The Potential of Remote Sensing Data in Urban Crime Analysis

• In Event: Communities and Place: Crime and Fear of Crime: Exploring Emerging Methodologies

Abstract

Existing methods for gathering crime-relevant urban environment data rely heavily on detailed and expensive fieldwork, frequently yielding inflexible results that often fail to capture changes over time. In this presentation, we examine the use of remote sensing data in environmental criminology as an alternative data source/approach. Through a comprehensive literature review spanning 2003 to 2023, we assess how remote sensing data uncovers urban design elements tied to crime. Highlighting 36 pivotal studies, we show that high-resolution imagery provides insights into criminogenic urban features, such as street patterns and lighting, which can work as alternative data in resource-poor urban environments, where conventional data are not available. The potential of this technology brings forth pressing concerns regarding privacy violations and the need for rigorously validated analytical approaches. We discuss the opportunities and challenges for future criminological research.

Authors

• Vania Ceccato, KTH Royal Institute of Technology

• Ioannis Ioannidis, KTH Royal Institute of Technology