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The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) was instituted in 1972 to produce national estimates of the levels and characteristics of criminal victimization in the United States, including crime not reported to police departments. Along with the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program, the NCVS constitutes a key component of our nation's system to measure the extent and nature of crime in the United States.

While the survey’s core methodology has been validated over the past three decades, the viability of the survey and its ability to meet the original goals it was created to address are being threatened by increasing costs. In response to these concerns, BJS sponsored an expert panel study carried out by The National Research Council of the National Academies to review the survey’s methodology and provide guidelines for options for redesigning the NCVS. The panel’s recommendations are contained in: Surveying Victims: Options for Conducting the National Crime Victimization Survey (National Research Council 2008).

The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has initiated several research projects that respond to one or more of the panel's recommendations. Westat, Inc., the grantee for the local area estimation project, has released their report summarizing options relating to local area estimation. An additional solicitation for development and testing of methods for obtaining subnational estimates was initiated in FY2010. Questions and answers are also available from a NCVS redesign session hosted by BJS on April 27, 2010. This session was held to discuss methodological research to support the redesign of the National Crime Victimization Survey: Sub-National Estimates.

Ultimately it is the goal of BJS to redesign the NCVS to improve its methodology, assure its sustainability, increase its value to national and local stakeholders, and better meet the challenges of measuring the extent, characteristics, and consequences of criminal victimization.

Data Collections & Surveys

• National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)

Publications & Products

Criminal Victimization, 2011 Presents 2011 estimates of rates and levels of criminal victimization in the U.S. This bulletin includes violent victimization (rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault) and property victimization (burglary, motor vehicle theft, and property theft).
	Press Release | PDF (1.8M) | ASCII file (46K) | Comma-delimited format (CSV) (Zip format 38K) Part of the Criminal Victimization Series
New Directions for the National Crime Survey This report provides an overview of a project to evaluate and redesign the National Crime Survey (NCS), which is a national survey conducted twice a year to determine the number and nature of criminal victimizations of citizens.
	PDF Part of the Criminal Victimization: National Crime Victimization Survey Series
Redesign of the National Crime Survey This report provides an overview of an extensive project to redesign the National Crime Survey, a nationwide, annual survey of personal and household victimization in the United States.
	PDF Part of the Criminal Victimization: National Crime Victimization Survey Series
Redesigned National Crime Survey: Selected New Data As part of an effort to redesign the National Crime Survey, an annual assessment of personal and household crime victimization, a series of additional questions on offender drug and alcohol use, self-protective measures, police actions, and additional criminal justice system contacts was included.
	PDF Part of the Criminal Victimization: National Crime Victimization Survey Series

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MORE PUBLICATIONS & PRODUCTS

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MORE PUBLICATIONS & PRODUCTS

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Related Links

• Current Research Projects
• NCVS Screening Questions Evaluation: Final Report
• NCVS Task 4 Report: Summary of Options Relating to Local Area Estimation
• NORC Methodological Research to Support the Redesign of the National Crime Victimization Survey
• Questions and Answers from the 4/27/10 NCVS redesign session on sub-national estimates
• Solicitation: FY 2010 Visiting Fellow: National Crime Victimization Survey Redesign
• Solicitation: Methodological Research to Support the Redesign of the National Crime Victimization Survey: Sub-National Estimates
• Surveying Victims: Options for Conducting the National Crime Victimization Survey