Toward a Consistent Set of Predictors in Small Unit Analyses of Crime

• In Event: Spatial Theory and Measurement

Abstract

There has been substantial recent attention to sub-city level units of analysis in crime research, such as street segments, hot spots, and census-based units such as blocks, block groups, and census tracts. The range of crime predictor variables included in this research has been quite variable. Given the volume of research in this area, we argue that developing a set of “usual suspect” predictors makes will help guide both researchers and practitioners, who otherwise have to rely on a fairly ad hoc, “what data do we have hand” approach. Our goal for the project is to examine the socio-economic and physical environment/ land use factors that predict crime in a systematic way. Using the extant research literature to identify a starting point, we obtained information for the city of Indianapolis to explore which factors predict crime. This goal is to identify a comprehensive set of predictors, which will then be tested in other cities for robustness.

Authors

• Thomas D. Stucky, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis

• Eric L. Piza, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

• Jeremy G. Carter, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis