Crime, Delinquency & Arrest Records

Important Information About Using Crime Data:

Incarceration dates must be inferred because they are not asked directly and can be detected by carefully examining the household interview variables from each interview.  If a respondent is in jail or in prison at the time of interview, that information is recorded (see the 'Type of Residence' variables discussion in the "Household Composition" section of this guide). 

Data collected: Activities during the previous twelve month period (see Table 1 and Table 2) such as:

Delinquency scales: Adapted from previously used self-report delinquency scales, this instrument was modified for the 1980 NLSY79 survey to accommodate the confidentiality issues raised by in-home administration.  In addition, it used an expanded response scale to differentiate very highly delinquent youth from occasional participants.  A second set of questions in the 1980 survey measured involvement with the criminal justice system by tallying the number of police contacts and recording the resulting criminal convictions, and sentences (probation, incarceration) received.

Table 1. Number of Respondents Reporting Participation within the Past Year
in Illegal Activities by Sex and Race or Ethnicity, 1980 (Unweighted)

Activity Total Male Female Hispanic Black Non-Black
Non-Hispanic
Respondents Aged 17 & Under1
Runaway 374 180 194 69 71 234
Truant 1845 980 865 395 368 1082
Drinking 2353 1273 1080 373 451 1529
All Respondents
Vandalism 2131 1588 543 313 468 1350
Fighting 3315 2390 925 531 1020 1764
Shoplifting 3040 1716 1324 514 721 1805
Petty Theft 2237 1498 739 297 444 1496
Grand Theft 658 541 117 103 178 377
Robbery 602 466 136 57 222 323
Assault 4395 2812 1583 556 1152 2687
Aggravated Assault 1245 880 365 155 389 701
Marijuana Use 5493 2946 2547 745 1184 3564
Hard Drug Use 2276 1251 1025 272 303 1701
Sold Marijuana 1266 880 386 154 236 876
Sold Hard Drugs 294 208 86 34 57 203
Fraud 2581 1499 1082 335 792 1454
Auto Theft 922 623 299 152 210 560
Breaking/Entering 706 609 97 96 127 483
Fencing 1343 1031 312 221 293 829
Gambling 281 233 48 48 85 148
1 Age calculated as of date of interview.

Table 2 Number of Respondents Reporting Contact with the Police and/or Criminal Justice System by Sex, Race/Ethnicity & 1979 Family Poverty Status: 1980 NLSY79 (Unweighted)

Sex Race/Ethnicity Poverty Status in 1979
Type of Contact Total Male Female Hispanic Black Non-Black
Non-Hispanic		 Status NA1 Not in Poverty In Poverty
Stopped by Police 2248 1734 514 365 517 1366 145 1610 493
Booked or Charged 1325 1056 269 207 269 849 93 913 319
As an Adult 981 812 169 136 202 643 87 686 208
Convicted 753 612 141 111 134 508 57 505 191
Assault 90 77 13 11 25 54 7 62 21
Robbery 49 46 3 8 21 20 5 26 18
Theft 237 180 57 38 42 157 20 147 70
Fraud/Forgery 17 11 6 1 3 13 1 11 5
Fencing 17 15 2 1 6 10 3 8 6
Property Destruction 62 56 6 5 8 49 7 45 10
Other Property Offense 90 83 7 7 15 68 6 51 33
Gambling 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0
Vice 2 0 2 0 1 1 1 1 0
Drug Offense 106 90 16 7 12 87 9 82 15
Major Traffic Offense 118 104 14 24 8 86 6 91 21
Alcohol Consumption (Minor) 54 41 13 9 2 43 2 41 11
Sentenced Correctional Institution 313 257 56 47 73 193 35 167 111
Youth Correctional 183 139 44 27 41 115 22 83 78
Adult Correctional 157 144 13 24 46 87 17 98 42
1 This refers to individuals for whom the income variable is missing.

Related variables collected during this and other survey years include:

Comparison to Other NLS Cohorts

Beginning in 1988 two sets of questions were asked of NLSY79 children dealing with (1) the extent of each child's self-reported participation during the past year in various illegal activities such as vandalism, shoplifting, and assault and (2) the extent of use and age of first use of cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, and drugs.  Starting in 1994 young adults were also asked a series of questions closely resembling those in the 1980 main NLSY79.

The NLSY97 survey asks about participation in and the intensity of various criminal activities in the previous year (round 1).  In subsequent rounds respondents were questioned about the number of times they participated in criminal activity since the date of last interview.

NLSY97 data collected each year include charges, court decisions, and sentencing including dates of incarceration since the last interview. 

The 1968 survey of schools attended by Young Men and Young Women respondents included two questions on whether school records indicated that the respondent had been committed to or was on probation from a correctional institution.  Also as part of the 1968 school survey, school records were examined for an indication that the respondent had ever been expelled or suspended from school.  For more details, consult the BLS website at www.bls.gov/nls or the appropriate cohort's User's Guide.

Survey Instruments and Documentation:

Section 15 (of the 1980 questionnaire) on "Delinquency and Drugs," Section 16 on "Reported Police Contacts," and the accompanying confidential Form J contain the delinquency and police contact questions.

Areas of Interest:

The 71 variables collected during 1980 are found in the "Illegal" area of interest in the main NLSY79 data set.
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