How do offender-victim dynamics differ across spatial patterns within a small southern city or college town?

• In Event: Roundtable: Efforts to Engage with Urban Bias in Neighborhood Studies of Crime

Abstract

Research and discourse about neighborhood correlates of homicide has long suffered from urban bias, but many smaller and medium size cities have seen increased levels of homicide. This study contributes to research on neighborhood correlates of homicide by examining variation in homicide in the midsize southern city, Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Tuscaloosa was selected because it has seen an increase in gun violence in recent years. The first set of analyses examines the bivariate correlations of population characteristics with homicide levels. The second set of analyses examines the spatial distribution of key population characteristics and homicide levels. Preliminary findings indicate homicide levels were positively correlated with environmental factors such as neighborhood instability, lack of social trust, and open gateway to legal or illegal firearms with intent to harm.

Author

• William Brock, University of Alabama