Social Disorganization Theory Within the Context of the Social Environment in China: A Geographic Weighted Regression Analysis

• In Event: ACCCJ Empirical Criminological Research on China

Abstract

Since 1979 China has experienced rapid economic growth accompanied by extensive social reform. Among all significant change is the massive rural-urban migration. According to China's National Bureau of Statistics, China’s urban population increased from 17.9% in 1978 to 54.8% in 2014. During the same time period, people working in the primary sector of the economy decreased from 70.5% to 29.5%, while people working in the tertiary sector increased from 12.2% to 40.6% of the total population. As the significant change of the social structure has impacted the social organization/disorganization of society, it has also influenced China's crime rate. The current paper examines the spatial patterns of property crime from 2015, using Geographic Weighted Regression methods and official data from a province located in the Yangtze River Delta Economic Region. The applicability of social disorganization theory is also tested within the context of the social environment in China.

Authors

• Ning Zhang, People’s Public Security University of China

• Yan Zhang, Sam Houston State University