that most citizens within Wakefield see a link between absolute poverty and theft.

The online survey carried out by the researcher gave a wide range of results with the overall theme from participants being that the public do in fact believe that absolute poverty is a causal factor for theft and similar offences. One participant stated that I believe absolute poverty causes theft as people in poverty may feel like they have no other option. This opinion shows the key theme throughout the survey with another participant stating, There are less opportunities in poverty-stricken areas to progress out of poverty therefore, crime is the easier option. These opinions show that the hypothesis is correct as the literature review through researchers such as Piquero and Tibbetts (2002), shows that people in desperate situations are more likely to see the benefits in theft (Zev, 1998).

Furthermore, the main demographic for this survey was people aged between 18-29 with Figure 5.2 showing that over 50% of people participating within the survey were of this age. Appendices (1) also shows that out of this 50%, five participants are male, and five participants are female with males believing poverty causes crime whilst 60% of the females do not believe that poverty causes crimes such as theft. However, despite this only 25% of participants from all ages disagree that absolute poverty causes theft showing that most people that believe absolute poverty causes crime are aged 29 or below. Figure 5.3 also shows that 30% of participants are educated to a GCSE level whilst 30% are educated to a higher education level. Appendices (1) and Appendices (2), shows that those that are more educated are less likely to believe that absolute poverty causes financial crime such as theft. However, those that are higher educated and disagree with absolute poverty causing crime to go on and state that there is a mixture of poverty and addictions that causes crime. This implies that the 25% of participants from Figure 5.4 that voted against poverty causing crime, in fact do believe that poverty causes crime however, they believe that there are more complicated factors behind people committing crime.

Using Figure 5.8, the researcher can see that majority of the participants come from Horbury and Ossett which remain low dense areas according to the Wakefield JSNA 2019 map. Whilst the rest of participants come from higher dense areas such as Pontefract and Castleford which remain highly densely populated areas. Therefore, following Townsends (1979) theory, that states high densely populated areas breeds more crime, the participants from Horbury and Ossett should not witness crime. However, this is not the case as despite the Wakefield Police map 2019 suggesting that these areas experience less crime, Figure 5.6 shows that over 90% of participants living within Horbury and Ossett believe that crime is above regular within their communities. Along with these statistics, Figure 5.7 shows that 70% of overall participants who believe that crime is bad within their local area believe this because they have heard stories of crime occurring. This contradicts the Wakefield JSNA 2019 map, as if crime depended on how dense an areas population was then the local areas with a lower densely populated areas should not hear about crime occurring as much as highly dense areas whilst the online survey suggests that all regions within Wakefield experience crime in a similar fashion. Despite this, the survey correlates with the 2019 Wakefield Police map which suggests that crime including theft is on the decline as whilst 95% of participants from Figure 5.7 have heard about crime only 5% have had a friend which has experienced crime. Furthermore, the information from the online survey carried out by the researcher may not match up directly with reports from the Wakefield JSNA as participants from a lower-class background within these highly populated areas may view the definition of crime differently to someone who has being brought up in a lower crime rate area. Edwards et al (2010), claims that when someone is surrounded by crime it becomes a normality therefore, participants from higher crime rate areas such as Castleford will not be as shocked to hear about crime compared to someone from a higher-class region of Wakefield who may be more shocked when hearing about criminal activities.

Figure 5.9 shows that 60% of participants involved within the survey believe that those who originate from a lower income background are more likely to commit theft. Furthermore, Figure 5.10 implies this as five participants state that people from a lower-class background have less to lose and will therefore be more willing to commit crimes. These opinions from the online survey correlate with the findings from Clarke and Fenson (1993) who stated that people in lower class areas will see others commit theft before weighing up their own pros and cons before deciding to commit theft. The opinions of the Wakefield public matching with the research found by Clarke and Fenson shows that the researchers findings agree with the hypothesis created from the literature review research. Furthermore, looking at appendices (4) it shows that 8 participants out of the 60% from Figure 5.9 are from lower-class areas which have higher crime rates within those areas. Piquero and Tibbetts research showed that people who are from a lower-class background are more likely to steal from others in a similar situation. This is shown to be correct through the survey as the participants from lower-class backgrounds were more willing to agree with Figure 5.9.

Figure 5.10 shows the reasoning behind why participants believe that those from a lower-class background are more likely to commit theft with one participant stating, If people are in desperate need of certain things, they would do whatever they can to obtain them which may include breaking the law. These comments are backed up by Ariely (2008) who found that people are more willing to commit crime under uncertain times. For example, Covid-19 saw more people fall below the absolute poverty line which furthermore, the Leeds Observatory found that in 2020 over 9.2 million people within the United Kingdome were living below the poverty line due to Covid-19. According to Ariely (2008), this would imply that the crime rates for financial gain would rise as people become more desperate in uncertain times. This is backed up through the results of the online survey as Figure 5.13 shows that 45% of participants believe that crime is committed for financial gain.

The study carried out by the researcher also shows in Figure 5.11 that 95% of participants believe that national holidays increase the amount of theft taking place within their local area. Whilst 95% of the participants do believe that theft rises at Christmas, using Figure 5.12 shows two different opinions on why people commit more theft around Christmas. One participant stated, Over Christmas many people get brand new items that may become appealing to those that dont have that particular item, this means that some of the public believe that theft increases out of greed and envy which implies that those who commit theft do it out of malicious intent rather than desperation which goes against research carried out by Collins and Wheeler (2019) who believes that those who perceive themselves to have a lack of resources may be deprived enough to commit theft in order to maintain a good quality of life. However, another opinion from the online survey correlates with the research found by Collins and Wheeler with one participant stating, people need to commit theft to help provide support for their family, these results imply that people who live below the absolute poverty line may feel like they need to commit theft to ensure that their family are taken care of. Both opinions from the online survey correlate with research carried out by the Centre of Retail research which discovered that over 1 billion a year is lost from local high streets during national holidays. This shows that national holidays have a negative impact upon crime. Furthermore, a study carried out by C+R research also shows that within 2017 over 35% of packages delivered to customers by Amazon were stolen during the Christmas period, this implies that theft rises around the Christmas period as it becomes easier to steal unattended packages from peoples houses. This correlates with Figure 5.12 where a participant states that There is a higher market for gifts which can lead to fraud or even theft. These opinions from the online survey also correlate with information from Gilboa who stated in 2010 that, the increase in theft over the holidays is due to people feeling abandoned by society and therefore feel like they have no other option but to commit theft. Furthermore, Gilboas research also correlates with the overall theme from the online survey created by the researcher which is shown within Figure 5.4 Which shows that 75% percent believes that absolute poverty causes crime including theft. Throughout the online survey participants were asked if they believe that the local services do enough to help people which live below the absolute poverty line. Looking at Figure 5.15 the researcher can see that over 50% of participants involved within the online survey do not believe that the local services within the Wakefield area do enough to support those below the absolute poverty line. The Wakefield council use a range of crime prevention techniques to help reduce theft from occurring within the city centre however, whilst these may help the city centre most participants within the online survey live outside the city therefore, the results of the survey do not match up with the claims from the Wakefield council and the West Yorkshire police who state that crime is reducing within city centres. Participants were also asked what can be done by local services to help support those who live within absolute poverty and reduce crime. Using Figure 5.14 it can be seen that 11 participants said that those in absolute poverty that feel the need to commit theft need more support from the central government whilst, 6 participants believe that the only way to reduce theft within Wakefield is to increase the punishment on those committing theft. This shows that most participants believe that people will resort to committing theft when they live in absolute poverty, but it is not necessarily their fault for committing the crime as the central government and local services should be providing more to help support people in a deprived position.

When analysing the results of the online survey the researcher has found that certain areas within the online survey could be improved in any future projects. The researcher chose to use quantitative data to analyse the findings of the online survey however, whilst quantitative data can be used to gather how many of the participants favoured a specific answer and how many gave a similar quote, the researcher found that a mixed data approach would have been more suitable for this type of research as using a mixed data style would have allowed the survey to show why members of the public believe that absolute poverty can cause crime. To help solve this problem for future projects the researcher must plan out efficiently what results they would like to obtain from the research before looking at which data analysis option to use. To obtain a wider more accurate range of results the researcher could have used different forms of gathering data for example, the online survey created results which could be grouped together however, using a face-to-face interview would have provided more detailed information from the participants. To help obtain the most accurate information in the future the researcher could use a mixed range of data collection methods. Using a range of data collection methods would also help to eliminate any biases within the research. When distributing the online survey the researcher placed the survey upon the social media platform Facebook, whilst this helped give a selection of results, Facebook can be a biased platform as the online survey will have only being shown to a select group of people who may not represent the entirety of the Wakefield population. To help solve this issue the researcher could use multiple platforms of social media to help gather a wider range of results from a larger population. Furthermore, due to time restrictions only 20 participants were able to answer the online survey, when carrying out the data collection the researcher should have given more time to collecting the data to ensure that the results are as accurate as possible. 20 people cannot give an accurate representation of the Wakefield Public therefore, it would be more beneficial to focus on the online survey at the beginning of the research. Some of the participants who answered the online survey were not from the Wakefield district due to the online survey being uploaded to Facebook which allowed people who lived in neighbouring regions to answer the survey creating outliers within the results. To ensure that this does not happen again the researcher must look at alternative methods of data collection or audience selection. For example, the researcher could have used various local social media groups upon social media platforms to get more accurate results or another alternative is for the researcher to aim the main question of this research at a wider audience such as West Yorkshire. When creating the online survey, the researcher should have made the questions more diverse to get a range of answers as Figure 5.4 and 5.9 both relay the same answers which can lead to outliers being formed as participants become confused. To help solve this issue the researcher can give a longer time for creating the questions within the online survey. Furthermore, gathering the results from 20 participants from the Wakefield region and using these results to compare them to the rest of the United Kingdom, outliers are created as a small group of opinions cannot represent the entire country. This is evident within the comparison between the findings and the literature review as Krieken et al (2013) states that over 70% of theft is not reported therefore, the factual findings from previous research will be outstandingly different to the opinions of those who live within the Wakefield region creating a divide between what the publics opinion on this research matter is and what the professionals can gather from their data.

Conclusion and Recommendations

The online survey used by the researcher has answered the main aim of this research Do members of the public in Wakefield and surrounding areas believe that poverty is the causal factor for offenders committing crime. Overall, the online survey reveals that 75% of participants involved within the survey believe that when someone is trapped within absolute poverty, they are more likely to feel deprived of societies basic needs. This feeling of desperation leads people to resort to committing theft or similar crimes in order to keep up to the societal standards. Cesare Beccaria explains that the rational choice theory explains why those in absolute poverty may resort to committing theft as they have less to lose but more to gain (Zey, 1998).The public within Wakefield believe that those who commit theft do it out of desperation instead of malicious intent therefore, the public also believe that these crimes will rise around festive holidays with 95% of participants claiming that festive holidays such as Christmas have a negative affect upon those who live within absolute poverty. These results from the participants show that members of the public in West Yorkshire believe those suffering from poverty are more likely to commit criminal offences. Furthermore, another aim of the research was to find a direct correlation between lesser developed areas and the rise in theft. However, when carrying out research into the literature review the researcher found that the West Yorkshire Police (2019) developed a regional map of Wakefield which showed the highest reported crime areas whilst the Wakefield JSNA (2019) developed a regional map of the most deprived areas. Whilst both these maps correlated with each other to show that deprived areas did in fact have higher reports of crime, the overall theme from these two charts were that crime was decreasing and was occurring all over the Wakefield region rather than only in the areas which are most deprived. Has the rise in both absolute poverty and financial crime risen in the last few years? Has also been answered through the charts created by both the West Yorkshire Police (2019) and the Wakefield JSNA (2019) as these charts prove that the crime within Wakefield is on the decline however, the BBC (2014) found that over 800,000 crimes go unreported by the Police therefore, whilst the reported crime charts are decreasing the publics perception on the rise in crime is increasing. Finally, the researcher set out to answer if the West Yorkshire authorities have put enough policies in place to help combat absolute poverty and theft. This aim was completed through the online survey where participants were asked if they believe that the West Yorkshire authorities do enough to help and what else these authorities can do to ensure that those who live in absolute poverty receive help. Over 50% of participants involved within the survey believe that the services within Wakefield do not do enough to help with a further 55% claiming that assistance is needed for those who feel deprived enough to commit theft. In conclusion the combination of both the online survey and the literature review has allowed the researcher to answer the original aims and objectives of the research.

When completing the research, the researcher has obtained and grown upon both new and existing skills. Time management was found to be an area of improvement throughout this research with the researcher discovering that it is pivotal to have time managing skills when creating a solid structure for the research. However, completing this research has allowed the researcher to build upon their time management skills which can be utilised for future projects. This project has also allowed the researcher to broaden their understandings through looking at multiple perspectives of why people may resort to committing theft and that everyone who resorts to committing these crimes should be punished but instead helped by the local services.

For future recommendations, the researcher believes that the overall time dedicated towards the study needs to be expanded upon to find the long-term effects of people living below the absolute poverty line, having an extended time limit to study the effects of absolute poverty upon theft would also help determine if there are any other causal factors involved within people resorting to committing theft. Furthermore, whilst this study was focused on the public of Wakefield for future research the researcher suggests that the study should focus on a wider scale across the country to give a true accurate result of the link between absolute poverty and crime. Whilst some areas within the Wakefield district are slightly less deprived these statistics do not compare to the vast difference between multiple areas within the country. This research also shows that there is a definite need for more police presence around city centres and deprived areas to help deter people from committing theft, whilst the public of Wakefield also believe that both the local and central governments need to do more to help those that feel the need to commit theft to keep up to the societal standards. Overall, further studies are required to find the larger correlation between absolute poverty and the rise in theft.

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Appendices

Appendices 1:

1) Are you Male or Female? 2) How old are you? 3) What is your level of education?

Male 18-29 A-Levels/BTEC

Male 18-29 A-Levels/BTEC

Female 18-29 GCSE

Male 18-29 Higher Education

Male 18-29 A-Levels/BTEC

Female 18-29 Higher Education

Female 18-29 GCSE

Female 50-69 GCSE

Male 50-69 A-Levels/BTEC

Female 18-29 Degree with honours

Female 50-69 Higher Education

Female 18-29 Degree with honours

Male 18-29 GCSE

Female 30-49 Higher Education

Female 30-49 Higher Education

Female 30-49 GCSE

Male 50-69 GCSE

Female 30-49 Higher Education

Male 30-49 Degree with honours

Male 50-69 Degree with honours

Appendices 2:

4) Do you believe poverty causes crime? 4a) If so, why do you believe this?

Yes People in lower income find other means to survive, turning to illegal activity to generate revenue

Yes If a person doesn't have many things they will do anything include breaking the law to get what they need.

None of the above In some cases it does although crime is also committed by wealthier people too

Yes Poverty can lead to people taking more extreme measures in order to survive as they have less to lose compared to people who are not in poverty

No There is a whole host of reasons for people to fall into crime, it is not always money related

Yes Not all poverty causes crime however a lot does as some may do it to get a home Im prison so they are fed and warm

Yes People find ot hard to get a job and can lead to mental health problems so people commit a crime and go to jail were everything is free

Yes No family money hence turn to crime to fund lifestyle

Yes Rich don't normally commit crime.

Yes Poor = need money Need money = crime Crime = money

No I don't think poverty itself causes crime it's other underlying factors and lifestyles that are contributing.

No I think it can in some cases, but not 100% of the time

Yes Poverty and low levels of income is the mother of crime

Yes Less opportunities in poverty stricken areas to progress out of poverty. So crime is the easier option

Yes A lot of people dont know what help is out there or where to turn too if they do need help, therefore some turn to crime to be able to get by in life

Yes Money

Yes People without want what other people have!. No money to buy it, you steal it!.

None of the above I believe a mixture of poverty and addictions cause crime

Yes Low income/poverty I believe can lead to the want to have what people in better situations have. Jealousy almost .I think their can be a proven causation route between poverty and crime levels.

Yes I believe this because people in poverty may feel like they have no other option than to steal

Appendices 3:

5) On a scale of 1-10 how bad is crime within your area? 6) Why do you believe this? 7) Which region of Wakefield do you live in?

5 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

4 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

4 heard stories of crime within your area Ossett

4 heard stories of crime within your area Other

5 witnessed crime happen but not directly involved Lupset5 heard stories of crime within your area Normanton

8 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

6 heard stories of crime within your area Other

4 heard stories of crime within your area Other

9 your own personal experience Other

4 heard stories of crime within your area Other

6 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

6 friends personal experience Ossett

6 friends personal experience Horbury

6 heard stories of crime within your area Lupset6 heard stories of crime within your area Other

8 friends personal experience Other

5 heard stories of crime within your area Ossett

5 heard stories of crime within your area Ossett

9 witnessed crime happen but not directly involved LupsetAppendices 4:

8) Do you believe those who are poor are more willing to break the law? 8a) If so, why do you believe this?

No The

Yes If people are in desperate need of certain things they would do whatever they can to obtain what they need and this may include breaking the law.

No Yes Because they have less to lose

No Yes They have nothing to lose

No No Yes But only through necessity.

Yes No Yes Probably have less to lose

Yes No It depends on their own morals, and how they have been nurtured

Yes I dont believe this is all people but a percentage definitely again to provide food etc

Yes Money

Yes Same as question 4.

No Yes Less to lose via the potential consequences of committing crime. To the point of even personal gain re a homeless person receiving a person sentence would be beneficial

Yes They have less to lose and will therefore be more willing to commit crimes

Appendices 5:

9) Do you believe that Christmas and other holidays cause financial crime to rise? 9a) Why do you believe this? 10) What percentage of crimes do you think are related to financial gain (Theft, Burglary, Robbery)?

Yes Theres a higher market for gifts which can lead to fraud or even theft 41-60%

Yes Over Christmas many people get brand new items that may become appealing to those that don't have this particular item 21-40%

Yes Crime in my area always seems to rise in these periods 81-100%

Yes The pressure of buying the "perfect present" when ones financial status cannot accommodate for it can lead to people being more likely to commit financial crime. This increases during the Christmas period as there is a higher level of encouragement to spend a lot of money during the holiday season, especially by corporations 41-60%

Yes Especially around Christmas there are always more opportunities for people to steal things 41-60%

No Because it doesnt change anything 21-40%

Yes Yes because they need to find money support themselves and there family 21-40%

Yes Pay for presents for family. People know houses have got presents in to steal 41-60%

Yes Pressure from media. 61-80%

Yes Modern day pressures 41-60%

Yes Increase in opertunity 81-100%

Yes The higher need for financial security outweighs the risk of being caught 21-40%

Yes Relatively self explanatory. Those who have less money, have even less money in times such as holidays, therefore look to other means to resolve their issues 41-60%

Yes Pressure to provide for family so they are equal to those more fortunate, and to be accepted by society 61-80%

Yes Again maybe when they feel they need to live up to expectations of others, seeing on social media all the presents other children etc have they they have to do the same for theirs maybe crime is the only way they can provide them gifts 61-80%

Yes Pressure to buy things 41-60%

Yes Same as 4. 61-80%

Yes Because criminals see it as a prime opportunity to thieve expensive gifts 61-80%

Yes Financial gain from theft and the like 41-60%

Yes People may become more desperate to get presents or may find it better to steal as there is more to steal 41-60%

Appendices 6:

11) How do you believe we can help change these statistics? 12) How much do the services do to support those in poverty?

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 3

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 4

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 5

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 7

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 3

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 7

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 3

Increase in Police/Security?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 3

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 4

Other 2

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 4

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 3

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 5

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 5

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 2

Increase in Police/Security? 7

POlicy File

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UNIVERSITY CENTRE WAKEFIELDMARGARET STREET, WAKEFIELD, WF1 2DH1000000

UNIVERSITY CENTRE WAKEFIELDMARGARET STREET, WAKEFIELD, WF1 2DH

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Decision Log Number: Decision - Date and Time of Decision

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Decision Log Continued

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1. Identify situation & gather information

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Decision Log Continued

Decision Log Number: Decision - Date and Time of Decision

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Do members of the public in Wakefield and surrounding areas believe that poverty is the causal factor for offenders committing Theft?

Alastair Griffiths: 17000753

Module Leader: Jamie Carruthers

Contents

Abstract page 3

Introduction. page 4

Literature Review... page 5

Methodology... page 13

Results. page 18

Discussion and Findingspage 25

Conclusion and Recommendations.page 31

References..page 34

Bibliographypage 38

Appendices.page 39

Abstract

The topic of this study is surrounding the possible link between absolute poverty and theft committed within the Wakefield district. This dissertation will focus on how the public perceive those that live within absolute poverty and find out what contributing factors cause people to commit theft. Pratt and Cullen (2005) found through meta-analysis that those who lived within absolute poverty had a higher chance of going on to commit theft and similar crimes. Whereas Jones (2021), argues that people born into misfortune are not destined to commit crime instead other external factors including social aspects are what cause someone to commit crime. The study carried out by the researcher, shows that most people agree with Pratt and Cullen (2005) with the biggest external factor for people committing crime being a low income.

This study will discuss the ideal methodology for carrying out this research before comparing the results found by the researcher with previous findings and discussing how these findings can help benefit future researchers within the conclusion.

Introduction

Poverty and crime have always been a part of human society as some people are born at a socioeconomic disadvantage, this has led to many theories explaining what the common cause of crime is. Wilson (2014) argues that theft is only committed to close the barriers between the different economical classes within society. The researcher aims to discover whether members of the public in West Yorkshire believe that absolute poverty is a causal factor for offenders committing theft and similar related crimes, or if the members of the public believe that there are different reasons for people turning to committing theft and financially related crimes. To achieve the aims of this research the researcher will look at the members of the public in West Yorkshire and see if they are aware of their local poverty levels. Furthermore, the researcher will analyse the opinions of people in West Yorkshire to discover whether the local community believe that those suffering from absolute poverty are more likely to commit crime. The opinions of the local community will be obtained through online questionnaires through quantitative data, whilst past findings will be meta-analysed to discover if there is a direct correlation between lesser developed communities and financial crimes. The researcher will also analyse the current financial crime rates and see if the financial crime rates have increased or decreased over the past few years. Along with the rise or decline in theft and similar crime rates, the researcher will observe the current procedures carried out by the West Yorkshire authorities to help combat financial crime and absolute poverty.

Since Cesare Lombroso (1876) created the first theory linking absolute poverty and crime together in 1876 within the book Criminal man the subject area has been heavily debated and criticised by other researchers. Eriksson (2011) argues that crime is not necessarily impacted by poverty, instead Eriksson believes that theft is based upon the rewards being far greater than the risks. Despite the different theories explaining why crime is committed, absolute poverty stands out to be the main casual factor of financial crime. This research will look at the West Yorkshire authorities and analyse how they use theories to both explain how crime is committed and how to prevent crime by using these theories. The researcher will examine the relationship between the local community and the West Yorkshire authorities to see if this has an impact upon peoples opinions on absolute poverty causing financial crime. Furthermore, this study will look at the relationship between theft on a local level and on a national scale.

The researcher wants to investigate the opinions of people in West Yorkshire and how these opinions correlate with the statistics on both crime and poverty whilst analysing the methods local authorities use to prevent both these crimes and the poverty within West Yorkshire. This research is important as the results of this research will help determine whether the public blame absolute poverty for crime and if theft and financial crime is as dangerous as it is believed to be by the public. Furthermore, during Covid-19 a substantial amount of the United Kingdom were put out of work. Due to the loss in jobs the United Kingdom Government ran a coronavirus job retention scheme (LordsLibrary, 2021). However, when people did not qualify for this scheme, they may have become more tempted to commit crime therefore, this research could help point out the correlation between the increase in poverty and crime during Covid-19. This research could help those in poverty as 14.3 million people are living below the poverty line since 2010 (Full fact, 2019).

In theory the evidence found within this research could be used by the West Yorkshire Police Force to help theft within the Yorkshire County. Furthermore, if the correlation between theft and the rise in poverty is found then the research can be used to help educate people on how to help those below the absolute poverty line. This research could be used to help stop as many thefts from occurring as the authorities could help those in poverty to prevent people from ever turning to a life of crime.

However, there are limitations to the research carried out. The researcher will be limited by their positionality of a student. As a student at Wakefield University the researcher will be subject to a local bias therefore, they must make all questions within the questionnaire unbiased. Furthermore, this research has never been carried out within West Yorkshire however, this could be a disadvantage within the research as the sample area is not large enough to give a nation-wide correlation between crime and poverty. The size of the sample will also be a limitation as not everyone will have access to social media to participate within the questionnaire. Due to needing permission to have the vulnerable answer the questionnaire the researcher will not be allowed to ask this sample of people limiting the opinions involved within the research. Both time and money could be a limitation within this research as the researcher is a student therefore, the researcher may not have access to a limited amount of resource or time to carry out more questionnaires. Finally, a limitation towards this research is that the research only covers financial crime therefore, this research cannot fully explain if poverty is the causal factor for all crimes.

Overall, the researcher will be using various methods to collect data to help determine whether poverty is the causal factor for financial crime whilst completing a set of objectives to reach the overall aim of the research. The literature review will take past researchers answers and meta-analyse them to obtain a correlation between poverty and crime for this research.

Literature review

There are many theories explaining how poverty can potentially cause people to commit theft and other crimes. Cesare Beccaria helped develop the rational choice theory, this theory states that people will examine the pros and cons of committing a crime before carrying it out (Zey, 1998). This theory can explain why people in Wakefield and surrounding areas may commit crime, as those who become desperate will be more willing to take the risk and commit theft. Cornish and Clarke (1986) state that there are many factors for people to consider before going ahead and committing a crime. Specifically, the duo focusses on theft and burglary pointing out that theft committed within a lower-class area cannot be compared to theft committed within a middle-class area. Furthermore, Piquero and Tibbetts (2002) expand upon this research by carrying out a meta-analysis examination upon theft within multiple locations across America. This research concluded that those with a lower-class background are more likely to commit crime against other lower-class areas with those from a slightly higher class are more likely to commit crime against the middle-class. The meta-analysis conducted could potentially help explain why theft in the Wakefield area occurs. However, Piquero, Tibbetts, Cornish, and Clark, carried out their research in the United States of America which can be argued does not apply to the Wakefield area.

The office for national statistics, recorded that since 1981 there has been a downward trend from cases in theft (ONS, 2020). However, despite their being no change within statistics on theft between 2018 and 2019, there was an 8% increase in theft offences between September 2016 and September 2018. The West Yorkshire Police service (2020) state that there is not enough evidence to show a change in the current downward trend despite this, the 8% increase could begin to possibly show a gradual upward trend. Furthermore, the UK Crime Stats (2020) show that within the Wakefield area there has been a steady increase in theft since November 2020. Ariely (2008) predicts that the current rise in theft and other crime could be from people having more irrational decisions rather than rational ones. Ariely also states that the rational choice theory has its disadvantages as humans are more likely to give into irrational choices when outside factors for instance if sexual arousal is involved. This research and the statistics show that people are becoming more willing to choose the irrational choice and commit theft. Furthermore, the statistics could potentially go up within the current climate as the impacts of covid-19 begin. However, (Marks, 2018) argues that the rational choice theory cannot explain why people who are not in absolute poverty commit theft, according to rational choice theory only those in absolute poverty should see the advantage of committing theft however, this is not the case. Banduras behavioural theory claims that people commit crime after witnessing those that inspire them commit crime, this applies to theft within Wakefield as the Wakefield district has different socio-economic areas and therefore, all theft committed cannot be due to people suffering in absolute poverty (Bandura, 1986). Clarke and Felson (1993) explain how those in poverty may weigh up the pros and cons and then become inspired by those around them to finally commit theft.

If the rational choice theory is correct than those who are stuck in absolute poverty should be more inclined to commit theft during celebratory events of the year, such as Christmas and New Years Eve. Bamfield (2012), found that over the Christmas period up to 350,000 was stolen, with the most offences occurring between 15:00 and 16:00. Furthermore, Bamfield states that the rise in offences during peak hours correlate with the lifestyles of semi-professional criminals. A recent study made by the Centre for Retail Research (2012) found that, retailers in the United Kingdom lose around 1 billion during the Christmas period from shoplifting. This paired with the average consumer spending an extra 60% of their average shop could explain why some people become desperate and resort to stealing. The relative deprivation theory agrees with the research carried out by the Centre for Retail Research. Suls, Collins and Wheeler (2019), explain that the relative deprivation theory applies to those who perceive themselves to have a lack of resources to maintain a good quality of life. Therefore, those that cannot provide for themselves, or their family may become more inclined to commit theft during the holidays when it becomes socially expected to provide gifts and non-essential items (Walker et al, 2002). Furthermore, whilst the Centre for Retail Research (2012), found that alcohol and technology were shoplifted the most, absolute poverty and absolute deprivation could help explain why those who are in need will commit theft. People that are in absolute poverty are perceived to be living within the worst conditions in society therefore, it is plausible that these people will be more willing to steal food, drinks, or medication around holiday periods as potential resentment against those spending money on gifts builds up says Brady and Burton (2016).

Despite deprivation theory potentially explaining why people in worse conditions may feel the need to steal, it fails to explain why the crime statistics are not the same all year around if people are needing to commit theft to have a good standard of living. Crime Rates (2019) states that there is a 45% decrease in 2020 however, this could be explained by the national lockdowns in place by the United Kingdom Government. Furthermore, Segrave (2012) explains that the rise in theft and other crimes may only increase around major holidays because security around shopping centres increases leading to more people being caught when attempting to commit theft.

A study conducted in America by C + R Research (2017) found that during the Christmas period over 31% of Amazon deliveries are stolen from peoples houses. This relates back to relative deprivation theory, as it shows people are more willing to commit theft during the holidays as only 5% of packages become stolen throughout the rest of 2017 (C + R Research, 2019). Furthermore, this research relates back to the rational choice theory, those in absolute poverty may see more benefits to stealing packages rather than shoplifting. Gilboa (2010) states that a person will commit a low-level crime when they feel abandoned by society and when the odds are in their favour. With the chances of being caught stealing a package from someones doorstep being so low criminals will be more inclined to commit this type of theft over shoplifting. Those in absolute poverty may feel trapped and will resort to committing theft and similar offences whilst those who are feeling deprived will escalate these results around the holidays as they begin to feel a need to provide for their family and friends.

Absolute poverty in the UK is defined as a household income which has an income below 60% of the national average (Sedmak et al, 2020). Leeds Observatory (2020) found that between 2019 and 2020 over 9.2 million people in the UK lived in absolute poverty, over 18% of these people were living in the city of Leeds. Furthermore, Schramm and Pogge (2016) point out that since 2009/2010 the amount of people living in absolute poverty has fallen by 0.7 million with 500,000 people breaking above the absolute poverty line within 2017. However, whilst these stats create a good base for predicting how many people live in absolute poverty, they cannot account for the decline or rise in the homeless and do not account for the regions within local areas. For example, a lower-class area in Leeds may be deemed as living in absolute poverty whilst a lower-class area in Kent maybe seen as a standard way of living (House of Commons, 2021). These statistics show that whilst there may be a slight decline in the people living in absolute poverty, there is still a prominent poverty trap within West Yorkshire and the surrounding areas.

When people are born or forced into the poverty trap it can become increasingly harder to get out as they attempt to reach the national average standard of living (Hoff et al, 2016). The social identity theory can help explain why some people would prefer to stay in the poverty trap than get a job as people begin to identify themselves with a group membership, this membership can become more important than ones own identity (Abrams, 1990). If people begin to feel like they belong in absolute poverty, then they may be unwilling to make changes to their lives. Furthermore, Ron Jones carried out an experiment in California based around the idea of fascism, this experiment named the third wave showed that when a group is formed individuals become attached and begin to defend their group (Tajfel, 2010). This experiment can be applied to people committing theft, if those stuck in the poverty trap begin to feel like they belong with other criminals then they may easily be persuaded into a life of crime.

The poverty trap can be a term used to describe situations in an economy where people feel financially better off being unemployed than being in full time employment (Mosley et al, 2012). These pull factors make the idea of being unemployed better than going to work therefore, these factors cause the poverty trap cycle to continue. Barrett, Chavas and Carter (2019), explain that those who are in absolute poverty will get help by the government however, this help can become more appealing than finding a job as life can be seen as easier without a job. Furthermore, Waddell (2006), states that the conditions of a workplace available to those with a low skill set can be a push factor as workers do not feel appreciated within their work. Additionally, Rowntree (2018) sates that after a person in absolute poverty pays their bills, they may not have enough money to save to improve their lives. Therefore, the idea of staying on benefits will be more appealing.

Research into new neuroscience discoveries by Dr Eamon McCroy from the University College London, shows that the brains development during childhood can be greatly impacted by their surroundings (McCroy, 2010). The psychodynamic theory connects to this study as (Higdon, 2011) states that humans are often driven by unconscious motivations and that adult personality and relationships are often the result of childhood experiences. This cycles back to the poverty trap as if someone is brought up around the ideology of living off benefits instead of getting a job then they may subconsciously be keeping themselves stuck within the poverty trap. Furthermore, if those in absolute poverty are prone to committing crime then those growing up in that environment may become more susceptible to committing theft. Edwards at al (2010) claims that when someone is surrounded by crime it becomes a normality and therefore, people become numb to the act of committing theft. A research study looking into high crime neighbourhoods and children concludes that, areas with high crime conviction rates for adults do not influence the youth to commit crime, However, areas with high conviction rates of youth help breed more crime between other adolescents (Damm, 2012). Whilst this agrees with psychodynamic theory, claiming that it is the people around you during childhood that help shape who you become. Crowell et al (2001) show that despite both males and females growing up around youth offenders, it is in fact predominantly males which turn to committing crime. This argues against the psychodynamic theory as if that theory was applied it would create an equal amount of both male and female youth offenders.

Within Wakefield and the surrounding areas, there are areas with high deprivation levels. This map created by Wakefield JSNA (2019) shows the levels of deprivation within the Wakefield area:

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Furthermore, this map shows that the areas which occupy a dense population also have the higher rate of deprivation. This map also correlates with the West Yorkshire Police (2019) street crime map:

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Both maps show that within the Wakefield city centre and the surrounding areas of Lupset and Thornes have the highest rate of street crime. This rise in street crime also correlates with the high deprived areas. The correlation between these two maps relate back to the relative deprivation theory, if these areas are experiencing a higher rate of poverty, then this theory states that there should be a higher rate of crime (Townsend, 1979) as the maps show. Furthermore, the West Yorkshire Police map (2019) states that the main crimes committed are Theft and Burglary. This correlation can help determine that those in absolute poverty will commit crime for financial gain. However, despite the information these maps provide they can not be one hundred percent accurate. A study carried out by Krieken et al (2013), shows that over 70% of street crimes including theft, rape and burglary do not get reported to the Police either due to embarrassment or bad relations between the West Yorkshire Police and the public. This study shows that the data within these maps could be false depending on whether the public within the surrounding areas of Wakefield reported all crimes committed. Furthermore, the areas which appear to be above absolute poverty with relatively no crime may be an area which is starting to develop crime however, these crimes may not have been recorded by the West Yorkshire Police yet as more than 800,000 crimes do not get recorded by the police per year BBC (2014).

Despite the critiques, the correlation between deprived areas and high crime rates can be explained through the social learning theory. The Social learning theory suggests that children will observe and copy the behaviours of others within a social context (Bandura, 1977). Furthermore, Akers (2017) states that, children will pick up on aggressive behaviour if they routinely experience aggressive behaviour from their social peers. Akers (2017) also believes that this aggressive behaviour can shape the skills and ambitions within children. This connects to crime being committed within deprived areas as children born within the poverty trap will witness their social peers acting within a particular way and begin to copy these behaviours potentially leading to children committing crime at an early age (Jensen, 2017). However, Parke (2014) explains that whilst children may copy their peers behaviours it does not necessarily mean that they will adopt the same lifestyle. This correlates with the downward trend in absolute poverty, as more people begin to live above the poverty line there is a potential for more people to stop committing theft and similar crimes.

With the potential decline in absolute poverty but the rise within theft and similar crimes it can be argued that the ones carrying out these crimes are not dedicated criminals but are instead situational. Cornish (2003) argues, that even when people are in an improving situation, they may still feel desperate and therefore, if a situation arises people may act as a criminal. To combat this occurrence the West Yorkshire Police Force, use situational crime prevention techniques. Situational crime prevention techniques are based off the situational crime prevention theory. Clarke et al (2016) explains that situational crime prevention theory is the idea behind creating deterrences to make it more difficult for someone to commit crime. Furthermore, Clarke and Tilley (2013) state that when police focus on the environment instead of the motivation then the criminals surroundings will change causing them to migrate. Crime Prevention techniques (Farrington et al, 2014), include target hardening, this includes making items within shops harder to reach. The increase of security cameras increases the risk of committing crime and the introduction of hostile architecture can stop criminals from hanging around specific areas (Records Finder, 2018). Within Wakefield and the surrounding areas there are examples of situational crime prevention techniques, including hostile architecture. The Wakefield City Council (2016) argue that There is nothing the council can do because its on private property. However, this architecture can be seen within public owned areas, for example benches in both the city centre and local parks are designed to be uncomfortable if slept upon. Krohn et al (2009) suggests that councils across the UK purposefully allow this type of crime prevention as it gets rid of any homeless people sleeping within cities. This shows that whilst using situational crime prevention techniques does stop certain criminals from acting upon a crime in that area, it can also have a negative effect on non-criminals. Rosenberg (2017) argues that situational crime prevention techniques such as hostile architecture does not stop crime but instead disperses the crime over multiple areas, this then leads to other communities becoming affected by these crimes. Furthermore, when looking at the West Yorkshire Police (2019) and the poverty created by Wakefield JSNA (2019), it is clear to see a direct correlation between the dispersing of crime from the city centre and the dispersing of poverty. This correlation could be a direct impact from hostile architecture within Wakefield causing criminals to disperse. The continued use of hostile architecture shows that the local authorities partially blame those within absolute poverty for criminal acts committed within city centres argues Kayden et al (2000).

This past research has encouraged the researcher to continue exploring this theory. The researcher will use an online survey to discover whether the past research correlates with any new evidence found from within Wakefield and the surrounding areas.

Methodology

Within this research the aims and objectives are to find the opinions on the correlation between poverty and people committing theft or similar crimes. To effectively complete these objectives the researcher has chosen to focus on quantitative data. Furthermore, the researcher aims to find a correlation between lesser developed areas and the rise in crime therefore, the researcher will be using an online survey to reach a wider audience and collect a vast number of public opinions on whether poverty links to theft and similar crimes. The researcher has chosen to use quantitative data as Cohen et al (2010), states that quantitative data can be straight forward with less room for error. However, Denscombe (2014) argues that quantitative data can become deceptive as the statistics can be used to exaggerate the results. Despite this the researcher believes that quantitative data is best suited for this research as it allows the researcher to gather clear statistics on poverty, crime, and its implications on the public.

The researcher planned to carry out the research by analysing past literature and comparing these previous findings to the public opinion on poverty causing theft and similar crimes. To find an accurate opinion on the public within the Wakefield area the researcher chose to use online surveys produced by Google forms and published by Facebook. For the aims and objectives of this research, an online survey is the most efficient method to obtain the true opinions of the public. The self-perception theory explains that people who partake in online surveys will take this opportunity to manifest generous qualities (Ritter et al, 2011). This theory suggests that when people are filling out surveys, they will feel generous and will therefore carry out the questions in a professional order. Furthermore, an online survey works well for this research as Myers (2009) states that unlike interviews, online surveys do not create a sense of pressure upon the people partaking within them. If people believe that there is no pressure when taking part in the survey, then they are more likely to answer honestly.

When planning this research there are limitations to using online surveys. Whilst the self-perception theory states that people will be eager to fill out online surveys, it could also lead to people faking their responses to make themselves appear more generous and kinder (Ritter et al, 2011). Furthermore, the online survey could be biased as it is uploaded to Facebook which is personalised to the researchers preference. As the objectives aim to get the opinion of people in the Wakefield area using the researchers Facebook is an efficient method however, people on Facebook may be from areas outside Wakefield which would cause the results to be inaccurate. Robson (2011) States that online surveys can be at a disadvantage as if people are not being monitored then they may not answer all the questions presented to them. To avoid some of these limitations the researcher will only allow 20 people to answer the survey, this is intended to keep the sample of people within the Wakefield area. Furthermore, google forms can make it a requirement for participants to answer questions, this should ensure that everyone answers making less outliers. An online survey allows the researcher to create a defined schedule to help keep track of progress whilst allowing quantitative data to be effectively analysed.

Research schedule Deadline

Research proposal approved 10/10/2021

Produce online survey 19/10/2021

Pilot study

27/10/2021

Update online Survey 03/11/2021

Hand out online survey 07/11/2021

Gather online survey data 07/12/2021

Analyse quantitative data 20/12/2021

Gather a conclusion 05/01/2022

Once the researcher proposal is approved, the researcher will begin to develop an online survey using Google forms. Google forms will allow both open and closed questions to be used to create quantitative data. After the online survey has been created a pilot study will be formed to find any faults with the current survey. After the pilot study any alterations to the online survey will be made before being handed out to the Wakefield public. After either 20 people answer the online survey or the survey has been up for a month the answers will be gathered and analysed. The quantitative data will be assessed to find a conclusion from the online surveys.

The pilot study for this research included creating an online survey on Google forms, this form was then sent to a fellow researcher who answered the online survey whilst reporting feedback to the researcher. The researcher found that whilst Google forms is an effective method there was room for improvement within the survey. After being given feedback, the researcher adjusted the online survey by updating questions to give a more defined answer from participants. Furthermore, some questions were given more choices by adding different types of questions such as ordinal and interval scale questions. Google forms was also adjusted in the settings to ensure that participants must answer each question in order, to stop participants from accidentally creating outliers or creating false answers. After these changes were made to the online survey another pilot study was conducted with another researcher. After receiving positive feedback and reliable data from the participant, the researcher was able to publish the online survey to the public of Wakefield.

For the sample of participants, the researcher used convenient sampling as Lavrakas (2008), states that convenience sampling offers a way to receive specific feedback from a select group of people at a fast pace. This type of sampling allows the researcher to focus on the aims and objectives of gaining the opinion of participants from the Wakefield area. Furthermore, the researcher will be uploading the online survey to social media specifically Facebook. Uploading the survey to social media allows the researcher to get participants from people aged 18 and upwards. The researcher will also aim to find the opinion of participants from all social classes and genders. There is a need for the researcher to look at the opinions of participants from different ethnic backgrounds and different genders as these participants may have experienced crime differently depending on their situations. Webster (2007) states that someone from a lower class will experience and view crime in a different light to those in a higher class. The Wakefield area is built up of multiple classes which will allow the researcher to get a wide range of opinions relating to poverty and its connection to theft and similar crimes. The researcher will be using the triangulation of these different perspectives to find a more comprehensive understanding of poverty and crime within the Wakefield district.

To ensure that the researcher correctly follows the ethical boundaries, they will be following the guidelines set out in the Data Protection Act 2018 (Carey, 2009). The researcher will be focusing on chapter 5 of the Data Protection Act 2018, as Carey (2019) explains that chapter 5 outlines the appropriate safeguards needed to protect both the researcher and participants taking part in the research. When handling data obtained from the research the researcher must follow the UK Public Generals Acts 2018 (Legislation.Gov, 2018). The information gained from this research must be used fairly and lawfully to stop it from being used for personal gain. The Uk Public Generals Act (2018) further explains that the information obtained must be open to both the researcher and participant to allow those involved to know what information will be used. Carey (2009) also states that the information obtained must not be kept any longer than necessary.

The researcher must also take the mental health of the participants into account, the Mental Health Act 1983 clearly outlines what sensitive information includes (Department of Health, 2008). Sensitive information within the Mental Health Act 1983 includes religious beliefs, sex life, political opinions, and race (Department of Health, 2008). To ensure that the mental health of participants is protected the researcher will allow participants to stay anonymous whilst also having the option to withdraw from the research at any point. Furthermore, attached to the beginning of the survey will be a consent from for participants to sign. The consent form will include all information about the research highlighting the summary of the study and its reasons for taking place.

After carrying out the pilot study the researcher found problems and limitations within the methodology. To avoid these limitations the researcher has adjusted the research and its methodology. During the pilot study it was discovered that some of the questions within the survey leaned more towards qualitative data therefore, the questions were slightly changed to give more statistical answers. Kaplan (2004) explains that quantitative questions will allow researchers to obtain a wide view of opinions with minimal personal bias. To help decrease any biased opinions within the research the researcher had to re-evaluate their method of uploading the surveys.

One problem with the surveys was that with them being uploaded to the researchers Facebook profile, the people answering the questions knew the researcher personally. The use of Facebook also only allowed a small group of people to complete the surveys, with multiple of these participants living outside of the Wakefield area causing outliers to form in the research. To change how the surveys were introduced the researcher will upload the improved surveys to a Wakefield city Facebook group under an anonymous profile therefore, stopping any bias towards the researcher whilst keeping the answers contained within the Wakefield community.

Originally, the researcher aimed to hand out the surveys on the 5th of June 2021 however, due to outside factors such as Covid-19 the deadlines for the research were extended to allow the researcher to obtain the best set of results without any external factors causing outliers. The new deadline for handing out surveys was extended to the 7th of November 2021.

Another limitation found within the research was the participants involved, originally the researcher wanted over 50 participants to answer the surveys to get a wide range of results. However, due to new Covid-19 restrictions and deadlines it was not possible to get this many participants without increasing the chance of outliers and misinformation. Therefore, the researcher stopped the surveys after 20 participants had completed the forms. Lavrakas (2008), states that on average if a researcher has a sample of 1000 people, then it is estimated that only 10% of participants involved will answer the survey honestly. Therefore, the researcher has decided to only use 20 people within the survey as this should create honest answers which will represent the Wakefield area.

2921030506200Results and findings

Figure 5.1 shows the gender percentage of the participants involved within the online survey carried out by the researcher. A participant sample of 20 was used to create the data from within these charts.

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Figure 5.2 depicts the age range of participants involved within the online survey using a percentage pie chart.

Figure 5.3 depicts the education level of each participant involved within the online survey carried out by the researcher.

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Figure 5.4 depicts the percentage of which the public believe that poverty causes crime.

center000Figure 5.5 depicts the justification for why the participants believe that poverty causes crime using an open answer format.

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Figure 5.6 depicts how bad crime is within the local area of the participants using a 1-10 scale to average the percentage of crime within the area.

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Figure 5.7 depicts the justification behind why people believe crime is bad within their area, the researcher offered six outcomes for the participants to choose to obtain an overall dominant percentage from the pie chart.

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Figure 5.8 uses a pie chart to depict the different regions of Wakefield in which the participants live within.

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Figure 5.9 shows the percentage of participants who believe that those who are poor are more willing to break the law.

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Figure 5.10 depicts the reasoning behind the participants answers from figure 5.9.

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Figure 5.11 depicts if the participants believe that Christmas and other holiday periods throughout the year can cause financial crime including theft to rise.

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Figure 5.12 depicts the justification from each participant as to why they agree or disagree with figure 5.11.

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Figure 5.13 shows what percentage of crimes the participants believe are related to financial gain, including theft, burglary, and robbery.

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Figure 5.14 depicts what the participants believe can be done to help change the statistics on how much crime is related to financial gain.

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Figure 5.15 depicts the publics opinion on how much the public services do to support those who are living within absolute poverty.

Discussion and findings

The purpose of this study was to find a direct correlation between absolute poverty and criminal activities regarding theft and similar crimes, whilst also discovering whether the publics perception on absolute poverty being a causal factor for theft aligns with studies taken and statistics found. The results of this study created by the researcher shows that most participants believe that absolute poverty does have a direct link to people committing theft. Figure 5.4 shows that 75% of participants believe that those which come from a financial disadvantage are more likely to commit crime. The researcher accepts the hypothesis created from the literature review as the results of this research show that the hypothesis between the publics perception of crime and the statistics on crime are correct, with both the literature review and online survey finding that most citizens within Wakefield see a link between absolute poverty and theft.

The online survey carried out by the researcher gave a wide range of results with the overall theme from participants being that the public do in fact believe that absolute poverty is a causal factor for theft and similar offences. One participant stated that I believe absolute poverty causes theft as people in poverty may feel like they have no other option. This opinion shows the key theme throughout the survey with another participant stating, There are less opportunities in poverty-stricken areas to progress out of poverty therefore, crime is the easier option. These opinions show that the hypothesis is correct as the literature review through researchers such as Piquero and Tibbetts (2002), shows that people in desperate situations are more likely to see the benefits in theft (Zev, 1998).

Furthermore, the main demographic for this survey was people aged between 18-29 with Figure 5.2 showing that over 50% of people participating within the survey were of this age. Appendices (1) also shows that out of this 50%, five participants are male, and five participants are female with males believing poverty causes crime whilst 60% of the females do not believe that poverty causes crimes such as theft. However, despite this only 25% of participants from all ages disagree that absolute poverty causes theft showing that most people that believe absolute poverty causes crime are aged 29 or below. Figure 5.3 also shows that 30% of participants are educated to a GCSE level whilst 30% are educated to a higher education level. Appendices (1) and Appendices (2), shows that those that are more educated are less likely to believe that absolute poverty causes financial crime such as theft. However, those that are higher educated and disagree with absolute poverty causing crime to go on and state that there is a mixture of poverty and addictions that causes crime. This implies that the 25% of participants from Figure 5.4 that voted against poverty causing crime, in fact do believe that poverty causes crime however, they believe that there are more complicated factors behind people committing crime.

Using Figure 5.8, the researcher can see that majority of the participants come from Horbury and Ossett which remain low dense areas according to the Wakefield JSNA 2019 map. Whilst the rest of participants come from higher dense areas such as Pontefract and Castleford which remain highly densely populated areas. Therefore, following Townsends (1979) theory, that states high densely populated areas breeds more crime, the participants from Horbury and Ossett should not witness crime. However, this is not the case as despite the Wakefield Police map 2019 suggesting that these areas experience less crime, Figure 5.6 shows that over 90% of participants living within Horbury and Ossett believe that crime is above regular within their communities. Along with these statistics, Figure 5.7 shows that 70% of overall participants who believe that crime is bad within their local area believe this because they have heard stories of crime occurring. This contradicts the Wakefield JSNA 2019 map, as if crime depended on how dense an areas population was then the local areas with a lower densely populated areas should not hear about crime occurring as much as highly dense areas whilst the online survey suggests that all regions within Wakefield experience crime in a similar fashion. Despite this, the survey correlates with the 2019 Wakefield Police map which suggests that crime including theft is on the decline as whilst 95% of participants from Figure 5.7 have heard about crime only 5% have had a friend which has experienced crime. Furthermore, the information from the online survey carried out by the researcher may not match up directly with reports from the Wakefield JSNA as participants from a lower-class background within these highly populated areas may view the definition of crime differently to someone who has being brought up in a lower crime rate area. Edwards et al (2010), claims that when someone is surrounded by crime it becomes a normality therefore, participants from higher crime rate areas such as Castleford will not be as shocked to hear about crime compared to someone from a higher-class region of Wakefield who may be more shocked when hearing about criminal activities.

Figure 5.9 shows that 60% of participants involved within the survey believe that those who originate from a lower income background are more likely to commit theft. Furthermore, Figure 5.10 implies this as five participants state that people from a lower-class background have less to lose and will therefore be more willing to commit crimes. These opinions from the online survey correlate with the findings from Clarke and Fenson (1993) who stated that people in lower class areas will see others commit theft before weighing up their own pros and cons before deciding to commit theft. The opinions of the Wakefield public matching with the research found by Clarke and Fenson shows that the researchers findings agree with the hypothesis created from the literature review research. Furthermore, looking at appendices (4) it shows that 8 participants out of the 60% from Figure 5.9 are from lower-class areas which have higher crime rates within those areas. Piquero and Tibbetts research showed that people who are from a lower-class background are more likely to steal from others in a similar situation. This is shown to be correct through the survey as the participants from lower-class backgrounds were more willing to agree with Figure 5.9.

Figure 5.10 shows the reasoning behind why participants believe that those from a lower-class background are more likely to commit theft with one participant stating, If people are in desperate need of certain things, they would do whatever they can to obtain them which may include breaking the law. These comments are backed up by Ariely (2008) who found that people are more willing to commit crime under uncertain times. For example, Covid-19 saw more people fall below the absolute poverty line which furthermore, the Leeds Observatory found that in 2020 over 9.2 million people within the United Kingdome were living below the poverty line due to Covid-19. According to Ariely (2008), this would imply that the crime rates for financial gain would rise as people become more desperate in uncertain times. This is backed up through the results of the online survey as Figure 5.13 shows that 45% of participants believe that crime is committed for financial gain.

The study carried out by the researcher also shows in Figure 5.11 that 95% of participants believe that national holidays increase the amount of theft taking place within their local area. Whilst 95% of the participants do believe that theft rises at Christmas, using Figure 5.12 shows two different opinions on why people commit more theft around Christmas. One participant stated, Over Christmas many people get brand new items that may become appealing to those that dont have that particular item, this means that some of the public believe that theft increases out of greed and envy which implies that those who commit theft do it out of malicious intent rather than desperation which goes against research carried out by Collins and Wheeler (2019) who believes that those who perceive themselves to have a lack of resources may be deprived enough to commit theft in order to maintain a good quality of life. However, another opinion from the online survey correlates with the research found by Collins and Wheeler with one participant stating, people need to commit theft to help provide support for their family, these results imply that people who live below the absolute poverty line may feel like they need to commit theft to ensure that their family are taken care of. Both opinions from the online survey correlate with research carried out by the Centre of Retail research which discovered that over 1 billion a year is lost from local high streets during national holidays. This shows that national holidays have a negative impact upon crime. Furthermore, a study carried out by C+R research also shows that within 2017 over 35% of packages delivered to customers by Amazon were stolen during the Christmas period, this implies that theft rises around the Christmas period as it becomes easier to steal unattended packages from peoples houses. This correlates with Figure 5.12 where a participant states that There is a higher market for gifts which can lead to fraud or even theft. These opinions from the online survey also correlate with information from Gilboa who stated in 2010 that, the increase in theft over the holidays is due to people feeling abandoned by society and therefore feel like they have no other option but to commit theft. Furthermore, Gilboas research also correlates with the overall theme from the online survey created by the researcher which is shown within Figure 5.4 Which shows that 75% percent believes that absolute poverty causes crime including theft. Throughout the online survey participants were asked if they believe that the local services do enough to help people which live below the absolute poverty line. Looking at Figure 5.15 the researcher can see that over 50% of participants involved within the online survey do not believe that the local services within the Wakefield area do enough to support those below the absolute poverty line. The Wakefield council use a range of crime prevention techniques to help reduce theft from occurring within the city centre however, whilst these may help the city centre most participants within the online survey live outside the city therefore, the results of the survey do not match up with the claims from the Wakefield council and the West Yorkshire police who state that crime is reducing within city centres. Participants were also asked what can be done by local services to help support those who live within absolute poverty and reduce crime. Using Figure 5.14 it can be seen that 11 participants said that those in absolute poverty that feel the need to commit theft need more support from the central government whilst, 6 participants believe that the only way to reduce theft within Wakefield is to increase the punishment on those committing theft. This shows that most participants believe that people will resort to committing theft when they live in absolute poverty, but it is not necessarily their fault for committing the crime as the central government and local services should be providing more to help support people in a deprived position.

When analysing the results of the online survey the researcher has found that certain areas within the online survey could be improved in any future projects. The researcher chose to use quantitative data to analyse the findings of the online survey however, whilst quantitative data can be used to gather how many of the participants favoured a specific answer and how many gave a similar quote, the researcher found that a mixed data approach would have been more suitable for this type of research as using a mixed data style would have allowed the survey to show why members of the public believe that absolute poverty can cause crime. To help solve this problem for future projects the researcher must plan out efficiently what results they would like to obtain from the research before looking at which data analysis option to use. To obtain a wider more accurate range of results the researcher could have used different forms of gathering data for example, the online survey created results which could be grouped together however, using a face-to-face interview would have provided more detailed information from the participants. To help obtain the most accurate information in the future the researcher could use a mixed range of data collection methods. Using a range of data collection methods would also help to eliminate any biases within the research. When distributing the online survey the researcher placed the survey upon the social media platform Facebook, whilst this helped give a selection of results, Facebook can be a biased platform as the online survey will have only being shown to a select group of people who may not represent the entirety of the Wakefield population. To help solve this issue the researcher could use multiple platforms of social media to help gather a wider range of results from a larger population. Furthermore, due to time restrictions only 20 participants were able to answer the online survey, when carrying out the data collection the researcher should have given more time to collecting the data to ensure that the results are as accurate as possible. 20 people cannot give an accurate representation of the Wakefield Public therefore, it would be more beneficial to focus on the online survey at the beginning of the research. Some of the participants who answered the online survey were not from the Wakefield district due to the online survey being uploaded to Facebook which allowed people who lived in neighbouring regions to answer the survey creating outliers within the results. To ensure that this does not happen again the researcher must look at alternative methods of data collection or audience selection. For example, the researcher could have used various local social media groups upon social media platforms to get more accurate results or another alternative is for the researcher to aim the main question of this research at a wider audience such as West Yorkshire. When creating the online survey, the researcher should have made the questions more diverse to get a range of answers as Figure 5.4 and 5.9 both relay the same answers which can lead to outliers being formed as participants become confused. To help solve this issue the researcher can give a longer time for creating the questions within the online survey. Furthermore, gathering the results from 20 participants from the Wakefield region and using these results to compare them to the rest of the United Kingdom, outliers are created as a small group of opinions cannot represent the entire country. This is evident within the comparison between the findings and the literature review as Krieken et al (2013) states that over 70% of theft is not reported therefore, the factual findings from previous research will be outstandingly different to the opinions of those who live within the Wakefield region creating a divide between what the publics opinion on this research matter is and what the professionals can gather from their data.

Conclusion and Recommendations

The online survey used by the researcher has answered the main aim of this research Do members of the public in Wakefield and surrounding areas believe that poverty is the causal factor for offenders committing crime. Overall, the online survey reveals that 75% of participants involved within the survey believe that when someone is trapped within absolute poverty, they are more likely to feel deprived of societies basic needs. This feeling of desperation leads people to resort to committing theft or similar crimes in order to keep up to the societal standards. Cesare Beccaria explains that the rational choice theory explains why those in absolute poverty may resort to committing theft as they have less to lose but more to gain (Zey, 1998).The public within Wakefield believe that those who commit theft do it out of desperation instead of malicious intent therefore, the public also believe that these crimes will rise around festive holidays with 95% of participants claiming that festive holidays such as Christmas have a negative affect upon those who live within absolute poverty. These results from the participants show that members of the public in West Yorkshire believe those suffering from poverty are more likely to commit criminal offences. Furthermore, another aim of the research was to find a direct correlation between lesser developed areas and the rise in theft. However, when carrying out research into the literature review the researcher found that the West Yorkshire Police (2019) developed a regional map of Wakefield which showed the highest reported crime areas whilst the Wakefield JSNA (2019) developed a regional map of the most deprived areas. Whilst both these maps correlated with each other to show that deprived areas did in fact have higher reports of crime, the overall theme from these two charts were that crime was decreasing and was occurring all over the Wakefield region rather than only in the areas which are most deprived. Has the rise in both absolute poverty and financial crime risen in the last few years? Has also been answered through the charts created by both the West Yorkshire Police (2019) and the Wakefield JSNA (2019) as these charts prove that the crime within Wakefield is on the decline however, the BBC (2014) found that over 800,000 crimes go unreported by the Police therefore, whilst the reported crime charts are decreasing the publics perception on the rise in crime is increasing. Finally, the researcher set out to answer if the West Yorkshire authorities have put enough policies in place to help combat absolute poverty and theft. This aim was completed through the online survey where participants were asked if they believe that the West Yorkshire authorities do enough to help and what else these authorities can do to ensure that those who live in absolute poverty receive help. Over 50% of participants involved within the survey believe that the services within Wakefield do not do enough to help with a further 55% claiming that assistance is needed for those who feel deprived enough to commit theft. In conclusion the combination of both the online survey and the literature review has allowed the researcher to answer the original aims and objectives of the research.

When completing the research, the researcher has obtained and grown upon both new and existing skills. Time management was found to be an area of improvement throughout this research with the researcher discovering that it is pivotal to have time managing skills when creating a solid structure for the research. However, completing this research has allowed the researcher to build upon their time management skills which can be utilised for future projects. This project has also allowed the researcher to broaden their understandings through looking at multiple perspectives of why people may resort to committing theft and that everyone who resorts to committing these crimes should be punished but instead helped by the local services.

For future recommendations, the researcher believes that the overall time dedicated towards the study needs to be expanded upon to find the long-term effects of people living below the absolute poverty line, having an extended time limit to study the effects of absolute poverty upon theft would also help determine if there are any other causal factors involved within people resorting to committing theft. Furthermore, whilst this study was focused on the public of Wakefield for future research the researcher suggests that the study should focus on a wider scale across the country to give a true accurate result of the link between absolute poverty and crime. Whilst some areas within the Wakefield district are slightly less deprived these statistics do not compare to the vast difference between multiple areas within the country. This research also shows that there is a definite need for more police presence around city centres and deprived areas to help deter people from committing theft, whilst the public of Wakefield also believe that both the local and central governments need to do more to help those that feel the need to commit theft to keep up to the societal standards. Overall, further studies are required to find the larger correlation between absolute poverty and the rise in theft.

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Appendices

Appendices 1:

1) Are you Male or Female? 2) How old are you? 3) What is your level of education?

Male 18-29 A-Levels/BTEC

Male 18-29 A-Levels/BTEC

Female 18-29 GCSE

Male 18-29 Higher Education

Male 18-29 A-Levels/BTEC

Female 18-29 Higher Education

Female 18-29 GCSE

Female 50-69 GCSE

Male 50-69 A-Levels/BTEC

Female 18-29 Degree with honours

Female 50-69 Higher Education

Female 18-29 Degree with honours

Male 18-29 GCSE

Female 30-49 Higher Education

Female 30-49 Higher Education

Female 30-49 GCSE

Male 50-69 GCSE

Female 30-49 Higher Education

Male 30-49 Degree with honours

Male 50-69 Degree with honours

Appendices 2:

4) Do you believe poverty causes crime? 4a) If so, why do you believe this?

Yes People in lower income find other means to survive, turning to illegal activity to generate revenue

Yes If a person doesn't have many things they will do anything include breaking the law to get what they need.

None of the above In some cases it does although crime is also committed by wealthier people too

Yes Poverty can lead to people taking more extreme measures in order to survive as they have less to lose compared to people who are not in poverty

No There is a whole host of reasons for people to fall into crime, it is not always money related

Yes Not all poverty causes crime however a lot does as some may do it to get a home Im prison so they are fed and warm

Yes People find ot hard to get a job and can lead to mental health problems so people commit a crime and go to jail were everything is free

Yes No family money hence turn to crime to fund lifestyle

Yes Rich don't normally commit crime.

Yes Poor = need money Need money = crime Crime = money

No I don't think poverty itself causes crime it's other underlying factors and lifestyles that are contributing.

No I think it can in some cases, but not 100% of the time

Yes Poverty and low levels of income is the mother of crime

Yes Less opportunities in poverty stricken areas to progress out of poverty. So crime is the easier option

Yes A lot of people dont know what help is out there or where to turn too if they do need help, therefore some turn to crime to be able to get by in life

Yes Money

Yes People without want what other people have!. No money to buy it, you steal it!.

None of the above I believe a mixture of poverty and addictions cause crime

Yes Low income/poverty I believe can lead to the want to have what people in better situations have. Jealousy almost .I think their can be a proven causation route between poverty and crime levels.

Yes I believe this because people in poverty may feel like they have no other option than to steal

Appendices 3:

5) On a scale of 1-10 how bad is crime within your area? 6) Why do you believe this? 7) Which region of Wakefield do you live in?

5 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

4 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

4 heard stories of crime within your area Ossett

4 heard stories of crime within your area Other

5 witnessed crime happen but not directly involved Lupset5 heard stories of crime within your area Normanton

8 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

6 heard stories of crime within your area Other

4 heard stories of crime within your area Other

9 your own personal experience Other

4 heard stories of crime within your area Other

6 heard stories of crime within your area Horbury

6 friends personal experience Ossett

6 friends personal experience Horbury

6 heard stories of crime within your area Lupset6 heard stories of crime within your area Other

8 friends personal experience Other

5 heard stories of crime within your area Ossett

5 heard stories of crime within your area Ossett

9 witnessed crime happen but not directly involved LupsetAppendices 4:

8) Do you believe those who are poor are more willing to break the law? 8a) If so, why do you believe this?

No The

Yes If people are in desperate need of certain things they would do whatever they can to obtain what they need and this may include breaking the law.

No Yes Because they have less to lose

No Yes They have nothing to lose

No No Yes But only through necessity.

Yes No Yes Probably have less to lose

Yes No It depends on their own morals, and how they have been nurtured

Yes I dont believe this is all people but a percentage definitely again to provide food etc

Yes Money

Yes Same as question 4.

No Yes Less to lose via the potential consequences of committing crime. To the point of even personal gain re a homeless person receiving a person sentence would be beneficial

Yes They have less to lose and will therefore be more willing to commit crimes

Appendices 5:

9) Do you believe that Christmas and other holidays cause financial crime to rise? 9a) Why do you believe this? 10) What percentage of crimes do you think are related to financial gain (Theft, Burglary, Robbery)?

Yes Theres a higher market for gifts which can lead to fraud or even theft 41-60%

Yes Over Christmas many people get brand new items that may become appealing to those that don't have this particular item 21-40%

Yes Crime in my area always seems to rise in these periods 81-100%

Yes The pressure of buying the "perfect present" when ones financial status cannot accommodate for it can lead to people being more likely to commit financial crime. This increases during the Christmas period as there is a higher level of encouragement to spend a lot of money during the holiday season, especially by corporations 41-60%

Yes Especially around Christmas there are always more opportunities for people to steal things 41-60%

No Because it doesnt change anything 21-40%

Yes Yes because they need to find money support themselves and there family 21-40%

Yes Pay for presents for family. People know houses have got presents in to steal 41-60%

Yes Pressure from media. 61-80%

Yes Modern day pressures 41-60%

Yes Increase in opertunity 81-100%

Yes The higher need for financial security outweighs the risk of being caught 21-40%

Yes Relatively self explanatory. Those who have less money, have even less money in times such as holidays, therefore look to other means to resolve their issues 41-60%

Yes Pressure to provide for family so they are equal to those more fortunate, and to be accepted by society 61-80%

Yes Again maybe when they feel they need to live up to expectations of others, seeing on social media all the presents other children etc have they they have to do the same for theirs maybe crime is the only way they can provide them gifts 61-80%

Yes Pressure to buy things 41-60%

Yes Same as 4. 61-80%

Yes Because criminals see it as a prime opportunity to thieve expensive gifts 61-80%

Yes Financial gain from theft and the like 41-60%

Yes People may become more desperate to get presents or may find it better to steal as there is more to steal 41-60%

Appendices 6:

11) How do you believe we can help change these statistics? 12) How much do the services do to support those in poverty?

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 3

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 4

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 5

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 7

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 3

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 7

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 3

Increase in Police/Security?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 3

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 4

Other 2

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 4

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 3

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 5

Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 5

Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes? 5

Increase in Police/Security?, Increased punishment for those committing the crimes?, Assistance for those who feel forced to commit these crimes?, Support from the Government for those who cannot support themselves financially? 2

Increase in Police/Security? 7

These guidance notes are for Research Methods assessment 2; the evaluative report. Your tutors will go through these guidance notes with you in class, as well as providing you with continuing support throughout the duration of the module. We recommend you also revisit the powerpoint lectures and other teaching resources, all of which are available on UniLearn. You are encouraged to think autonomously and take ownership of your work, therefore use these guidance notes to support your academic thinking and writing, not to restrict it.

What do I need to submit? A written report (2000 words) that explains and evaluates a research method that you have carried out. Your report needs to demonstrate the normal protocols of academic writing; it should be referenced thoroughly and accurately, be logically and coherently structured and written in good English. A reference list should be appended at the end of the report.

What does it mean, a research method that I have carried out? You have already submitted your research proposal. For assessment 2 you need to select and try out one method from the research design that you presented in your proposal (if theres a good reason why you want to trial a different method, talk to your module tutor about it). For example, if your research design includes document analysis, questionnaire and interviews, then you might want to conduct an interview. Alternatively you might want to select a section of one or two documents for analysis. You need to actually conduct a short piece of research, gather the data and analyse the results. Then you need to write about it.

I want to do primary research. How do I get started? Primary research means that youre getting your data from other people, eg through interviews, focus groups or questionnaires. For the purposes of this Research Methods assessment you are expected to conduct the research amongst your classmates in University. This is because youll learn a lot from being involved in other peoples research as well as from conducting your own; eg youll learn about good interview techniques both by conducting an interview AND by being interviewed by someone else. Its important that you work cooperatively with your classmates and volunteer to be interviewed, join focus-groups, fill-in questionnaires, etc. Because your participants are your class-mates it means that for your primary data collection youll probably need to pick a topic thats similar to, but not the same as, your Major Study topic. For example, if your Major Study topic is How do primary school pupils use IT in their learning? and you want to trial focus-groups for your Research Methods assessment, then your focus-groups could be on How do university students use IT in their learning? When you come to do primary research for your Major Study, its likely to involve people outside of the University; so regard this Research Methods assessment as a trial-run before embarking on a bigger piece of research for your Major Study. (Remember, your supervisor must sign your Ethical Approval form before you can conduct primary research for your Major Study).

I want to do document analysis. How do I get started?

Document analysis means that youre getting your data by analysing primary sources, but that you have not collected the data for the primary sources yourself. (Primary is the original source, secondary is a commentary about an original source. Eg, the novel Dracula is a primary source, a published article about Dracula is a secondary source). For example, you may decide to analyse policy documents, reports, or audio-visual sources, etc. What counts as a primary source depends a lot on the context of the research, so discuss your ideas with a module tutor before you get started. Remember; document analysis is not the same as the literature review. The sections discussed in this guidance still apply, but the emphasis of your discussion is likely to be on explaining and justifying the documents selected for analysis and the process of data analysis.

Ok, once Ive chosen between primary data collection and document analysis, what do I write about? Your report should be evaluative, not just descriptive. Convince your reader that you have a good critical understanding of the overall philosophy of research and of research strategies and methods. Dont just describe what its like to do interviews (for example), instead evaluate their advantages and disadvantages, discuss what a researcher needs to be mindful of when conducting interviews, and explain why theyre a suitable method of data collection for your research design. Theres a fuller writing frame further on in these guidance notes.

How does this assessment relate to my Major Study? This assessment is a trial-run for your Major Study research. Youll reflect on how well you conducted your method of data collection and analysed the data so that you can make improvements when you do it for real for your Major Study. The data you present and analyse for your Major Study will be a bit different from the data gathered for this Research Methods assessment. This is because for your Major Study you will have a lot more data gathered from real participants (if youre doing primary research) and because your critical understanding of research design will have moved forwards. Doing a really good job for your Research Methods assessment will help you to do a really excellent job for your Major Study.

What if doing this Research Methods assessment makes me realise I want to change my Major Study topic? Its ok; you may be able change topics if you want to. First, discuss it with your Major Study supervisor. You might decide to stick with the overall topic, but change the focus. If you decide on a whole new topic, this may be approved if it is relevant to your degree and there is a supervisor available. However, be warned, changing your Major Study topic near to the deadline is a bad idea!

OK so far, but what do I actually need to do, exactly?

Re-read the tutor feedback from assessment 1 so you can apply it to this assessment.

Decide which one method of data collection from your proposal you want to focus on for this assessment.

Read up and make notes on that method of data collection. Evaluate its advantages and disadvantages as applicable to your research, and explain why its appropriate for your research design.

Read up and make notes on these topics to improve your critical evaluation of how they apply to your research design: validity, reliability, triangulation, data analysis, sampling and ethics in research.

Do your data collection (eg, interview, questionnaire, document analysis, etc.....)

Type up transcripts of interviews, focus groups, etc... OR collate questionnaires, observation schedules etc...

Analyse the data.

Reflect and make notes on how the whole process went for you; positives, negatives, what would you do differently next time?

Plan your report.

Write you report.

How do I structure my report? Its up to you because its your work. Your research is unique, so the way you decide to structure your report is likely to be different to how other people in your class structure theirs. However, its really important that your report is coherent and logically structured, just like any other piece of academic writing. Below is a skeleton structure to help you organise your ideas, and which you can adapt to fit in with your own research. Some of the topics discussed below will be more, or less, relevant to your particular research.

Start with the working title followed by the research questions. These may be the same as the research proposal, or they may have changed if youve improved them.

Introduce the research design

Very briefly summarise your research design; eg the research takes a qualitative approach using a case-study strategy. This should be brief because youve already presented the research design in assessment 1, the proposal, so you dont want to repeat too much of that information here.

Summarise the methods of data collection identified in the research design; eg systematic observation of four classes, one focus group with eight pupils and one semi-structured interview with the class teacher. Then, introduce the particular method that your report focusses on; eg this report evaluates semi-structured interviews as a method of data collection for my research.

Explain and evaluate the method of data collection thats the focus of your report

Why is it an appropriate method of data collection for your particular research?

What do you need to be mindful of when conducting this type of data collection?

Explain how you carried out the data collection for your Research Methods assessment. For this section youll need to explain briefly what you did, as its likely to be a bit different from what you plan to do for your Major Study; eg:

For the Major Study three primary school teachers will be interviewed; however for the purposes of this Research Methods assessment, a colleague who has children in primary school was interviewed to find out her opinion about school dinners [or whatever topic is related to your research].

For document analysis points to consider include: explain the document/s you are analysing; explain your reasons for selecting this document/s (or section of a document), eg because its pivotal in policy change, because its representative (or atypical) of its type; justify why it counts as a primary source.

Evaluate the process of carrying out the data collection; what worked and what didnt work so well? What improvements would you make if you repeated this method of data collection?

How much data do I need to collect? You need enough data to do something useful with it, but not so much that its overwhelming. Here are some general guidelines; but discuss your ideas with a module tutor if youre uncertain:

Focus-groups, interviews and observation: approximately 30 minutes worth of data in either one or two sets (ie one 30 min interview or two 15 min interviews, etc).

Questionnaire: approximately 12 completed questionnaires.

Document analysis: approximately 24 sides A4, 2-4 pictures or photos, about 30 minutes of audio-visual (eg film).

Presentation, analysis and interpretation of results

You will need to transcribe interviews, focus group notes, etc in order to analyse them. Allow yourself plenty of time to do this it takes longer than you think! Raw data, ie transcripts from interviews and focus-groups, and instruments of data collection, eg your observation schedule or questionnaire, should be included as an appendix (the appendix is not included in the word count). Your marker may request to see completed questionnaires, observations schedules, etc, so keep them somewhere safe and accessible.

Present the results of your data collection clearly and consistently. You might decide to use tables or graphs, or you might choose to write-up results paragraph-style, depending on what method of data collection youve used. If you use tables or graphs remember to label them very clearly.

Explain how you have analysed the data and why this is the best way of doing it for your research; eg inductive or deductive, descriptive, analytic, etc... Explain and illustrate your coding system if youve adopted one. For document analysis your approach might be, for example, thematic, comparative or compositional (compositional applies in particular to pictures or photos). Evaluate the process of data analysis; how did it go for you? Would you make any changes or improvements if you did it again?

Write up your interpretation of your results. Link back to published literature on the topic if you can. Your tutors realise that the interpretation might be a bit thin because you wont have very much data to go on; for this assessment your tutors are more concerned with the process than with your actual results. We want you to demonstrate that you have a good evaluative understanding of how to do research, so you need to demonstrate that you know how to present, analyse and interpret data robustly, (so that youll be able to do it really well in your Major Study).

Explain and evaluate how research ethics apply to your research design

Explain what ethics in research means, who it applies to and why it is important

Reflect on the potential sensitivities of your research topic

Consider ethical concerns raised by your sample and/or method of data collection and how they might they be dealt with? This might include, for example, informed consent, right to withdraw, and inclusion of children or vulnerable adults in your sample. For document analysis consider the source and intended audience of the document being analysed; eg it is expected that journal articles will be used for academic research, but what about personal comments posted on blogs? How will you manage ethics if you want to use comments like these? Likewise photographs of, or that include, people.

Remember not to conflate anonymity and confidentiality.

Explain how validity is implemented in your overall research design. Points to discuss might include:

Sampling; random, purposive, representative.....?

Relevance and authority of participants or documents.

Relationship between research questions instruments of data collection; eg will your interview questions get the data you need to answer your research questions.

Scope for triangulation of data sets.

For document analysis you might also consider the author, intended audience and socio-historic context.

Explain how reliability is implemented in your overall research design

Points to discuss might include: features that might compromise objectivity in data collection - eg interviewer effect, leading interview / questionnaire questions, unintentional bias in observation, etc and how to alleviate them; transparent and systematic data analysis; how representative the sample is; how to expand the data collection to improve reliability if more time and resources were available.

I want to do really well on this assessment, how can I make my work standout? Here are a few tips on how to make your work shine:

Demonstrate a good critical understanding of research as a concept as well as a technical process; this means reading more widely than Bell and Denscombe.

Evaluate how other scholars (eg in published journal articles) have conducted research on the same or similar topic as yours, and consider how far this has influenced your approach to your own research design.

Reflect on your positionality; ie on your own relationship with your topic and how this might affect the way youve planned the research design and analysis. Is the research underpinned by a particular professional ideology or set of values (axiology) that you hold? Eg, is the research motivated by your professional commitment to or interest in social justice, equal rights, environmentalism, feminism, etc.....

Im worried that I might repeat lots of information from assessment 1. There might be a little bit of overlap between assessment 1 and assessment 2, eg the working title and research questions. Theres a lot of new content to write about too, and this should be the main focus of your assessment. Overlaps in some topic areas (eg validity and reliability) are an opportunity for you to expand on these aspects of the research design by showing how they apply to the research method thats the focus of assessment 2.

Ok, I get it now. Im looking forward to getting started!