Assessing the Anomalous Research on Hispanic Victimization

Abstract

This article provides an overview and critique of the research on Hispanic victimization. Analyses of data gathered prior to the mid- to late 1990s consistently show Hispanics were victimized at disproportionately high rates, but numerous recent studies indicate Hispanics were not victimized at disproportionately high rates. Given that research has consistently shown victimization rates are highest among the poor and that Hispanics are a disproportionately impoverished demographic, the findings that Hispanics were not victimized at disproportionately high rates are enigmatic. It is suggested that social changes in the United States—specifically, the increase in the portion of the Hispanic population composed of immigrants and the development of Latin American enclaves—have reduced the efficacy of conventional methodological tactics and that the recent findings on Hispanic victimization were affected by the inadequate representation of disadvantaged Hispanics (especially immigrants and migrants) in survey studies and the reluctance of Hispanic immigrants to report crimes to the police. Finally, it is argued that the practice of conducting analyses of ethnic variation in victimization wherein all non-Hispanics (Asians, Blacks, Native Americans, and Whites) are amalgamated into a single category and compared with Hispanics has generated misleading results.