A summary of the findings from the 1981 National Crime Survey accompanies a discussion of the changes in the estimates of the 1980 data based on the use of the actual population figures from the 1980 census.
The re-estimation of the 1980 data did not significantly affect the comparability of victimization rates between that year and 1973-1979. However, the revised 1980 levels of victimization are not comparable with those previously published. This difference results from the fact that the actual population in 1980 was higher than the previously estimated population. For several offenses, particularly the less serious offenses, both the victimization levels and the rates were higher in 1981 than in 1980. For all crimes surveyed, 41.5 million victimizations took place in 1981, 3 percent more than in 1980. Victims said that they reported 35.5 percent of the crimes to the police during 1981, compared to 32.8 percent in 1979. Population estimates based on 1970 census data understated the 1980 population age 12 1970 census data understated the 1980 population age 12 and over by about 2.2 percent. Data tables and footnotes.