Examining the relationship between routine activities theory and social disorganization: An analysis of property crime victimization

1996 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura J. Moriarty ◽  
James E. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Social Disorganization ◽  
Property Crime ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
Routine Activities Theory ◽  
Crime Victimization ◽  
The Relationship

A Tale of Two Theories: Whither Social Disorganization Theory and the Routine Activities Approach?

2021 ◽  
pp. e20210013
Author(s):  
Jen-Li Shen ◽  
Martin A. Andresen
Keyword(s):  
Social Disorganization ◽  
Census Data ◽  
Property Crime ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
Routine Activity ◽  
Social Disorganization Theory ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Social Phenomena ◽  
Crime Types ◽  
Routine Activities Approach

Social disorganization theory and the routine activities approach have been extensively applied separately as theoretical frameworks for the spatial analysis of crime, with general support. As hypothetical explanations for complex social phenomena, criminological theories can impact how studies are framed and how the crime problem is approached. Thus, it is important to evaluate theories continuously in various geographical, as well as contemporary contexts. This study uses both theories in tandem to examine their ability to explain 2016 property crime in Vancouver, Canada, using 2016 census data. Both theories found moderate support. Of particular note is that all of the variables designated as proxies for ethnic heterogeneity in social disorganization theory were either not statistically significant or negative, consistent with the immigration and crime literature. Additionally, almost all variables, when statistically significant, were found to have consistent results across crime types. These results bode well for the continued use of social disorganization theory and the routine activity approach in spatial analyses of crime.

scholarly journals Are Adult Businesses Crime Hotspots? Comparing Adult Businesses to Other Locations in Three Cities

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Seaman ◽  
Daniel Linz
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Activity ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
Routine Activities Theory ◽  
Per Se ◽  
The Relationship

This study addresses three questions pertinent to the debate concerning the secondary crime effects of adult businesses. (1) Are adult businesses hotspots for crime? (2) How do adult businesses compare with controls with regard to crime? (3) What subclasses of adult business are most likely to be associated with crime? A study of three cities reveals that adult businesses tended to fall outside the heaviest concentrations of criminal activity. Further, adult bookstores were less related to crime than both cabarets and on-site liquor-serving establishments. While adult cabarets were associated with ambient crime, crime was generally equivalent to nonadult liquor-serving establishments. A weighted intensity value analyses revealed that crime generally was more “intense” around liquor-serving establishments than around adult cabarets across the municipalities. These findings suggest that the relationship between cabarets and crime is not due to the presence of adult entertainment per se but rather due to the presence of liquor service. This finding is consistent with central precept of routine activities theory that areas that contain public establishments that serve alcohol facilitate crime.

The Code of the Street and Violent Versus Property Crime Victimization

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 1049-1067 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan McNeeley ◽  
Pamela Wilcox
Keyword(s):  
Regression Models ◽  
Property Crime ◽  
Violent Victimization ◽  
Crime Victimization ◽  
Multilevel Regression ◽  
Code Of The Street ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Versus Property

Previous research has shown that individuals who adopt values in line with the code of the street are more likely to experience violent victimization (e.g., Stewart, Schreck, & Simons, 2006). This study extends this literature by examining the relationship between the street code and multiple types of violent and property victimization. This research investigates the relationship between street code–related values and 4 types of victimization (assault, breaking and entering, theft, and vandalism) using Poisson-based multilevel regression models. Belief in the street code was associated with higher risk of experiencing assault, breaking and entering, and vandalism, whereas theft victimization was not related to the street code. The results suggest that the code of the street influences victimization broadly—beyond violence—by increasing behavior that provokes retaliation from others in various forms.

scholarly journals Examination of Routine Activities Theory by the property crime

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uğur Argun ◽  
Murat Dağlar
Keyword(s):  
Activity Theory ◽  
Crime Prevention ◽  
Property Crime ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
Routine Activity Theory ◽  
Routine Activities Theory ◽  
Routine Activity ◽  
Property Crimes ◽  
The Many ◽  
Causes Of Crime

The studies on crime prevention, causes of crime and the theories associated with it are very essential topics in criminology. Routine Activities Theory (RAT) is also the basis for the many criminological theories. Although it has some shortcomings it is very usual that the theorists and practitioners on crime prevention can benefit from such a strong theory. This study explains the applicability of Routine Activities Theory in prevention and reducing of property crimes in the context of some parameters related to burglary and auto theft incidents in US. The study aims to give some information of the routine activity theory and investigate its relationship with prevention of property crimes. The results of study suggest that Routine Activity Theory may be used as a useful tool by crime reduction or prevention practitioners to evaluate crime problems and also take routine precautions and measures that reduce crime opportunities in people’s daily activities.

Development and Crime Drop: A Time-Series Analysis of Crime Rates in Hong Kong in the Last Three Decades

2020 ◽  
pp. 0306624X2096994
Author(s):  
Xi Chen ◽  
Hua Zhong
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Property Crime ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
Crime Rates ◽  
Routine Activities Theory ◽  
Crime Trends ◽  
Institutional Anomie Theory ◽  
Negatively Associated ◽  
Crime Drop ◽  
Anomie Theory

Although the recent crime drop in Western societies has rejuvenated crime trend studies, little is known about the crime trends and the corresponding explanations in the East. This study aims to fill the gaps by examining different types of offenses in Hong Kong between 1976 and 2017. Specifically, this study tests and evaluates major macro-level theoretical approaches explaining crime trends, including institutional anomie theory, routine activities theory, and deterrence theory. Using Error Correction Models, our analyses reveal that the strengths of different social institutions are negatively associated with crime rates, showing strong support to institutional anomie theory. The results also partially support routine activities theory by demonstrating that levels of economic development are negatively associated with both violent and property crime rates, and the number of mobile cellular subscriptions is negatively related to homicide rates. Deterrence explanations are mainly supported for property crime. These findings provide theoretical insights on the etiology of crime and also yield important policy suggestions on how to sustain the observed decline in crime rates in modern societies.

scholarly journals Silence Speaks: The Relationship between Immigration and the Underreporting of Crime

2015 ◽  
Vol 63 (8) ◽  
pp. 926-950 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen M. Gutierrez ◽  
David S. Kirk
Keyword(s):  
Metropolitan Area ◽  
Relative Size ◽  
Property Crime ◽  
Crime Reporting ◽  
National Crime Victimization Survey ◽  
Foreign Born ◽  
Crime Victimization ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The U.S

Scarce in criminological literature is an exploration of whether crime reporting varies geographically. Yet, there are substantive reasons to believe not only that the percentage of crimes reported to the police varies across jurisdictions but also that crime reporting can be explained by ecological characteristics. Drawing upon data from both the National Crime Victimization Survey and the U.S. census, this study examines the relationship between immigration and the likelihood that crimes are reported to the police. Results indicate that crime reporting is inversely related to increases in the relative size of both the noncitizen and foreign-born populations within a metropolitan area, and that the negative effect is greater for violence than for property crime. Implications for the underreporting of crime are discussed.

Quantifying the Local and Spatial Effects of Alcohol Outlets on Crime

2018 ◽  
Vol 65 (6) ◽  
pp. 845-871 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew P. Wheeler
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
Routine Activities Theory ◽  
Spatial Diffusion ◽  
Spatial Effects ◽  
Local Effects ◽  
Alcohol Outlets ◽  
Diffusion Effects ◽  
The Relationship

This article estimates the relationship between alcohol outlets and crime at micro place street units in Washington, D.C. The analysis tests several spatial hypotheses on the local and spatial diffusion effects of on-premise and off-premise alcohol outlets on crime motivated by routine activities theory as well as theories that emphasize individual alcohol consumption. Findings show that the spatial diffusion effects of alcohol outlets are larger than the local effects, the effects of on-premise and off-premise outlets are similar in magnitude, and alcohol outlets have larger effects on interpersonal crimes than burglary. These findings are interpreted as favoring routine activities theories for why alcohol outlets increase crime, as opposed to prior research which emphasizes individual alcohol consumption.

Lifestyle-Routine Activities, Neighborhood Context, and Ethnic Hate Crime Victimization

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (5) ◽  
pp. 932-948
Author(s):  
Susan McNeeley ◽  
Suzanne Overstreet
Keyword(s):  
Collective Efficacy ◽  
Social Disorganization ◽  
Hate Crime ◽  
Multilevel Models ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Routine Activities ◽  
Neighborhood Context ◽  
Social Disorganization Theory ◽  
Crime Victimization ◽  
Neighborhood Collective Efficacy

There is little empirical work examining how individuals’ characteristics and lifestyles may influence hate crime victimization. In addition, while recent research suggests that social disorganization theory is useful for understanding hate crime, more studies are needed to understand how community characteristics influence hate crime victimization. This study conducts multilevel models using survey data from approximately 3,700 individuals nested within 123 neighborhoods in order to examine whether lifestyles and neighborhood context contribute to ethnic hate crime victimization. The results identify several measures of lifestyle that are associated with hate crime victimization. In addition, neighborhood collective efficacy was related to lower risk for hate crime victimization. The results provide support for lifestyle-routine activities theory and social disorganization theory and contribute to our understanding of hate crime victimization.

Neighborhood Guardianship and Property Crime Victimization

2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (5) ◽  
pp. 519-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Wickes ◽  
Renee Zahnow ◽  
Lacey Schaefer ◽  
Michelle Sparkes-Carroll
Keyword(s):  
Property Crime ◽  
Crime Rates ◽  
Community Capacity ◽  
Crime Victimization ◽  
Residential Instability ◽  
Neighborhood Diversity ◽  
Australian Community ◽  
Regression Techniques ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
The Relationship

In this study, we assess the extent to which the availability of guardians, guardianship expectations, and guardianship actions explain the variation of neighborhood property crime rates and self-reported property crime victimization. Furthermore, we examine whether or not the strength of these relationships is moderated by the neighborhood composition. We use data from the Australian Community Capacity Study (ACCS), a survey of 4,000 respondents from 148 neighborhoods across Brisbane, Australia, and employ regression and multi-level regression techniques. We find that particular aspects of guardianship do protect against crime; however, the relationship between guardianship and crime is influenced by neighborhood diversity, disadvantage, and residential instability.

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