U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs

Revised September 29, 2015

Bureau of Justice Statistics

Jennifer L. Truman, Ph.D., and Lynn Langton, Ph.D., BJS Statisticians

I

n 2014, U.S. residents age 12 or older experienced
an estimated 5.4 million violent victimizations
and 15.3 million property victimizations,
according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ (BJS)
National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS).
There was no significant change in the overall rate
of violent crime, defined as rape or sexual assault,
robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault, from
2013 (23.2 victimizations per 1,000 persons age 12 or
older) to 2014 (20.1 per 1,000) (figure 1). However,
the rate of violent crime in 2014 was lower than the
rate in 2012 (26.1 per 1,000). From 1993 to 2014, the
rate of violent crime declined from 79.8 to 20.1 per
1,000.
The overall property crime rate (which includes
household burglary, theft, and motor vehicle theft)
decreased from 131.4 victimizations per 1,000
households in 2013 to 118.1 victimizations per
1,000 in 2014. The decline in theft accounted for the
majority of the decrease in property crime. Since
1993, the rate of property crime declined from
351.8 to 118.1 victimizations per 1,000 households.

Figure 1
Violent and property victimization, 1993–2014
Violent crime rate
per 1,000 persons age 12 or older
100

Property crime rate
per 1,000 households
400

75

Bul l etin

Criminal Victimization, 2014

August 2015, NCJ 248973

300

50

Property victimization

25

200

100
Violent victimization

0

'93 '94 '95 '96 '97 '98 '99 '00 '01 '02 '03 '04 '05'06*'07 '08 '09 '10 '11 '12 13 '14

0

Note: See appendix table 1 for estimates and standard errors.
*See Criminal Victimization, 2007 (NCJ 224390, BJS web, December 2008)
for information on changes in the 2006 NCVS.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey,
1993–2014.

HIGHLIGHTS
Violent crime

Property crime

„„ No significant change occurred in the rate of violent

„„ The rate of property crime decreased from

crime from 2013 (23.2 victimizations per 1,000) to
2014 (20.1 per 1,000).
„„ From 2013 to 2014, no statistically significant

change was detected in the rate of serious violence,
domestic violence, intimate partner violence,
violence resulting in an injury, and violence
involving a firearm.
„„ No significant change was found in the percentage

of violent crime reported to police from 2013 to
2014 (46%).
„„ About 12% of victims of serious violence and

28% of intimate partner violence victims received
assistance from a victim service agency.
„„ No change was observed in the percentage of

violent crime victims who received assistance from
a victim service agency from 2013 to 2014.

131.4 victimizations per 1,000 households in
2013 to 118.1 per 1,000 in 2014.

Prevalence of crime
„„ In 2014, 1.1% of all persons age 12 or older

(3 million persons) experienced at least one violent
victimization.
„„ An estimated 0.5% (1.2 million persons)

experienced at least one serious violent
victimization in 2014.
„„ In 2014, 8% of all households (10.4 million

households) experienced one or more
property victimizations.
„„ The prevalence rate of property victimization

declined from 9% of all households in 2013 to
8% in 2014.
Celebrating
35 years

 to 2014 (7.7 per 1,000) (table 1). The rate of simple assault
declined from 15.8 victimizations per 1,000 persons in 2013 to
12.4 per 1,000 in 2014. Rates of total violent crime (down 29%)
and simple assault (down 35%) were lower in 2014 than rates
observed a decade earlier in 2005.

No change was observed in the rate of serious violent
crime from 2013 to 2014
There was no statistically significant change in the rate of
serious violent crime—defined as rape or sexual assault,
robbery, and aggravated assault—from 2013 (7.3 per 1,000)

Table 1
Violent victimization, by type of violent crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of violent crime
Violent crimeb
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault
Domestic violencec
Intimate partner violenced
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury
Serious violent crimee
Serious domestic violencec
Serious intimate partner violenced
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury

2005
6,947,800 †
207,760
769,150
5,970,890 †
1,281,490
4,689,400 †

Number
2013
6,126,420
300,170
645,650
5,180,610
994,220
4,186,390 †

2014a
5,359,570
284,350
664,210
4,411,010
1,092,090
3,318,920

Rate per 1,000 persons age 12 or older
2005
2013
2014a
28.4 †
23.2
20.1
0.8
1.1
1.1
3.1
2.4
2.5
24.4 †
19.6 ‡
16.5
5.2 ‡
3.8
4.1
19.2 †
15.8 †
12.4

1,242,290
816,010
2,829,600 †
1,759,210 ‡

1,116,090
748,800
2,098,170
1,603,960

1,109,880
634,610
2,166,130
1,375,950

5.1 †
3.3 ‡
11.6 †
7.2 †

4.2
2.8
7.9
6.1

4.2
2.4
8.1
5.2

2,258,400
425,270
311,480
1,096,480
1,659,030
824,800

1,940,030
464,730
360,820
737,940
1,174,370
739,210

2,040,650
400,030
265,890
930,690
1,306,900
692,470

9.2
1.7
1.3
4.5
6.8 †
3.4

7.3
1.8
1.4
2.8
4.4
2.8

7.7
1.5
1.0
3.5
4.9
2.6

Note: Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. Total population age 12 or older was 244,505,300 in 2005; 264,411,700 in 2013; and 266,665,160 in 2014. See appendix
table 2 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aComparison year.
bExcludes homicide because the NCVS is based on interviews with victims and therefore cannot measure murder.
cIncludes victimization committed by intimate partners and family members.
dIncludes victimization committed by current or former spouses, boyfriends, or girlfriends.
eIn the NCVS, serious violent crime includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS)
The NCVS collects information on nonfatal crimes reported and
not reported to police against persons age 12 or older from
a nationally representative sample of U.S. households. Initial
NCVS interviews are conducted in person with subsequent
interviews conducted either in person or by phone. In 2014,
the response rate was 84% for households and 87% for eligible
persons. The NCVS produces national rates and levels of violent
and property victimization, information on the characteristics
of crimes and victims, and the consequences of victimization.
Since NCVS is based on interviews with victims, it cannot
measure homicide.
The NCVS measures the violent crimes of rape or sexual assault,
robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault. The NCVS
classifies rape, sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault
as serious violent crimes. Property crimes include household
burglary, motor vehicle theft, and theft. The survey also
measures personal larceny, which includes pickpocketing and
purse snatching. For additional estimates not included in this

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

report, see the NCVS Victimization Analysis Tool (NVAT) on the
BJS website.
Victimization is the basic unit of analysis used throughout most
of this report. A victimization is a crime as it affects one person
or household. For personal crimes, the number of victimizations
is equal to the number of victims present during a criminal
incident. The number of victimizations may be greater than the
number of incidents because more than one person may be
victimized during an incident. Each crime against a household is
counted as having a single victim—the affected household.
The victimization rate is a measure of the occurrence of
victimizations among a specified population group. For
personal crimes, the victimization rate is based on the number
of victimizations per 1,000 residents age 12 or older. For
household crimes, the victimization rate is calculated using
the number of incidents per 1,000 households. Estimates are
presented for 2014, 2013, and 2005—the 10-year change.

2

 The rate of intimate partner violence remained stable
from 2013 to 2014

No change occurred in firearm violence from 2013 to 2014
No measurable change was detected in the rate of nonfatal
firearm violence from 2013 (1.3 per 1,000) to 2014 (1.7 per
1,000) (table 2). An estimated 466,110 nonfatal firearm
victimizations occurred in 2014, compared to 332,950 in 2013.
The rate of firearm violence in 2014 was similar to the rate in
2005 (2.1 per 1,000). In 2014, about 82% of all serious violent
crimes that involved a firearm were reported to police. No
measurable change was detected in the percentage of firearm
violence reported to police from 2013 to 2014.

The rate of domestic violence, which includes crime committed
by intimate partners and family members, remained stable
from 2013 to 2014 (4.2 per 1,000). No measurable change was
detected from 2013 to 2014 in the rate of intimate partner
violence (2.4 per 1,000), which includes victimizations
committed by current or former spouses, boyfriends, or
girlfriends.
From 2013 to 2014, no statistically significant change was
observed in the rate of violent victimizations committed
by a stranger (8.1 per 1,000). However, the rate of violence
committed by a stranger in 2014 was 30% lower than the
rate 10 years earlier in 2005 (11.6 per 1,000). No statistically
significant difference was found in rates of serious violent
crime involving weapons (4.9 per 1,000) or resulting in
physical injury to the victim (2.6 per 1,000) from 2013 to
2014. Like violent victimizations committed by a stranger, the
rate of serious violent crime involving weapons in 2014 was
28% lower than the rate in 2005 (6.8 per 1,000).

Property crime declined from 2013 to 2014
Following the decline from 2012 to 2013, the number and
rate of property crime victimization decreased again from
2013 (131.4 victimizations per 1,000 households) to 2014
(118.1 per 1,000) (table 3). This recent decline was driven
primarily by a decrease in theft. The rate of theft declined from
100.5 victimizations per 1,000 households in 2013 to 90.8 per
1,000 in 2014. The rate of household burglary decreased
slightly, from 25.7 victimizations per 1,000 households in 2013
to 23.1 per 1,000 in 2014. During the same period, the rate of
motor vehicle theft declined from 5.2 to 4.1 victimizations per
1,000. In 2014, rates of property crime, burglary, theft, and
motor vehicle theft were lower than rates in 2005.

Table 2
Firearm victimizations, 2005–2014
2005
446,370
503,530

Firearm incidents
Firearm victimizations

2006
552,040
614,410

Rate of firearm victimizationsb

2.1

2.5 ‡

Percent of firearm victimizations reported to police

72.3%

71.0%

2007
448,410
554,780

2008
331,620
371,290

2.2

1.5

52.9% †

70.8%

2009
383,390
410,110
1.6
61.5% †

2010
378,800
415,000

2011
2012
415,160 427,700
467,930 460,720

1.6

1.8

50.9%†

73.5%

2014a
414,700
466,110

2013
290,620
332,950

1.8
66.4% †

1.3

1.7

75.3%

81.9%

Note: Includes violent incidents and victimizations in which the offender had, showed, or used a firearm. See appendix table 3 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aComparison year.
bPer 1,000 persons age 12 or older.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005–2014.

Table 3
Property victimization, by type of property crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Total
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

2005
18,673,360 †
3,584,850 †
1,003,150 †
14,085,360 †

Number
2013
16,774,090 †
3,286,210
661,250 †
12,826,620 †

2014*
15,288,470
2,993,480
534,370
11,760,620

2005
159.5 †
30.6 †
8.6 †
120.3 †

Rate per 1,000 households
2013
131.4 †
25.7 ‡
5.2 †
100.5 †

2014*
118.1
23.1
4.1
90.8

Note: Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. Total number of households was 117,099,820 in 2005; 127,622,320 in 2013; and 129,492,740 in 2014. See appendix table 4
for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
*Comparison year.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

3

 Revised September 29, 2015
Prevalence of crime
Annual estimates of a population’s risk for criminal
victimization can be examined using victimization rates or
prevalence rates. Historically, Bureau of Justice Statistics
(BJS) reports using National Crime Victimization Survey
(NCVS) data have relied on victimization rates, which
measure the extent to which victimizations occur in a
specified population during a specific time. Victimization
rates are used throughout this bulletin. For crimes affecting
persons, NCVS victimization rates are estimated by dividing
the number of victimizations that occur during a specified
time (T) by the population at risk for those victimizations
and multiplying the rate by 1,000.
 Number of victimizations experienced
by a specified population T
x 1,000
Victimization rate T =
Number of persons in the specified
populationT

Prevalence rates also describe the level of victimization
but are based on the number of unique persons (or
households) in the population who experienced at
least one victimization during a specified time. The key
distinction between a victimization rate and a prevalence
rate is whether the numerator consists of the number
of victimizations or the number of victims. For example,
a person who experienced two robberies on separate
occasions within the past year would be counted twice in
the victimization rate but counted once in the prevalence
rate. Prevalence rates are estimated by dividing the number
of victims in the specified population by the total number of
persons in the population and multiplying the rate by 100.
This is the percentage of the population victimized at least
once in a given period.
 Number of victims in a specified
Prevalence rate T = population
T

Number of persons in the specified
populationT

x 100

Victimization and prevalence rates may also be produced
for household crimes, such as burglary. In these instances,
the numerators and denominators are adjusted to reflect

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

households rather than persons. To better understand the
percentage of the population that is victimized at least once
in a given period, prevalence rates are presented by type of
crime and certain demographic characteristics. (For more
information about measuring prevalence in the NCVS, see
Measuring the Prevalence of Crime with the National Crime
Victimization Survey, NCJ 241656, BJS web, September 2013.)

In 2014, 0.5% of all persons age 12 or older
experienced serious violent crime
In 2014, 1.1% of all persons age 12 or older (3 million
persons) experienced at least one violent victimization
(table 4). During the same period, 0.5% of all persons age
12 or older (1.2 million persons) experienced at least one
serious violent victimization (rape or sexual assault, robbery,
and aggravated assault). No measurable change occurred
in the prevalence rate of total violent or serious violent
victimization from 2013 to 2014. During the same period,
the prevalence rates of simple assault declined slightly from
about 0.8% to 0.7%.
Less than 0.5% of all persons age 12 or older experienced
one or more domestic violence (0.2%) or intimate partner
violence (0.1%) victimizations in 2014. No measurable
change occurred in the prevalence rates of domestic
violence and intimate partner violence from 2013 to 2014.
The prevalence of serious violence committed by strangers
increased slightly from 2013 (0.19%) to 2014 (0.23%).
In 2014, 8.0% of all households (10.4 million households)
experienced one or more property victimizations. The
prevalence rate of property victimization declined from
9.0% in 2013 to 8.0% in 2014. During the same period, the
prevalence of household burglary, motor vehicle theft, and
theft also declined. Similar to the property victimization
rate, the decline in the prevalence rate of theft accounted
for the majority of the decline in the prevalence rate of
property victimization.

Continued on next page

4

 Prevalence of crime (continued)
Table 4
Number of victims and prevalence rate, by type of crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Violent crimed
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault
Domestic violencee
Intimate partner violencef
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury
Serious violent crimeg
Serious domestic violencee
Serious intimate partner violencef
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury
Property crime
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

Number of persons victimizeda
2005
2013
2014c
3,350,630 †
3,041,170
2,948,540
118,700
173,610
150,420
414,740
369,070
435,830
2,868,470 †
2,600,920
2,449,820
721,750
633,090
681,280
2,211,580 †
2,046,600
1,842,100

2005
1.37% †
0.05
0.17
1.17 †
0.30
0.90 †

Prevalence rateb
2013
1.15%
0.07
0.14
0.98
0.24
0.77 ‡

2014c
1.11%
0.06
0.16
0.92
0.26
0.69

526,470
323,060
1,601,500 †
975,790

589,140
369,310
1,244,560
849,240

596,270
319,950
1,274,100
856,760

0.22
0.13
0.65 †
0.40 †

0.22
0.14
0.47
0.32

0.22
0.12
0.48
0.32

1,238,410
172,600 ‡
98,360
651,400
905,930
433,370

1,145,350
231,170
163,480
497,920 ‡
738,540
420,890

1,235,290
239,330
128,090
600,650
815,380
440,690

0.51%
0.07
0.04
0.27
0.37 †
0.18

0.43%
0.09
0.06
0.19 ‡
0.28
0.16

0.46%
0.09
0.05
0.23
0.31
0.17

11,781,400 †
2,457,040 †
730,970 †
9,259,190 †

11,531,420 †
2,458,360 †
555,660 †
9,070,680 †

10,352,520
2,166,890
429,840
8,297,290

10.06% †
2.10 †
0.62 †
7.91 †

9.04% †
1.93 †
0.44 †
7.11 †

7.99%
1.67
0.33
6.41

Note: Detail may not sum to total because a person or household may experience multiple types of crime. See appendix table 5 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aNumber of persons age 12 or older who experienced at least one victimization during the year for violent crime, and number of households that experienced at least
one victimization during the year for property crime.
bPercent of persons age 12 or older who experienced at least one victimization during the year for violent crime, and percent of households that experienced at least
one victimization during the year for property crime.
cComparison year.
dExcludes homicide because the NCVS is based on interviews with victims and therefore cannot measure murder.
eIncludes victimization committed by intimate partners and family members.
fIncludes victimization committed by current or former spouses, boyfriends, or girlfriends.
gIn the NCVS, serious violent crime includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

Continued on next page

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

5

 Prevalence of crime (continued)
Prevalence of violent crime among males and
females remained stable from 2013 to 2014
In 2014, 1.2% of all males age 12 or older (1.5 million males)
and 1.1% of all females (1.5 million females) experienced
one or more violent victimizations (table 5). No measureable
change occurred in the prevalence of violent crime for males
or females from 2013 to 2014. Unlike in 2005 when a higher
percentage of males than females were victims of one or
more violent crimes, no significant difference was detected
in the 2014 prevalence rates for males (1.2%) and females
(1.1%) in 2014.
No measurable change occurred in the prevalence rate
for non-Hispanic whites or blacks from 2013 to 2014.
While there were more than 3 times more white victims
(1.8 million) than black victims (453,650) in 2014, blacks
(1.4%) had higher prevalence rates than whites (1.1%).
Unlike in 2013 when Hispanics had higher prevalence
rates than whites, no significant difference was observed

in Hispanic (1.1%) and white (1.1%) prevalence rates in
2014. This difference was because the prevalence of violent
crime declined slightly for Hispanics from 2013 to 2014, but
remained the same for whites.
The prevalence of violent crime declined for persons ages
12 to 17 from 2013 (2.2%) to 2014 (1.7%). In 2013, persons
ages 12 to 17 had the highest prevalence of violent crime
of all age groups. In 2014, no significant difference was
observed in the prevalence of violent crime among persons
ages 12 to 17 (1.7%), ages 18 to 24 (1.6%), and ages 25 to
34 (1.5%). Persons age 65 or older (0.3%) had the lowest
prevalence rate of violent crime.
Persons who were never married had a higher prevalence
rate of violent crime (1.6%) than persons who were married
(0.6%) in 2014. Persons who were separated (3.0%) had the
highest prevalence of violent crime in 2014. From 2013 to
2014, the prevalence of violent crime remained stable for
persons of all marital statuses.

Table 5
Prevalence of violent crime, by victim demographic characteristics, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Victim demographic characteristic
Total
Sex
Male
Female
Race/Hispanic origin
Whited
Black/African Americand
Hispanic/Latino
Otherd,e
Age
12–17
18–24
25–34
35–49
50–64
65 or older
Marital status
Never married
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated

Number of persons victimizeda
2005
2013
2014c
3,350,630 †
3,041,170
2,948,540

2005
1.4% †

Prevalence rateb
2013
1.2%

2014c
1.1%

1,972,270 †
1,378,360

1,567,070
1,474,090

1,497,430
1,451,110

1.7% †
1.1

1.2%
1.1

1.2%
1.1

2,192,670 †
474,420
489,410
194,130

1,860,870
430,380
540,130
209,800

1,848,860
453,650
457,320
188,710

1.3% †
1.7
1.5 †
1.4 ‡

1.1%
1.3
1.3 ‡
1.1

1.1%
1.4
1.1
1.0

422,460
478,740
650,560
703,980
579,770
113,030

2.7% †
2.6 †
1.6
1.2
0.8
0.2

2.2% †
1.7
1.4
1.1
0.9
0.3

1.7%
1.6
1.5
1.2
0.9
0.3

1,482,570
806,200
77,420
410,540
151,630

2.3% †
0.7
0.4
2.0 †
3.1

1.8%
0.6
0.5
1.6
3.3

1.6%
0.6
0.5
1.6
3.0

691,670 †
751,860 †
621,640
793,800
421,600 †
70,080 †
1,850,330 †
851,590
60,270
435,660
134,660

545,370 ‡
527,410
604,500
684,150
566,990
112,760
1,626,980
738,410
74,880
405,420
171,630

Note: Detail may not sum to total due to rounding. See appendix table 6 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aNumber of persons age 12 or older who experienced at least one victimization during the year for violent crime.
bPercent of persons age 12 or older who experienced at least one victimization during the year for violent crime.
cComparison year.
dExcludes persons of Hispanic or Latino origin.
eIncludes American Indians and Alaska Natives; Asians, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders; and persons of two or more races.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

6

 In 2014, 46% of violent victimizations were reported
to police
The NCVS allows for examination of crimes reported and not
reported to police. Victims may not report the victimization
for a variety of reasons, including fear of reprisal or getting
the offender in trouble, believing that police would not or
could not do anything to help, and believing the crime to be
a personal issue or too trivial to report. Police notification
can come from the victim, a third party (including witnesses,
other victims, household members, or other officials, such as
school officials or workplace managers), or police being at the
scene of the incident. Police notification may occur during or
immediately following a criminal incident or at a later date.
Police may include municipal police departments, sheriff ’s
offices, or other state or local law enforcement agencies.
From 2013 to 2014, no statistically significant change was
observed in the percentage of violent and serious violent
victimizations reported to police (table 6). In 2014, 46% of
violent victimizations and 56% of serious violent victimizations
were reported to police. A greater percentage of robberies
(61%) and aggravated assaults (58%) were reported to police
than simple assaults (40%) and rape or sexual assaults (34%).
In 2014, 37% of property victimizations were reported to
police. From 2013 to 2014, no measurable change was detected
in the percentage of total property victimizations, burglaries,
or thefts reported to police. The percentage of reported motor
vehicle thefts increased slightly from 75% to 83% during the
same period. Similar to previous years, a larger percentage of
motor vehicle thefts (83%) than burglaries (60%) and other
thefts (29%) were reported to police in 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

Table 6
Percent of victimizations reported to police, by type of crime,
2005, 2013, and 2014
2005
45.8%
35.1
55.4
44.9
65.0
39.4

2013
45.6%
34.8
68.0
43.4
64.3
38.5

2014a
46.0%
33.6
60.9
44.6
58.4
40.0

53.0
56.9
48.1
59.6

56.9
57.0
49.6
55.5

56.1
57.9
48.8
54.9

Serious violent crimee
Serious domestic violencec
Serious intimate partner violenced
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury

59.0%
61.4
57.4
53.4 ‡
64.0
64.5

61.0%
65.3
60.4
61.9
65.7
66.2

55.8%
60.0
56.7
65.4
57.6
61.0

Property crime
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

38.7%
55.3 ‡
81.7
31.5 ‡

36.1%
57.3
75.5 ‡
28.6

37.0%
60.0
83.3
29.0

Type of crime
Violent crimeb
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault
Domestic violencec
Intimate partner violenced
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury

Note: See appendix table 7 for standard errors.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aComparison year.
bExcludes homicide because the NCVS is based on interviews with victims and
therefore cannot measure murder.
cIncludes victimization committed by intimate partners and family members.
dIncludes victimization committed by current or former spouses, boyfriends, or
girlfriends.
eIn the NCVS, serious violent crime includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, and
aggravated assault.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013,
and 2014.

7

 Rates of property crime reported and not reported to
police declined from 2013 to 2014
From 2013 to 2014, no significant differences were detected in
rates of any type of violent crime reported to police (table 7).
With the exception of a slight decline in simple assault, rates of
violent crime not reported to police also remained stable.
In comparison, overall rates of property crime reported and
not reported to police declined from 2013 to 2014. The overall
rate of property crime reported to police decreased from
47.4 victimizations per 1,000 households in 2013 to 43.7 per
1,000 in 2014. This decline was driven largely by a slight
decrease in thefts reported to police from 2013 (28.7 per 1,000)
to 2014 (26.4 per 1,000).
The rate of unreported property crime declined from
83.1 victimizations per 1,000 households in 2013 to 72.8 per
1,000 in 2014. The decline in unreported property crime
occurred across all types of property crime measured by
the NCVS.

No change occurred in the percentage of violent crime
victims who received assistance from a victim service
agency over a 10-year span
Victim service agencies are publicly or privately funded
organizations that provide victims with support and services
to aid their physical and emotional recovery, offer protection
from future victimizations, guide them through the criminal
justice system process, and assist them in obtaining restitution.
From 2013 to 2014, no significant change was observed in
the overall percentage of violent crime victims who received
assistance from a victim service agency (10.5%) (table 8).
In addition, no significant difference was detected in the
percentage of violent crime victims who received assistance in
2014 compared to 10 years earlier in 2005.

Table 7
Rates of victimizations reported and not reported to police, by type of crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Violent crimeb
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault
Domestic violencec
Intimate partner violenced
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury
Serious violent crimee
Serious domestic violencec
Serious intimate partner violenced
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury
Property crime
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

2005
13.0 †
0.3 †
1.7 †
11.0 †
3.4 ‡
7.6 †

Reported to police
2013
10.6
0.4
1.7
8.5
2.4
6.1

2014a
9.2
0.4
1.5
7.4
2.4
5.0

2005
15.0 †
0.6
1.4
13.1 †
1.8 †
11.3 †

Not reported to police
2013
12.2
0.7
0.8
10.7
1.3
9.5 ‡

5.8
1.9
5.6 †
4.3 †

2.4
1.6
3.9
3.4

2.3
1.4
4.0
2.8

2.4
1.4 ‡
5.7
2.8

1.7
1.2
3.8
2.6

1.7
0.9
4.1
2.3

5.4 †
1.1
0.7
2.4
4.3 †
2.2

4.5
1.1
0.8
1.7
2.9
1.9

4.3
0.9
0.6
2.3
2.8
1.6

3.7
0.7
0.5
2.1 †
2.4
1.2

2.8
0.6
0.5
1.0
1.5
0.9

3.3
0.6
0.4
1.2
2.0
1.0

61.8 †
16.9 †
7.0 †
37.8 †

47.4 †
14.8
3.9
28.7 ‡

43.7
13.9
3.4
26.4

95.9 †
13.4 †
1.5 †
81.0 †

83.1 †
10.9 †
1.2 †
71.0 †

72.8
8.8
0.7
63.3

2014a
10.5
0.7
1.0
8.9
1.7
7.2

Note: Victimization rates are per 1,000 persons age 12 or older for violent crime and per 1,000 households for property crime. See appendix table 8 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aComparison year.
bExcludes homicide because the NCVS is based on interviews and therefore cannot measure murder.
cIncludes victimization committed by intimate partners and family members.
dIncludes victimization committed by current or former spouses, boyfriends, or girlfriends.
eIn the NCVS, serious violent crime includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

8

 Table 8
Violent crime victims who received assistance from a victim
service agency, by type of crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Violent crimeb
Serious violent crimec
Simple assault

2005
9.7%
13.3
8.0

2013
9.5%
13.7
7.6

2014a
10.5%
12.3
9.5

Intimate partner violence

24.4%

31.0%

28.2%

Violent crime involving injury
Violent crime involving weapon

15.7%
13.0% †

17.2%
7.4%

14.9%
7.2%

Note: See appendix table 9 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
aComparison year.
bIncludes rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault.
Excludes homicide because the NCVS is based on interviews with victims and
therefore cannot measure murder.
cIn the NCVS, serious violent crime includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, and
aggravated assault.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013,
2014.

Violent crime decreased for Hispanics and young persons
From 2013 to 2014, the rate of violent victimization for
Hispanics declined 35% from 24.8 victimizations per 1,000
persons to 16.2 per 1,000 (table 9). With the decline, the
violent victimization rate for Hispanics dropped below that for
non-Hispanic blacks (22.5 per 1,000). This was a change from
2013, when blacks and Hispanics had similar rates of violent
crime. No statistically significant difference was observed in
rates of violent crime for non-Hispanic whites and Hispanics
in 2013 and 2014.
The decline in overall violent crime for Hispanics was largely
driven by a decline in simple assault (not shown). The Hispanic
rate of serious violent victimization remained relatively
unchanged from 2013 (7.5 per 1,000) to 2014 (8.3 per 1,000).

Table 9
Rate of violent victimization, by victim demographic characteristics, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Victim demographic characteristic
Total
Sex
Male
Female
Race/Hispanic origin
Whited
Black/African Americand
Hispanic/Latino
Otherd,e
Age
12–17
18–24
25–34
35–49
50–64
65 or older
Marital status
Never married
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated

2005
28.4 †

Violent crimea
2013
23.2

2014c
20.1

2005
9.2

Serious violent crimeb
2013
7.3

34.0 †
23.1

23.7
22.7

21.1
19.1

11.4 ‡
7.2

7.7
7.0

8.3
7.0

27.7 †
32.7 †
25.9 †
34.3 ‡

22.2
25.1
24.8 †
25.2

20.3
22.5
16.2
23.0

7.6
15.4 ‡
11.9
10.7

6.8
9.5
7.5
8.8

7.0
10.1
8.3
7.7

59.8 †
61.0 †
29.7
24.9
15.0
3.6

52.1 †
33.8
29.6
20.3
18.7
3.1

30.1
26.8
28.5
21.6
17.9
3.1

14.9 †
23.5 †
11.5
7.1
4.4 ‡
2.0

10.8
10.7
10.2
7.1
6.9
1.1

8.8
13.6
8.6
8.9
7.0
1.3

47.3
15.1
8.9
39.7
68.1

36.3 †
10.7
8.6
34.4
73.2

27.9
12.4
8.7
30.3
52.8

15.2 †
5.1
5.3
12.7
16.5

9.6
3.2
5.2
16.0
33.3

10.7
4.0
2.9
14.2
27.7

2014c
7.7

Note: Victimization rates are per 1,000 persons age 12 or older. See appendix table 10 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aIncludes rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault. Excludes homicide because the NCVS is based on interviews with victims and
therefore cannot measure murder.
bIn the NCVS, serious violent crime includes rape or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault.
cComparison year.
dExcludes persons of Hispanic or Latino origin.
eIncludes American Indians and Alaska Natives; Asians, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders; and persons of two or more races.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

9

 From 2013 to 2014, the violent victimization rate declined for
persons ages 12 to 17, from 52.1 to 30.1 victimizations per
1,000. In 2013, persons ages 12 to 17 (52.1 per 1,000) had a
higher rate of violent victimization than persons in any other
age group. In 2014, no significant difference was observed in
violent crime rates across persons ages 12 to 17, ages 18 to 24,
or ages 25 to 34 (28.5 per 1,000).
Like the decline in violence for Hispanics, the decline for
persons ages 12 to 17 was largely driven by declines in simple
assault (not shown). No significant difference was detected
in the 2013 (10.8 per 1,000) and 2014 (8.8 per 1,000) rates
of serious violence for persons ages 12 to 17. No other age
groups had a measurable change in rates of violence or serious
violence from 2013 to 2014.
Rates of violent victimization were relatively unchanged
from 2013 to 2014 for persons of all marital statuses, other
than those who were never married. Violent victimization
rates for persons who were never married decreased from
36.3 victimizations per 1,000 persons in 2013 to 27.9 per
1,000 in 2014. In 2014, persons who were separated had the
highest rate of violent crime (52.8 per 1,000).

Violent crime declined in the Northeast and the West
From 2013 to 2014, rates of violent victimization decreased
at least slightly in the Northeast and in the West, with no
change detected in the South or Midwest (table 10). The rate
of violent crime declined slightly in the West, from 27.3 to
20.3 victimizations per 1,000 persons. In the Northeast,
the rate declined from 27.5 to 18.9 victimizations per
1,000 persons. No significant differences were observed in
rates of violence or serious violence across any of the four
regions in 2014.
During the same period, there were also no significant
differences in rates of violent crime across urban, suburban,
and rural areas. Rates of serious violence were slightly higher
in urban areas (9.3 per 1,000) in 2014 than in suburban
(6.9 per 1,000) and rural (6.5 per 1,000) areas.
From 2013 to 2014, property crime rates decreased in all
regions of the country, except the Northeast where no
significant change was detected in the rate. As in 2013,
property crime rates were highest in the West (153.0 per 1,000)
and lowest in the Northeast (85.8 per 1,000) in 2014.
Property crime rates also declined in urban and suburban
areas from 2013 to 2014, but did not change significantly in
rural areas. Urban areas (148.8 per 1,000) had a higher rate of
property crime victimization than suburban (101.7 per 1,000)
and rural (103.2 per 1,000) areas.

Table 10
Violent and property victimization, by household location, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Household location
Total
Region
Northeast
Midwest
South
West
Location of residence
Urban
Suburban
Rural

2005
28.4 †

Violent crimea
2013
23.2

2014d
20.1

Serious violent crimeb
2005
2013
2014d
9.2
7.3
7.7

2005
159.5 †

Property crimec
2013
2014d
131.4 †
118.1

25.9 ‡
34.6 †
23.4
32.0 †

27.5 †
23.7
18.0
27.3 ‡

18.9
20.6
20.2
20.3

7.8
12.3 †
7.8
9.4

7.8
7.5
5.5
9.6

6.2
7.5
7.6
8.9

113.3 †
165.9 †
148.8 †
209.3 †

92.1
122.3 †
125.8 †
182.1 †

85.8
111.8
116.2
153.0

37.2 †
25.6 †
22.4

25.9
23.3
16.9

22.2
19.3
18.3

15.3 †
6.9
6.4

8.8
6.8
6.1

9.3
6.9
6.5

202.5 †
146.8 †
126.2 †

165.3 †
115.3 †
109.4

148.8
101.7
103.2

Note: Victimization rates are per 1,000 persons age 12 or older for violent crime and per 1,000 households for property crime. See appendix table 11 for standard errors.
†Significant difference from comparison year at the 95% confidence level.
‡Significant difference from comparison year at the 90% confidence level.
aIncludes rape or sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault. Excludes homicide because the NCVS is based on interviews and therefore cannot measure
murder.
bIncludes rape or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated assault.
cIncludes household burglary, motor vehicle theft, and theft.
dComparison year.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

10

 NCVS and UCR showed similar declines in property crime from 2013 to 2014
In the first half of 2014, preliminary findings from the
FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program showed
a 5% decline in the number of serious violent crimes
(table 11). The Bureau of Justice Statistics’ (BJS) National
Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) showed an apparent
decline in serious violent victimizations which was not
statistically significant.
Because the NCVS and UCR measure an overlapping,
but not identical, set of offenses and use different
methodologies, congruity between the estimates is not
expected. Throughout the 40-year history of the NCVS, both
programs have generally demonstrated similar year-to-year
increases or decreases in the levels of overall violent and
property crimes. While this has not always been the case
for certain crime types over the past 5 years, the two have
generally shown similar declines in the two most recent
reporting periods.
The UCR measures the violent crimes of murder and
nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and
aggravated assault. For property crime, the UCR measures
burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft. The UCR
measures crimes known to law enforcement, occurring
against both persons and businesses. The FBI obtains data
on crimes from law enforcement agencies, while the NCVS
collects data through interviews with victims. Additional
information about the differences between the two
programs can be found in The Nation’s Two Crime Measures
(NCJ 246832, BJS web, September 2014).
Significant methodological and definitional differences exist
between the NCVS and UCR:
„„ The NCVS obtains estimates of crimes both reported and

not reported to police, while the UCR collects data on
crimes known to and recorded by law enforcement.
„„ The UCR includes homicide and commercial crimes, while

the NCVS excludes these crime types.
„„ The UCR excludes simple assault and sexual assault,

which are included in the NCVS.*
„„ The NCVS estimates are based on data from a nationally

representative sample of U.S. households. The UCR
percentage changes are based on counts of offenses
reported by a large sample of law enforcement agencies.
*Simple assaults include attacks or attempted attacks without a weapon
resulting in either no injury or minor injury. Sexual assaults include attacks
or attempted attacks generally involving unwanted sexual contact between
the victim and offender that may or may not involve force.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

„„ The NCVS excludes crimes against children age 11 or

younger, persons in institutions (e.g., nursing homes
and correctional institutions), and may exclude highly
mobile populations and persons who are homeless.
Victimizations against these persons are included in
the UCR.
Given these differences, the two measures of crime should
complement each other and provide a more comprehensive
picture of crime in the United States.
In the first half of 2014, compared to the same period
in 2013, the UCR showed declines in all types of serious
violent and property crimes known to law enforcement.
The number of NCVS motor vehicle thefts also declined
19% from 2013 to 2014, but the apparent decline in the
NCVS estimate of overall serious violent crime was not
statistically significant. While most of the NCVS estimates of
crime reported to police did not change significantly from
2013 to 2014, the general direction of change in the NCVS
estimates appeared to be consistent with the declines in
UCR numbers.

Table 11
Percent change in the number of crimes reported in the
UCR and the NCVS, 2013–2014
NCVS
Type of crime
Violent crimeb
Serious violent crimec
Murder
Raped
Robbery
Aggravated assault
Property crime
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft

UCRa
~
–4.6%
–6.0%
–10.1
–10.3
–1.6

Total
–12.5%
5.2%
~
–5.3
2.9
9.8

Reported
to police
–11.8%
–3.9%
~
–8.7
–7.9
–0.3

–14.0%
–5.7

–8.9%
–19.2 †

–4.6%
–10.8

~Not applicable.
† Significant change from 2013 to 2014 at the 95% confidence level.
aIncludes commercial crimes.
bNCVS estimates exclude murder, and include simple assault.
cNCVS measures include rape or sexual assault, robbery, and aggravated
assault.
dNCVS estimates include sexual assault. UCR estimate is based on the revised
definition of rape but does not include agencies that used the legacy definition
in 2013 and the revised definition in 2014.
Sources: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey,
2013–2014; and FBI, Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report, January–June
2014, http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2014/preliminarysemiannual-uniform-crime-report-january-june-2014/tables/table-3.

11

 Methodology
Survey coverage
The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is an annual
data collection conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the
Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The NCVS is a self-report
survey in which interviewed persons are asked about the
number and characteristics of victimizations experienced
during the prior 6 months. The NCVS collects information
on nonfatal personal crimes (rape or sexual assault, robbery,
aggravated and simple assault, and personal larceny) and
household property crimes (burglary, motor vehicle theft,
and other theft) both reported and not reported to police. In
addition to providing annual level and change estimates on
criminal victimization, the NCVS is the primary source of
information on the nature of criminal victimization incidents.
Survey respondents provide information about themselves
(e.g., age, sex, race and Hispanic origin, marital status,
education level, and income) and whether they experienced
a victimization. The NCVS collects information for each
victimization incident about the offender (e.g., age, race
and Hispanic origin, sex, and victim–offender relationship),
characteristics of the crime (including time and place of
occurrence, use of weapons, nature of injury, and economic
consequences), whether the crime was reported to police,
reasons the crime was or was not reported, and victim
experiences with the criminal justice system.
The NCVS is administered to persons age 12 or older from a
nationally representative sample of households in the United
States. The NCVS defines a household as a group of persons
who all reside at a sampled address. Persons are considered
household members when the sampled address is their
usual place of residence at the time of the interview and
when they have no usual place of residence elsewhere. Once
selected, households remain in the sample for 3 years, and
eligible persons in these households are interviewed every
6 months either in person or over the phone for a total of
seven interviews.
All first interviews are conducted in person with subsequent
interviews conducted either in person or by phone. New
households rotate into the sample on an ongoing basis to
replace outgoing households that have been in the sample for
the 3-year period. The sample includes persons living in group
quarters, such as dormitories, rooming houses, and religious
group dwellings, and excludes persons living in military
barracks and institutional settings such as correctional or
hospital facilities, and persons who are homeless.
Nonresponse and weighting adjustments
In 2014, 90,380 households and 158,090 persons age 12 or
older were interviewed for the NCVS. Each household
was interviewed twice during the year. The response rate
was 84% for households and 87% for eligible persons.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

Victimizations that occurred outside of the United States
were excluded from this report. In 2014, less than 1% of the
unweighted victimizations occurred outside of the United
States and were excluded from the analyses.
Estimates in this report use data from the 1993 to 2014
NCVS data files, weighted to produce annual estimates
of victimization for persons age 12 or older living in U.S.
households. Because the NCVS relies on a sample rather than
a census of the entire U.S. population, weights are designed to
inflate sample point estimates to known population totals and
to compensate for survey nonresponse and other aspects of the
sample design.
The NCVS data files include both person and household
weights. Person weights provide an estimate of the population
represented by each person in the sample. Household
weights provide an estimate of the U.S. household population
represented by each household in the sample. After proper
adjustment, both household and person weights are also
typically used to form the denominator in calculations of
crime rates.
Victimization weights used in this analysis account for
the number of persons present during an incident and
for high-frequency repeat victimizations (i.e., series
victimizations). Series victimizations are similar in type but
occur with such frequency that a victim is unable to recall
each individual event or describe each event in detail. Survey
procedures allow NCVS interviewers to identify and classify
these similar victimizations as series victimizations and to
collect detailed information on only the most recent incident
in the series.
The weight counts series incidents as the actual number of
incidents reported by the victim, up to a maximum of 10
incidents. Including series victimizations in national rates
results in large increases in the level of violent victimization;
however, trends in violent crime are generally similar,
regardless of whether series victimizations are included.
In 2014, series incidents accounted for about 1% of all
victimizations and 4% of all violent victimizations. Weighting
series incidents as the number of incidents up to a maximum
of 10 incidents produces more reliable estimates of crime
levels, while the cap at 10 minimizes the effect of extreme
outliers on rates. Additional information on the series
enumeration is detailed in the report Methods for Counting
High-Frequency Repeat Victimizations in the National Crime
Victimization Survey (NCJ 237308, BJS web, April 2012).
Standard error computations
When national estimates are derived from a sample, as with
the NCVS, caution must be used when comparing one estimate
to another estimate or when comparing estimates over time.
Although one estimate may be larger than another, estimates
based on a sample have some degree of sampling error. The
sampling error of an estimate depends on several factors,

12

 including the amount of variation in the responses and the size
of the sample. When the sampling error around an estimate is
taken into account, the estimates that appear different may not
be statistically different.
One measure of the sampling error associated with an estimate
is the standard error. The standard error can vary from one
estimate to the next. Generally, an estimate with a small
standard error provides a more reliable approximation of
the true value than an estimate with a large standard error.
Estimates with relatively large standard errors are associated
with less precision and reliability and should be interpreted
with caution.
To generate standard errors around numbers and estimates
from the NCVS, the Census Bureau produced generalized
variance function (GVF) parameters for BJS. The GVFs take
into account aspects of the NCVS complex sample design and
represent the curve fitted to a selection of individual standard
errors based on the Jackknife Repeated Replication technique.
The GVF parameters were used to generate standard errors
for each point estimate (e.g., counts, percentages, and rates) in
this report.
BJS conducted tests to determine whether differences in
estimated numbers, percentages, and rates in this report were
statistically significant once sampling error was taken into
account. Using statistical programs developed specifically
for the NCVS, all comparisons in the text were tested for
significance. The primary test procedure was the Student’s
t-statistic, which tests the difference between two sample
estimates. Differences described as higher, lower, or different
passed a test at the 0.05 level of statistical significance
(95% confidence level). Differences described as somewhat,
slightly, or marginally different, or with some indication
of difference, passed a test at the 0.10 level of statistical
significance (90% confidence level). Caution is required when
comparing estimates not explicitly discussed in this report.
Data users can use the estimates and the standard errors of
the estimates provided in this report to generate a confidence
interval around the estimate as a measure of the margin of
error. The following example illustrates how standard errors
can be used to generate confidence intervals:
According to the NCVS, in 2014, the violent victimization
rate among persons age 12 or older was 20.1 per 1,000
persons (see table 1). Using the GVFs, it was determined
that the estimated victimization rate has a standard error of
1.2 (see appendix table 2). A confidence interval around the
estimate was generated by multiplying the standard errors by
±1.96 (the t-score of a normal, two-tailed distribution that
excludes 2.5% at either end of the distribution). Therefore,
the 95% confidence interval around the 20.1 estimate from
2014 is 20.1 ± (1.2 X 1.96) or (17.7 to 22.5). In others words,
if different samples using the same procedures were taken
from the U.S. population in 2014, 95% of the time the violent
victimization rate would fall between 17.7 and 22.5 per
1,000 persons.
C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

In this report, BJS also calculated a coefficient of variation
(CV) for all estimates, representing the ratio of the standard
error to the estimate. CVs provide a measure of reliability
and a means for comparing the precision of estimates across
measures with differing levels or metrics.
NCVS measurement of rape and sexual assault

Definition of rape and sexual assault
The measurement of rape and sexual assault presents many
challenges. Victims may not be willing to reveal or share their
experiences with an interviewer. The level and type of sexual
violence reported by victims is sensitive a variety of factors
related to the interview process, including how items are
worded, definitions are used, and the data collection mode. In
addition, the legal definitions of rape and sexual assault vary
across jurisdictions.
For the NCVS, survey respondents are asked to respond to a
series of questions about the nature and characteristics of their
victimization. The NCVS classifies victimizations as rape or
sexual assault even if other crimes, such as robbery or assault,
occurred at the same time. Then, the NCVS uses the following
rape and sexual assault definitions:
Rape is the unlawful penetration of a person against the
will of the victim, with use or threatened use of force,
or attempting such an act. Rape includes psychological
coercion and physical force, and forced sexual intercourse
means vaginal, anal, or oral penetration by the offender.
Rape also includes incidents where penetration is from a
foreign object (e.g., a bottle), victimizations against male
and female victims, and both heterosexual and homosexual
rape. Attempted rape includes verbal threats of rape.
Sexual assault is defined across a wide range of
victimizations, separate from rape or attempted rape.
These crimes include attacks or attempted attacks generally
involving unwanted sexual contact between a victim and
offender. Sexual assault may or may not involve force and
includes grabbing or fondling.
From 2005 to 2014, 30% of NCVS rape and sexual assault
victimizations were classified as completed rape (table 12).
Attempted rape or other sexual assault accounted for nearly
50% of rape or sexual assault victimizations. About 1 in 5
(18%) were verbal threats of rape or sexual assault.

Comparison of NCVS estimates to other survey estimates
Over the past several decades, a number of other surveys have
also been used to study rape and sexual assault in the general
population. BJS estimates of rape and sexual assault from
the NCVS have typically been lower than estimates derived
from other federal and private surveys. However, the NCVS
methodology and definitions of rape and sexual assault differ
from many of these surveys in important ways that contribute
to the variation in estimates of the prevalence and incidence of
these victimization. Additional information about differences
in self-report estimates of rape and sexual assault is available
13

 on the BJS website. BJS continues an active research program
on the collection of rape and sexual assault data in an effort to
improve the quality and accuracy of these estimates.
Despite the current differences in methods and estimates
that exist between the NCVS and other surveys, a strength
of the NCVS is its capacity to be used to make comparisons
over time, as year-to-year comparisons are not affected by the
NCVS methodology. Methodological differences that exist
between the NCVS and the other surveys that lead to higher
estimates of the levels of rape and sexual assault in the other
surveys should not affect the within-NCVS comparisons of
estimates from 2013 to 2014.
Table 12
Distribution of types of rape and sexual assault victimizations,
2005-2014
Type of rape/sexual assault
Total
Completed rape
Attempted rape
Sexual assault
Unwanted sexual contact without force
Verbal threats of rape and sexual assault

Percent
100%
30
23
24
6
18

Methodological changes to the NCVS in 2006
Methodological changes implemented in 2006 may have
affected the crime estimates for that year to such an extent
that they are not comparable to estimates from other years.
Evaluation of 2007 and later data from the NCVS conducted by
BJS and the Census Bureau found a high degree of confidence
that estimates for 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013,
and 2014 are consistent with and comparable to estimates for
2005 and previous years. The reports, Criminal Victimization,
2006 (NCJ 219413, December 2007); Criminal Victimization,
2007 (NCJ 224390, December 2008); Criminal Victimization,
2008 (NCJ 227777, September 2009); Criminal Victimization,
2009 (NCJ 231327, October 2010); Criminal Victimization,
2010 (NCJ 235508, September 2011); Criminal Victimization,
2011 (NCJ 239437, October 2012); Criminal Victimization,
2012 (NCJ 243389, October 2013); and Criminal Victimization,
2013 (NCJ 247648, September 2014) are available on the
BJS website.

Note: See appendix table 12 for standard errors.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005-2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

14

 Appendix Table 1
Estimates and standard errors for figure 1: Violent and
property victimization, 1993–2014

1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006c
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014

Estimates
Violent
Property
victimizationa victimizationb
79.8
351.8
80.0
341.2
70.7
315.5
64.7
289.3
61.1
267.1
54.1
237.1
47.2
210.6
37.5
190.4
32.6
177.7
32.1
168.2
32.1
173.4
27.8
167.5
28.4
159.5
34.1
169.0
27.2
154.9
25.3
142.6
22.3
132.6
19.3
125.4
22.6
138.7
26.1
155.8
23.2
131.4
20.1
118.1

Standard errors
Violent
Property
victimizationa victimizationb
2.93
5.56
2.72
5.66
2.41
5.29
2.63
4.33
2.78
5.77
2.61
5.35
2.34
4.77
1.98
5.71
1.67
4.99
2.07
4.17
1.68
4.51
1.34
3.91
1.63
3.97
1.87
3.63
1.55
3.48
1.60
3.66
1.31
3.32
1.44
2.73
1.38
3.50
1.20
3.08
1.62
2.89
1.22
2.60

aRate per 1,000 persons age 12 or older.
bRate per 1,000 households.

cSee Criminal Victimization, 2007 (NCJ 224390, BJS web, December 2008) for

information on changes in the 2006 NCVS.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 1993–2014.

Appendix Table 2
Standard errors for table 1: Violent victimization, by type of violent crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of violent crime
Violent crime
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault
Domestic violence
Intimate partner violence
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury
Serious violent crime
Serious domestic violence
Serious intimate partner violence
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury

2005
399,741
37,852
89,671
360,859
126,588
306,323

Number of victimizations
2013
427,599
52,203
88,698
380,749
119,926
328,333

2014
326,328
48,603
82,903
286,771
114,257
237,439

2005
1.6
0.2
0.4
1.5
0.5
1.3

Rate
2013
1.6
0.2
0.3
1.4
0.5
1.2

2014
1.2
0.2
0.3
1.1
0.4
0.9

137,673
103,508
241,512
174,541

148,613
111,985
232,533
192,221

130,862
89,469
207,081
151,608

0.6
0.4
1.0
0.7

0.6
0.4
0.9
0.7

0.5
0.3
0.8
0.6

186,161
66,840
54,387
126,463
167,691
104,261

191,668
79,936
66,895
110,833
154,079
110,968

172,098
65,610
50,038
116,039
146,350
94,912

0.8
0.3
0.2
0.5
0.7
0.4

0.7
0.3
0.3
0.4
0.6
0.4

0.6
0.2
0.2
0.4
0.5
0.4

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

15

 Appendix Table 3
Standard errors for table 2: Firearm victimizations, 2005–2014
2005
69,030
74,811

2006
76,877
82,561

2007
68,470
80,010

2008
62,019
66,653

2009
71,992
75,355

2010
67,931
72,425

2011
65,371
70,968

2012
62,863
65,925

2013
57,480
63,225

2014
67,207
72,678

Rate of firearm victimizations

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.2

0.3

Percent of firearm victimizations reported to police

5.3%

4.9%

4.9%

6.8%

6.9%

6.3%

5.2%

5.6%

6.2%

4.8%

Firearm incidents
Firearm victimizations

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005–2014.

Appendix Table 4
Standard errors for table 3: Property victimization, by type of
property crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Total
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

Number
2005
2013
2014
464,392 369,131 337,113
168,237 136,987 129,208
74,044 50,769 46,911
395,094 316,083 290,595

2005
4.0
1.4
0.6
3.4

Rate
2013
2.9
1.1
0.4
2.5

2014
2.6
1.0
0.4
2.2

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013,
and 2014.

Appendix Table 5
Standard errors for table 4: Number of victims and prevalence rate, by type of violent crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Violent crime
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault
Domestic violence
Intimate partner violence
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury
Serious violent crime
Serious domestic violence
Serious intimate partner violence
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury
Property crime
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

Number of persons victimized
2005
2013
148,707
108,609
19,775
22,303
39,078
29,812
136,197
101,859
54,450
42,550
121,619
87,665

2014
112,101
19,745
42,962
104,061
47,323
90,454

2005
0.053
0.008
0.016
0.048
0.022
0.044

Prevalence rate
2013
0.040
0.008
0.011
0.038
0.016
0.033

2014
0.042
0.007
0.016
0.038
0.017
0.034

45,200
37,867
83,427
64,721

38,908
32,601
67,165
52,850

46,899
31,777
63,072
52,780

0.018
0.015
0.031
0.025

0.014
0.012
0.025
0.020

0.018
0.012
0.024
0.020

69,577
23,651
18,220
50,879
61,586
37,921

56,271
24,777
21,793
39,025
46,741
36,693

66,094
30,045
19,438
43,792
53,511
36,633

0.027
0.010
0.007
0.020
0.025
0.016

0.021
0.009
0.008
0.015
0.018
0.014

0.025
0.011
0.007
0.017
0.020
0.014

317,178
105,981
43,402
270,963

228,264
95,066
41,791
196,644

230,653
84,021
33,095
205,728

0.217
0.087
0.037
0.189

0.158
0.073
0.033
0.139

0.162
0.065
0.026
0.144

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

16

 Appendix Table 6
Standard errors for table 5: Prevalence of violent crime, by victim demographic characteristics, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Victim demographic characteristic
Total
Sex
Male
Female
Race/Hispanic origin
White
Black/African American
Hispanic/Latino
Other
Age
12–17
18–24
25–34
35–49
50–64
65 or older
Marital status
Never married
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated

2005
148,707

Number of persons victimized
2013
2014
108,609
112,101

2005
0.05%

Prevalence rate
2013
0.04%

2014
0.04%

101,505
88,926

75,546
69,052

75,109
69,928

0.07%
0.07

0.06%
0.05

0.06%
0.05

120,714
45,412
42,945
28,642

79,807
45,957
42,699
28,075

87,113
43,208
37,420
24,946

0.06%
0.16
0.12
0.20

0.05%
0.14
0.09
0.15

0.05%
0.13
0.08
0.13

53,368
60,667
57,058
58,468
37,323
13,654

48,894
45,943
42,661
50,074
44,940
17,124

41,146
43,521
42,242
45,632
44,218
16,670

0.20%
0.19
0.14
0.09
0.08
0.04

0.19%
0.14
0.10
0.08
0.07
0.04

0.16%
0.15
0.10
0.07
0.07
0.04

96,188
57,890
14,557
37,437
22,186

77,364
39,954
16,037
37,796
23,127

82,391
47,132
13,712
33,752
22,313

0.11%
0.04
0.10
0.17
0.48

0.08%
0.03
0.11
0.14
0.44

0.09%
0.04
0.09
0.13
0.44

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

Appendix Table 7
Standard errors for table 6: Percent of victimizations reported
to police, by type of crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Violent crime
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault

2005
2.4%
7.6
4.9
2.5
4.0
2.6

2013
2.8%
6.5
5.4
2.9
4.8
3.0

2014
2.6%
6.7
5.2
2.8
4.4
2.9

4.2
4.8
3.2
3.7

4.7
5.3
3.9
4.2

4.4
5.4
3.5
4.1

Serious violent crime
Serious domestic violence
Serious intimate partner violence
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury

3.4%
6.1
6.9
4.4
3.7
4.7

4.0%
6.0
6.7
5.3
4.5
5.2

3.6%
6.3
7.4
4.6
4.2
5.2

Property crime
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

1.0%
1.9
2.5
1.1

0.9%
1.8
3.2
0.9

1.0%
1.9
3.1
1.0

Domestic violence
Intimate partner violence
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013,
and 2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

17

 Appendix Table 8
Standard errors for table 7: Rates of victimizations reported and not reported to police, by type of crime, 2005, 2013, and 2014
2005
1.1
0.3
1.0
1.0
0.4
0.7

Reported to police
2013
1.1
0.1
0.3
0.9
0.4
0.7

2014
0.9
0.1
0.2
0.7
0.3
0.6

2005
1.2
0.1
0.2
1.1
1.1
0.3

Not reported to police
2013
1.2
0.2
0.2
1.1
0.2
1.0

2014
0.9
0.1
0.2
0.8
0.3
0.7

0.6
0.3
0.6
0.5

0.4
0.3
0.5
0.5

0.3
0.2
0.5
0.4

0.3
0.2
0.5
0.4

0.3
0.2
0.5
0.4

0.3
0.2
0.5
0.4

Serious violent crime
Serious domestic violence
Serious intimate partner violence
Serious stranger violence
Serious violent crime involving weapons
Serious violent crime involving injury

0.1
0.2
0.2
0.3
0.5
0.3

0.6
0.2
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.3

0.9
0.5
0.1
0.3
0.4
0.3

0.5
0.1
0.1
0.3
0.3
0.2

0.4
0.1
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.2

0.4
0.1
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.2

Property crime
Burglary
Motor vehicle theft
Theft

2.2
1.0
0.6
1.7

1.6
0.8
0.4
1.2

0.8
0.8
0.3
1.1

2.9
0.9
0.2
2.6

2.2
0.1
0.2
2.0

2.0
0.6
0.1
1.9

Type of crime
Violent crime
Rape/sexual assault
Robbery
Assault
Aggravated assault
Simple assault
Domestic violence
Intimate partner violence
Stranger violence
Violent crime involving injury

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

Appendix Table 9
Standard errors for table 8: Violent crime victims who received
assistance from a victim service agency, by type of crime, 2005,
2013, and 2014
Type of crime
Violent crime
Serious violent crime
Simple assault

2005
1.2%
2.0
1.2

2013
1.3%
2.3
1.3

2014
1.3%
2.0
1.5

Intimate partner violence

3.9%

4.6%

4.6%

Violent crime involving injury
Violent crime involving weapon

2.4%
2.2%

2.8%
1.9%

2.6%
1.8%

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013,
2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

18

 Appendix Table 10
Standard errors for table 9: Rate of violent victimization, by victim demographic characteristics, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Victim demographic characteristic
Total
Sex
Male
Female
Race/Hispanic origin
White
Black/African American
Hispanic/Latino
Other
Age
12–17
18–24
25–34
35–49
50–64
65 or older
Marital status
Never married
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated

2005
1.6

Violent crime
2013
1.6

2014
1.2

2005
0.8

Serious violent crime
2013
0.7

2014
0.6

2.5
1.9

2.3
2.2

1.8
1.7

1.2
0.9

1.0
1.0

1.0
0.9

2.0
3.8
3.1
4.9

2.0
3.5
3.2
4.1

1.6
2.9
2.2
3.5

0.8
2.3
1.9
2.4

0.9
1.8
1.4
2.0

0.8
1.7
1.4
1.7

5.7
5.6
3.2
2.4
1.9
0.9

6.1
4.3
3.6
2.5
2.4
0.8

3.8
3.3
3.1
2.3
2.0
0.7

2.4
3.0
1.7
1.1
0.9
0.6

2.1
2.0
1.7
1.2
1.2
0.4

1.7
2.1
1.4
1.3
1.1
0.4

3.5
1.5
2.1
4.6
11.0

3.4
1.3
2.2
4.6
11.9

2.4
1.3
2.1
3.8
9.1

1.7
0.7
1.5
2.3
4.7

1.3
0.6
1.5
2.7
7.2

1.3
0.6
2.1
2.3
6.2

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

Appendix Table 11
Standard errors for table 10: Rate of violent and property victimization, by household location, 2005, 2013, and 2014
Household location
Total
Region
Northeast
Midwest
South
West
Location of residence
Urban
Suburban
Rural

2005
1.6

Violent crime
2013
1.6

2014
1.2

2005
0.8

Serious violent crime
2013
2014
0.7
0.6

2.8
3.2
2.1
3.0

3.3
2.8
2.1
3.1

2.3
2.3
1.9
2.2

1.3
1.6
1.0
1.4

1.4
1.3
0.9
1.5

3.1
2.0
2.6

2.7
2.2
2.5

2.1
1.7
2.4

1.7
0.8
1.1

1.3
0.9
1.2

2005
4.0

Property crime
2013
2.9

2014
2.6

1.1
1.2
1.0
1.3

5.6
6.3
5.2
7.3

4.3
4.6
3.9
5.7

4.2
4.4
3.8
5.2

1.2
0.8
1.2

6.5
4.6
5.9

4.7
3.4
5.0

4.4
3.1
4.9

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005, 2013, and 2014.

Appendix Table 12
Standard errors for table 12: Distribution of types of rape and
sexual assault victimizations, 2005–2014
Type of rape/sexual assault
Completed rape
Attempted rape
Sexual assault
Unwanted sexual contact without force
Verbal threats of rape and sexual assault

Percent
2.1%
1.9
2.0
1.0
1.7

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2005-2014.

C R I M I N A L V I C T I M I Z AT I O N , 2014   AU G U S T 2015 

19

 The Bureau of Justice Statistics of the U.S. Department of Justice is the
principal federal agency responsible for measuring crime, criminal
victimization, criminal offenders, victims of crime, correlates of crime,
and the operation of criminal and civil justice systems at the federal, state,
tribal, and local levels. BJS collects, analyzes, and disseminates reliable and
valid statistics on crime and justice systems in the United States, supports
improvements to state and local criminal justice information systems,
and participates with national and international organizations to develop
and recommend national standards for justice statistics. William J. Sabol
is director.
This report was written by Jennifer L. Truman and Lynn Langton. Erika
Harrell verified the report.
Jill Thomas and Morgan Young edited the report, and Barbara Quinn
produced the report.
August 2015, NCJ 248973

Celebrating
35 years

NCJ248973

Office of Justice Programs
Innovation • Partnerships • Safer Neighborhoods
www.ojp.usdoj.gov