Highway to Hell

• In Event: Poster Session I

Abstract

Recent literature has shown that multiple factors matter when looking at how disadvantage and highway exits predict robberies. These characteristics take into account geographical variables such as interstates and interstate exits and their relation to robbery. A disadvantage score will be composed to test whether or not disadvantage moderates this relationship. Preliminary results show that in counties where there are more interstates, there are usually higher robbery rates as well as higher levels of disadvantage. Theory will stem from environmental criminology and Geographical Information Systems in order to encapsulate the variety of factors affecting the relationship between disadvantage, highway exits, and robberies. Narrowing the lens of environmental criminology, pattern theory and routine activates theory will be used to select the variables utilized in this study. We posit that in areas where there are a higher number of highway exits, the robbery count will be higher than in areas where there are few to no highway exits.

Authors

• Kayla Toohy, University of Memphis

• Karli Province, University of Memphis

• James McCutcheon, University of Memphis

• Bert Burraston, University of Memphis