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Crime Mapping

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Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice

Synonyms

Geographical analysis; Geography of crime

Overview

Crime mapping is the direct application that comes from considering two particular characteristics about crime – it has an inherent geographical quality and crime does not happen randomly. That is, all crime occurs at some location, and it is the features of this location and the nature of the crime that has been committed, including the decision-making of an offender and their interaction with a victim (or other target such as a building), that make the study of its geography useful for law enforcement and public safety. This can include responding to calls for service, identifying crime hot spots, and supporting the investigation of a crime series.

This section begins by discussing the fundamental theoretical principles that underpin crime mapping, offers a brief history of its development, and then illustrates examples of its application. The final section identifies future directions for its development.

Theoretical...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jill Dando Institute of Security and Crime Science, University College London, 35 Tavistock Square, London, WC1H 9EZ, UK

    Spencer Chainey

Authors
  1. Spencer Chainey
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Spencer Chainey .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR), Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Gerben Bruinsma

  2. VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Gerben Bruinsma

  3. Department of Criminology, Law and Society, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA

    David Weisburd

  4. Faculty of Law, The Hebrew University, Mt. Scopus, Jerusalem, Israel

    David Weisburd

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Chainey, S. (2014). Crime Mapping. In: Bruinsma, G., Weisburd, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5690-2_317

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5690-2_317

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-5689-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-5690-2

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