Descriptive and Explanatory Research

Descriptiveand Explanatory Research

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Descriptiveand Explanatory Research

Descriptiveand explanatory researches are commonly used in conducting studiesthat require deep analysis. Specifically, these types of research arecommonly used in criminology research. According to Dantzker&amp Hunter (2006),criminology research is quite important because it expounds on theskills applied in solving crimes. It also focuses on the decisions ofthe criminal justice system in regards to the crimes committed bycertain individuals within the society. Firstly, the main use ofdescriptive research is to statistically describe characteristics ofa given population or subject on study (Dantzker&amp Hunter, 2006). Althoughdescriptive research does not answer questions such as when and howit addresses the `what` question. For example, this research candescribe the characteristic of crime rate at West Palm Beach.Secondly, explanatory research deals with explaining the phenomenonstudied or giving reasons for certain occurrences in the society. Theuse of both descriptive and explanatory research to research aboutcrime rates in West Palm Beach has helped in gathering adequateinformation about criminal activities, their causes, and possiblesolutions.

CrimeData at Keiser University

Formany years now, there has been a high level of crime rate in WestPalm Beach, Florida. As a result, researchers have conducted studiesin a bid to find solutions to the problem. In regards to thedescriptive research, it is evident that the crimes that occurred inWest Palm Beach annually are 934 violent crimes and 5,155 propertycrimes, making a total of 6089 (Neighborhood Scout, 2015).Additionally, another descriptive research is that Palm Beach, whichis near Keiser University, 57.02 crimes occur with every 1000residents. Moreover, for the violent crimes at West Palm Beach, theregion recorded 22 murder crimes, 50 cases of rape, and 278 crimes ofrobbery, amounting to a total of 584 violent crimes in a populationof 106779 residents. On the other hand, researchers have alsoconducted explanatory research in West Palm Beach. According to thisresearch, West Palm Beach is safer than 4% of the cities in theUnited States (Neighborhood Scout, 2015). In addition, there has beena 5% increase in the number of crimes per year in the region.

Inmost cases, most of the crimes at Keiser University are reported tothe local authorities. Moreover, students and others faculties reportthese crimes to the federal government UCR, since it is a residentialuniversity. Based on these reports, it is evident that 75% of casesreported at the university are those of violence, rape, and robbery.Moreover, a large number of about 40% of criminals at West Palm Beachare from Keiser University (Neighborhood Scout, 2015). This showsthat the university`s management has a responsibility to curb thesecrimes.

Conclusion

Conclusively,the use of both descriptive and explanatory research has helped inobtaining adequate and detailed information about the crime rate inWest Palm Beach. Based on this it is evident that the governmentshould work towards minimizing these crimes by implementing effectivemeasures.

References

Dantzker,M. L., &amp Hunter, R. D. (2006).&nbspResearchmethods for criminology and criminal justice: A primer.New York, NY: Jones &amp Bartlett Learning.

NeighborhoodScout. (2015). Crime rates for West Palm Beach, FL.Retrieved fromhttps://www.neighborhoodscout.com/fl/west-palm-beach/crime/

Descriptiveand Explanatory Research

Researchin criminology plays a huge role in ensuring creation and developmentof skills and approaches in handling misconduct in society. In thiscase, different types of study designs have regularly been involvedin this discipline including descriptive and explanatory forms ofresearch. Descriptive research includes the explanation of data andfeatures about a population or aspect of study (Dantzker &ampHunter, 2006). The category of the investigation is also referred toas the statistical study, which answers questions, such as who,where, and when. Most importantly, it cannot be used in depicting acausal relationship. On the other hand, explanatory research requiresone to find out the possible reasons for a social occurrence. In thiscase, it is important to create hypotheses before data collection(Dantzker &amp Hunter, 2006). Both types of study play a huge rolein expanding knowledge about crime rates, their causes, and findingsolutions with the aim of reducing misconducts.

WestPalm Beach, Florida, has recorded various types of criminalactivities over the years. On top of that, the issues have promptedresearch to be carried out with the aim of finding solutions.Consequently, both descriptive and explanatory forms of study havebeen applied. The two kinds of examination have led to a conclusionthat the city is affected by four categories of crime includingmurder, manslaughter, rape, and robbery. Descriptive research hasbeen applied in the area to explain that crimes in West Palm Beachare approximately 6,089 and that the city has been ranked as the 4thone in the crime index. The other example of descriptive research isthat the area records a rate of robbery practices at 1.02% for every1,000 people (Jacobson, 2014).

Onanother note, explanatory research has been carried out in West PalmBeach to show that there was a general drop in crime rates in theyear 2013. The decline was attributed to the statewide trend ofdecreasing crime levels. As part of the explanatory research, it wasstated that the reported violent and nonviolent misconducts in thecity fell in 2013 with an overall drop of 3% (Jacobson, 2014). Thesame was attributed to increasing security improvement activitiesaround the city and easy coordination of agencies.

Allin all, both descriptive and explanatory types of research have beenused to determine and describe crime rates in West Palm Beach,Florida. The types of study can be applied in providingrecommendations for resolving the issues of insecurity in the area.In fact, the explanatory approach can give causes of increasing ordecreasing rates of crimes.

References

Dantzker,M. L., &amp Hunter, R. D. (2006).&nbspResearchmethods for criminology and criminal justice: A primer.New York, NY: Jones &amp Bartlett Learning.

Jacobson,K. (2014). Palm Beach County reports drop in overall crime rate.Retrieved fromhttp://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2014-04-23/news/fl-south-florida-crime-figures-palm-20140423_1_crime-rate-uniform-crime-report-palm-beach-county-sheriff

Descriptive and Explanatory Research

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