Reported crime data can be very beneficial to all types of research, but as the name implies, this data is only the crimes that have been reported to the authorities.  “Because members of racial and ethnic minority groups often distrust law enforcement agencies, they may not contact the police.”  One of the ways sociologists can improve on this data is to have victimization surveys.  These surveys are important because it shows more accurately how specific types of crimes have increased or decreased over the years.  Because crimes are clumped together in the reported crime data, with a victimization survey it can show truly how many people fell victim to a particular crime and which crimes are actually being a larger threat.  “Thus, a significant decrease in the number of rapes and robberies could be overshadowed by a slightly larger increase in the number of automobiles stolen, leading to the mistaken impression that personal safety is more at risk than before.”  One thing to point out though is that particular crimes that are personally committed, such as “fraud, income tax evasion” and others are not reported in a victimization survey, so it is impossible to know the exact number of crimes happening.

          Two of the theories discussed in Module 24 were Cultural Transmission and Social Disorganization Theory.  Applying each to the problem of professional crime can help understand and possibly stop it.  Cultural transmission says that criminal behavior is learned by interacting with others who constantly break rules.  These actions are seen over and over again until they are imitated, and then passed on to others, and the chain continues.  Social disorganization theory says that as neighborhoods relationships break down, crime and deviance are able to build.  These deviant acts will only continue to split a neighborhood farther apart.  In my opinion, cultural transmission makes more sense, seeing others commit crimes and get away with them would like cause others to commit crimes too.