A Police Department Is Trying to Allocate Crime Control Resources

question 21

Multiple Choice

A police department is trying to allocate crime control resources between murder and burglary.Detectives cost $40,000 each.Suppose that she marginal benefit of one less murder is $20,000 while the marginal benefit of one less burglary is $1,000.The number of murders and burglaries that occur at different levels of detective allocation is shown in the table. $\begin{array}{ccc}\begin{array}{c}\text { Number of } \\ \underline {\text { Detectives Assigned }}\end{array} & \begin{array}{c}\text { Number of } \\ \underline {\text { Murders }}\end{array} & \begin{array}{c}\text { Number of } \\ \underline {\text { Burglaries }}\end{array} \\0 & 20 & 100 \\1 & 16 & 60 \\2 & 13 & 30 \\3 & 11 & 10 \\4 & 10 & 0\end{array}$
Suppose the police department has $160,000 to spend on detectives.The allocation of detectives which results in the greatest social benefit is to assign

• A) all four detectives to murder prevention.
• B) two detectives to murder prevention and two to burglary.
• C) three detectives to murder prevention and one to burglary.
• D) one detective to murder prevention and three to burglary.

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Definitions:

Naive Trust

entails a form of unquestioning trust or confidence in people or situations without sufficient skepticism or evidence.

Control Theory

suggests that social and personal relationships and commitments help individuals resist engaging in deviant or criminal behavior.

Deviance

refers to actions or behaviors that violate social norms, values, or laws, which can vary across different cultures and settings.

Positivists

Advocates of positivism, a philosophical theory that emphasizes the importance of empirical evidence and scientific methods for knowledge.