The NLSY97 survey questions on crime, delinquency, and arrest can be divided into two areas: questions about active participation and questions about perceptions of personal safety and other antecedents to delinquent behavior. This section focuses on the youth's participation in delinquent and criminal behaviors; other details can be found in Household & Neighborhood Environment. The following information on delinquency, crime, and arrest is collected in the self-administered section of the youth instrument.

Within the criminal justice system, "delinquent" behavior is usually differentiated from "criminal" behavior on the basis of an offender's age. For example, a 12-year-old who has damaged property would likely be charged with a delinquent offense; an older youth might be charged with either a delinquent or criminal offense at the discretion of the judge. Since an offense is only classified as criminal or delinquent if the offender actually appears in court, a different distinction is made for the purposes of this discussion. The descriptions of delinquency in this section include behaviors, such as running away from home, which are unlawful for minors but not necessarily for those ages 18 and older. The discussions of crime and arrest in this section describe the questions on behaviors that are considered criminal activity for adults, even though a respondent who has committed one of these offenses may have actually been charged as a juvenile rather than an adult.

Delinquency

The first set of delinquency questions addresses the respondent's history of running away from home and staying away at least overnight. Data include the age when this first occurred, the total number of times the respondent has ever run away, and the total number of times he or she has run away since the date of last interview. After round 1, youths who were age 17 or older at the date of last interview or who were not living with any parents were skipped past the runaway questions. Questions about running away from home were discontinued after round 6.

In rounds 1 through 9, respondents answer a series of questions on whether they have ever carried a handgun, defined as any firearm other than a rifle or a shotgun, and if they have carried one since the last interview (starting in round 2). The series continues by asking their age the first time they did so, the number of days out of the past 30 that they carried the gun, and whether they carried the gun to school during this period.

In a separate set of questions, respondents are surveyed on their involvement in gang activity. Those who belonged to a gang are asked to state the age when they joined the gang and their membership status in the previous 12 months (round 1) or since the date of the last interview (rounds 2-9). Those who did not belong to a gang during that time period state their age when they last belonged to a gang. Respondent gang activity questions were last asked in round 9, although respondents have been asked through the current round about the presence of gangs in their neighborhood or school. Additional information on gang activity in the respondent's extended family, school, and neighborhood is found in Household & Neighborhood Environment.

Crime

The survey asks about participation in and the intensity of various criminal activities in the previous year (round 1) or since the date of last interview (subsequent rounds). The types of criminal activities included are:

• Purposely damaged or destroyed property not belonging to the respondent
• Stole something worth less than $50
• Stole something worth $50 or more (including a car)
• Other property crimes, including fencing stolen property, possessing or receiving stolen property, or selling something for more than it was worth
• Attacked or assaulted someone
• Sold or helped to sell marijuana, hashish, or other hard drugs

Youths who stole something state whether they stole from a store, snatched someone's purse/wallet or picked someone's pocket, went into a locked building to steal something, or used a weapon during the act. Additionally, respondents who report stealing something worth $50 or more are asked if they stole a car.

In round 1, follow-up questions about a particular activity (except stealing something worth less than $50) determined the respondent's age the first time and the number of times he or she participated in the past 12 months. Respondents who reported no involvement during the previous 12 months were asked to state their age when they last participated in that criminal activity. If the respondent committed other property crimes, sold or helped to sell drugs, or stole something worth $50 or more, he or she was asked about any monetary rewards in 1996--the total cash received or the total cash he or she would have received--from selling these items. Respondents who reported having sold or helped to sell drugs stated whether they were involved in selling marijuana or hashish, other hard drugs, or both, as well as the amount of income received from these sales.

Reference periods and question details shifted in round 2. Subsequent rounds followed the same pattern as round 2. In these surveys, respondents were questioned about the number of times they participated in each activity since the date of last interview. However, respondents who answered "don't know" or "refused" in round 1 were again asked about criminal activities in which they had ever participated. Those who stole something (worth more or less than $50) or participated in the other property crimes listed above were asked for the amount of any monetary rewards in the previous calendar year--the total cash received or the total cash he or she would have received--from selling these items. Respondents who reported selling or helping to sell drugs distinguished whether they were involved in selling marijuana or hashish, other hard drugs, or both, and listed the amount of income received from these activities. Subsequent rounds followed the same pattern as round 2.

Beginning in round 8, the universe for the crime section was restricted. The crime questions were asked only of respondents who had ever reported being arrested and also a control group of approximately 10% of the respondents for comparison.

Arrests, incarceration, and post-incarceration

NLSY97 youth respondents are asked whether they have ever been arrested by the police or taken into custody for an illegal or delinquent offense (not including arrests for minor traffic violations) and the total number of times this has happened. Round 1 then collected information on the number of arrests before the respondent's 12th birthday and the respondent's age at the first arrest. Further data were gathered on the respondent's most recent and first arrests. (If the respondent reported only one arrest, this information was collected as the respondent's most recent arrest; the first arrest data fields contain missing values.)

Rounds 2 through the current round gathered the number of arrests since the last interview, including the month and year of the first arrest if it occurred during that time. Note: for rounds 2-4, the design of the arrest loop collected information only on arrests since the date of last interview. If a respondent had just been arrested but had not yet been charged/convicted/sentenced prior to the interview, there was no effort during these rounds to collect this information in the next interview. Beginning in round 5, questions were asked about pending outcomes of arrests from the prior round in order to determine their final outcome regarding any charges, convictions, and sentences.

For the first and most recent arrests (round 1) or a continuous loop of all arrests (subsequent rounds), the respondent provides the month and year of the arrest and states whether the police charged him or her with an offense. A series of questions then determines the type of offenses with which the respondent was charged; he or she could enumerate multiple charges. The list of possible arrest charges includes assault, burglary, destruction of property, possession or use of illicit drugs, sale or trafficking of illicit drugs, a major traffic offense, and a public order offense.

For each offense with which they have been charged, respondents report whether they were convicted for or pled guilty to that offense. A follow-up question distinguishes whether the respondent went to juvenile court, adult court, both, or neither as a result of the charges. Respondents then describe the sentence.

If the respondent did not go to court, was not convicted of, and did not plead guilty to any charges, he or she states the arrest outcome: no further action, pre-court diversion program/counseling, appearance before a judge with no further action, or other.

For those sentenced to jail, an adult corrections institution, a juvenile corrections institution, or a reform/training school, the surveys record the month and year they began their sentence and the month and year their sentence ended (if appropriate). Similar questions ask about the month and year community service or probation began and ended. Questions were also asked in 2002 and in 2007-2009 about any member of R's household being in jail or prison.

Starting in round 12, respondents answered a more detailed series of questions about incarceration, including both current and past incarceration. They were asked about the number of visits, phone calls, and amount of mail they received while incarcerated and how far the institution was from their home. Respondents also provided information about losing a job or child custody because of incarceration. Several questions were asked about any rehabilitation services respondents received while incarcerated, such as re-entry preparations, substance abuse treatment, mental health treatment, medical attention, employment training, GED or other schooling, and religious services or ministry.

Respondents also provided information (starting in round 12) about post-incarceration activity, including where the respondent spent his/her first night following release, any problems finding a place to live, how hard or easy it has been to stay out of prison or not to commit crimes, and the respondent's estimate of the likelihood of being re-incarcerated within the next five years. In addition, information was gathered on parole restrictions, including where the parolee could live and travel, hours away from home, and with whom the parolee could associate.

Design effects for ever-arrested variables

As discussed in the Sample Weights and Design Effects section, the initial clustering of the sample can increase standard errors relative to a simple random sample. Table 1 gives design effects for the "HAS R BEEN ARRESTED?" variable from three select years. The table shows that the design effect is largest for Round 1 (when the clustering of the sample was greatest), but substantially smaller in later years.

Other topics related to crime

A description of the questions on the attitudes of the respondent toward justice is found in Attitudes; the use of drugs by the respondent is described in Drug Use; and descriptions of survey questions on the safety of the respondent's household environment are found in Household & Neighborhood Environment.