Comparative Analysis of the Theories and Methods Used in...

The following paper is a comparative analysis of the theories and methods used by the authors of â€Å"Inked into Crime? An Examination of the Casual Relationships between Tattoos and Life-Course-Offending among males from the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development† (Jennings, Hahn, Farrington 2014) and â€Å"Nonmainstream Body Modification: Genital Piercing, Branding, Burning, and Cutting† (Myers 1992). Jennings, Hahn, and Farrington’s article investigates the correlation between tattoos and deviant behavior. In addition, the researches ultimately want to discover if the relationship between tattoos and crime may in fact be casual, or are just another symptom of developmental risk factors and personality traits (Jennings, Hahn, Farrington 79).†¦show more content†¦Included in the study were males, females, homosexuals, heterosexuals, and bisexuals. Myers spent a vast amount of time exploring various workshops and tattoo/piercing studios observing, in terviewing, and lecturing individuals on his current study. An example of this is when Myers attended the Living in Leather Convention as he stated â€Å"I was able to expand my involvement by showing my body modification slides to several people, attending parties, and helping out at the host organization’s hospitality suite† (1992:176). Though both studies rely heavily on body modification, they differ in a couple of ways. While the first study was considered a longitudinal study, the second one was considered a quasi-experimental study. The first study was done in a period of 53 years while the second study was done in a period of 2 years. Another difference is that the first study relied on a different type of sampling than the second. The first one involved quota sampling because the researchers knew exactly who they wanted to choose for participants in their study. The second study involved both random and accidental sampling for data observation and collection. I believe that Jennings, Hahn, and Farrington’s (2014) study was less effective than Myer’s study. Though Jennings, Hahn, and Farrington’s study is the first longitudinal study to measure tattoo-crime link, there are a few limitations. Instead of using a quota sample of