An examination of the code of the street code and the dark figure of crime among an institutionalized sample

ABSTRACT

There have been a number of studies that have examined the relationship between Anderson’s code of the street and criminogenic behavior. However, little research has been done on the potential relationship between street code adherence and the dark figure of crime. Using a sample of 299 institutionalized individuals the authors examine the relationship between street code adherence and official and unofficial records of assaults and motor vehicle theft. Results official records indicated that street code adherence was not significantly related to either offense type. However, when self-report data for assaults and motor vehicle theft was analyzed, there was strong evidence that street code adherence was a significant predictor. The results suggest that street code adherence is a better predictor of self-report offenses than those measured by official records. Thus, street code adherence may be key to shedding light on the dark figure of crime.

KEYWORDS:

• Code of the street
• dark figure of crime
• violence
• criminological theory

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. For a full list of the question in the street code scale see Stewart, Schreck, and Simons (2006).