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Research into the relationships between climatic and temporal variables and various types of violent crime has become increasingly popular over the last 30 years. Recently, Perry and Simpson (1987) published a study examining the relationships among several environmental variables, including monthly and seasonal cycles, temperature and precipitation, and the monthly rates of murder, rape, and aggravated assault in Raleigh, North Carolina. This article examines the recent literature on environmental variables and crime, examines Perry and Simpson's research methodology, procedure, and results, and suggests improvements for future research in this area.

AbstractThe decision to report domestic violence is often conditional on whether victims were satisfied with their prior treatment by the criminal justice system. One issue in reporting victimization is that victims of domestic violence may also be involved with the system as offenders. The current paper systematically reviews research on this overlap, finding that most research supports that victims who also have criminal backgrounds are significantly less likely to report subsequent experiences of domestic violence, and are less likely and able to seek out social services, particularly when they report prior negative experiences. The paper then identifies theoretical and policy‐based implications of the review findings.

Based on the negative affect escape (NAE) model of heat and aggression, it was hypothesized that relationships between temperature and aggravated assaultswould be moderated by access to air conditioning. This hypothesis was tested by subjecting calls for service received by police in Dallas, Texas, to multivariate analyses of covariance that employed weather variables as predictors and controlled for the temporal variables of holidays, time of day, day of the week, and season of the year. As the NAE model predicts, assaults in probably climate-controlled settings were a linear function of temperature, whereas assaults in settings that probably lacked climate control declined after peaking at moderately high temperatures. The results are consistent with recent attempts to use the concept of social avoidance to integrate routine activity theory and psychological theories of aggression.

Two archival analyses were performed to examine the association between annual temperatures and U.S. crime rates. The first was based on area-averaged temperatures in the United States as a whole for the years 1950 through 1999. Box-Jenkins time-series analyses indicated that annual temperatures were associated with assault but not murder rates in analyses that controlled for yearly population, ethnicity, and three economic variables. The second analysis was based on state-centered crime rates from 1960 through 1998 and included the same controls. Contrary to the general aggression model, cross-sectional time-series analyses indicated that annual temperatures were associated with rates for assault, rape, robbery, burglary, and larceny, but not murder or motor vehicle theft. The results are consistent with a routine activity theory interpretation of everyday and criminal behavior.

It is proposed that the seemingly contradictory predictions of routine activity theory and the negative affect escape (NAE) model of aggression can be reconciled by viewing inclement weather (particularly extreme heat and cold) as a factor that reduces social contact by leading individuals to avoid outdoor settings. This proposal was evaluated by combining previously published data on assaults with unpublished data on complaints about disorderly conduct, which reflect the less savory aspects of social contact. Moderator-variable time-series analyses of data from Minneapolis, Minnesota, covering a 2-year period, indicated that the inverted U-shaped relationship between temperature and assault was reduced, and temperature's interaction with seasons vanished, following statistical control for complaints about disorderly conduct.

Little is known about spatial and temporal variations of violent crime in South Africa. This article addresses this gap by investigating the seasonality of assault at a neighborhood level in the city of Tshwane. The authors first investigate whether assault is seasonal, and then examine the association between seasonal levels of assault and area measures of social deprivation for urban neighborhoods in Tshwane. Similar to previous international research, the authors found that assault is seasonal, with higher incidences of assault in summer. Deprived neighborhoods exhibited higher rates of assault than more affluent neighborhoods. Assault levels in urban neighborhoods were found to be socially stratified and spatially patterned regardless of the season of the year. More deprived neighborhoods had higher assault rates in summer, whereas in winter, assault rates were more equably split over neighborhoods ranging from high to low deprivation. More affluent neighborhoods typically exhibited lower assault rates in summer.

AbstractWhile the relationship between immigration and crime has been the focus of international research, particularly in Europe and North America, less attention has been paid to different rates of incarceration of foreign citizens between countries. Using data from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime on persons held in prison between 2015 and 2019, this study examines the impact of nationality on incarceration rates. The principal findings suggest, in most European countries, a significantly higher rate of foreign citizens held in prison compared to non‐immigrants. Conversely, the four Anglo‐Saxon countries studied here (Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, and the United States of America) did not demonstrate such a high rate of disparity compared to non‐immigrants. These results suggest the need to further identify the sociocultural and institutional factors that generate these differences between countries in order to develop equitable criminal justice systems across European and Anglo‐Saxon countries.

This brief examines the influence and prestige of scholars and works in the field of Criminology and Criminal Justice, as well as changes in influence and prestige over a period of 25 years, based on citation analysis. Methods of measuring scholarly influence can be highly controversial, but the authors of this work clearly outline their methodology, developed over years of experience working with this area of study. Through their expertise in Criminology and Criminal Justice, they are able to solve problems that affect or confound many traditional forms of citation analysis, such as irregularly cited references or self-citations. It includes 25 years of data (1986 through 2010) on the most-cited scholars and works in major American and international Criminology and Criminal Justice journals, and provides an objective measure of influence and prestige. Through an analysis of the data, the authors also document the intellectual development of criminology and criminal justice as a field of study since 1986. They highlight the development of research trends and indicate areas for future research. This book is designed for use by scholars and academics in the fields of Criminology and Criminal Justice, and the methodology will be of interest to researchers in related disciplines, including Sociology and Social Psychology. -- Cohn, Farrington, and Iratzoqui provide an invaluable service in unpacking the criminological enterprise. Using systematic citational analysis, they illuminate the core patterns of scholarly influence that have shaped the field's development. This volume is an essential resource for all those wishing to understand which scholars and writings have done most-within and across time periods-to affect thinking about crime and justice. Francis T. Cullen Distinguished Research Professor University of Cincinnati - Citation analyses have become one of the most significant measures of scholarly influence. They are especially useful for revealing major trends over time regarding authors and the topics of interest to the wider field. Cohn, Farrington, and Iratzoqui's Most Cited Scholars in Criminology and Criminal Justice, 1986-2010 provides the most up-to-date, comprehensive, and longitudinal investigation of scholarly influence in criminology/criminal justice. This resource is a most interesting read, one that supplies not a mere counting of citations but clear ideas about where the field has been centered and where it i ...

This brief examines the influence and prestige of scholars and works in the field of criminology and criminal justice, as well as changes in influence and prestige over a period of 35 years, using citation analysis. Based on responses to prior research, most criminologists consider the results both fascinating and thought-provoking, although methods of measuring scholarly influence are also highly controversial. The brief includes 35 years of data (1986 through 2020) on the most-cited scholars and works in major American and international criminology and criminal justice journals, and provides an objective measure of scholarly influence and prestige. Appropriate for graduate students and researchers, it helps to document the intellectual development of criminology and criminal justice as a field of study.