National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) Instrument Redesign Series

The Bureau of Justice Statistics initiated a multiyear effort to improve the efficiency, reliability, and utility of the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). The effort had three main goals: modernize the organization and content of the NCVS instrument, increase the quality of information collected and efficiency of the instrument flow, and improve the measurement and classification of crime. BJS, in collaboration with Westat, conducted a large-scale national field test from October 2019 to March 2020 to compare the performance of the current NCVS instrument and procedures (Condition 1) against the redesigned instrument (Condition 2). A web test was also conducted to explore the feasibility of using a self-administered, web-based instrument for the NCVS.