Data Analysis and Interpretation Flashcards

A crime analyst notices that robbery rates spike every Friday between 9 PM and midnight. This is an example of what type of pattern?

Answer: Temporal pattern

Crimes consistently occurring at specific days and times represent a temporal pattern.

A dataset of response times in minutes is: 4, 7, 3, 9, 5, 6, 3, 8, 3, 7. What is the mode?

Answer: 3

The value 3 appears three times, more than any other value, making it the mode.

Monthly DUI arrests for a year total 144. If arrests are evenly distributed, what is the expected count per quarter?

Answer: 36

144 arrests ÷ 4 quarters = 36 arrests per quarter.

A heat map shows high crime concentration in the northeast sector of a city. Which analytical action is most appropriate next?

Answer: Investigate socioeconomic and environmental factors in that sector

Investigating contributing factors in the identified hot spot allows for targeted, evidence-based intervention.

Crime data for five neighborhoods shows: A=55, B=30, C=45, D=70, E=25. What is the median crime count?

Answer: 45

Sorted: 25, 30, 45, 55, 70 — the middle value (3rd) is 45.

An officer reviews a line graph showing crime trends over 10 years. The line rises steeply for 3 years then flattens. What does the flat portion suggest?

Answer: The rate of increase has slowed or stabilized

A flat line on a trend graph indicates that values are stable, meaning the rate of change has slowed to near zero.

A contingency table shows 120 traffic stops: 45 resulted in citations, 30 in warnings, 25 in arrests, and 20 in no action. What fraction of stops resulted in citations?

Answer: 3/8

45/120 = 3/8 of all traffic stops resulted in citations.