The Space-Time Continuum: A Longitudinal Analysis of Crime Hot Spots

• In Event: Spatial Longitudinal Processes and Crime

Abstract

It has long been established that crime is spatially concentrated at micro units of analysis (e.g., street segments and blocks). That is, crime is not randomly distributed across space, but rather, a high percentage of all street crimes are attributed to a small proportion of the micro units analyzed. In spite of this robust feature of the social ecology of crime, there remains limited research concerning the temporal stability of existing hot-spots and the spatial features that explain the formation of new ones. In this study, using a sample of U.S. cities that has longitudinal crime data at a minimum of 7 years, we employ various spatial techniques in order to identify hot spots overtime, and compliment such identification with empirical analyses that reveals sociodemographic patterns of areas in which hot spots are nested. We contend that to better understand hot spots requires consideration of the “space-time continuum”; an analytical and explanatory framework that integrates considerations of space and time.

Authors

• James Wo, University of California, Irvine

• Young-an Kim, University of California, Irvine

• John R. Hipp, University of California, Irvine