Alcohol outlets as crime hot spots within city space
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-3180.33.05Keywords:
POS of alcohol, crime hotspots, the quotient of the localisation of crimes, land developmentAbstract
Literature from within the geography of crime and environmental criminology has for decades presented evidence for the existence of certain patterns of distribution of places where crime is committed in the urban space, as well as for the fact that various ways of land utilisation influence the distribution of crime. Already in previous analyses of the spatial distribution of crime, attention had been directed towards their (the crimes’) relations with the localisation of the points of sale (POS) of alcohol, as well as the relationship between consuming such drinks and the inclination towards committing illegal acts and acts that contradict the social norms by people under the influence of hard liquors. Such relationships were already noticed two hundred years ago by A. Quetelet, and after him, of course, by the representatives of the Chicago School of Social Ecology.
The objective of the presented research results is to draw attention to the role of the POS of alcohol in the spatial distribution of crimes in the area of the Old Bałuty estate in Łódź. The specific area of the district which has a ‘difficult’ past and is stereotypically perceived as strongly encumbered with crime among other things has been selected purposefully. In the future, it will be worth to confront these results with areas of the city that have a different history and social characteristics.
This article answers the questions about the spatial structure of chargeable acts committed within the space of the said estate, as well as about the sphere of influence of the POS of alcohol on the intensification of particular categories of crime in the immediate neighbourhood. The article broadens the Polish literature on the subject of crime distribution within the space of estates, analysing the so far insufficiently described range of influence of the POS of alcohol.
For defining the intensity of crimes and determining the zone of influence consisting in attracting some categories of crimes in the neighbourhood of the POS of alcohol, the LQC index was used. Information about the structure of registered crimes and their localisation was obtained from the Voivodeship Police Headquarters, while the database about the POS of alcohol was created based on the stock-taking of the estate’s terrain. The database initially used in the analysis included 739 identified crimes and 49 POS of alcohol.
As a result of conducting these analyses, it was determined that there exists a strong negative influence of the POS of alcohol, which attract particular categories of crimes; it turned out that these are mainly criminal offences against property, against life and health, and against dignity and bodily inviolability. The zone of negative impact of the POS of alcohol in relation to the places where crimes were committed was limited – based on this research – to around 100 metres, while only sexual crimes are moved beyond the 100-metres-wide neighbourhood of the alcohol distribution. In comparison with the results from the works cited in this article, the zone of influence of the POS of alcohol is of a relatively small size. Also on the contrary; in comparison with what has been determined in world literature, it turned out that in the zone of the Old Bałuty, higher LQC values were calculated for the direct neighbourhood of supermarkets and convenient shops rather than for off-licences and bars.
Recommendations and discussion resulting from these facts should influence the policy of crime prevention in terms of the localisation of objects, managing them, and the rules of maintaining the social and spatial order in their neighbourhood.
Downloads
References
Andresen M., Brantingham P.J., Kinney B., 2009, Classics in environmental criminology, Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781439817803
Badziak K., 2017, Historyczne Bałuty do wybuchu I wojny światowej, [w:] M.J. Szymański, D. Staniszewska, T. Kochelski (red.), Bałuty – legenda i rzeczywistość, Dom Wydawniczy Księży Młyn–Muzeum Miasta Łodzi, Łódź: 7–50.
Google Scholar
Bensley L.S., Wu R., 1991, The Role of Psychological Reactance in Drinking Following Alcohol Prevention Messages, „Journal of Applied Social Psychology”, 21: 1111–1124.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.1991.tb00461.x
Bowers K., 2013, Risky facilities: crime radiators or crime absorbers? A comparison of internal and external levels of theft, „Journal of Quantitative Criminology”, 30(3): 389–414.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10940-013-9208-z
Brantingham P.J., Brantingham P.L., 1993, Environment, routine and situation: Toward a pattern theory of crime, [w:] R.V. Clarke, M. Felson (red.), Routine activity and rational choice, „Advances in Criminological Theory”, 5: 259–294.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315128788-12
Brantingham P.J., Brantingham P.L., 1995, Criminality of Place. Crime Generators and Crime Attractors, „European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research”, 13(3): 5–26.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02242925
Bromley R.D.F., Nelson A.L., 2002, Alcohol-related Crime and Disorder Across Urban Space and Time: Evidence from a British City, „Geoforum”, 33(2): 239–254.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0016-7185(01)00038-0
Cameron M.P., 2022, The relationship between alcohol outlets and crime is not an artefact of retail geography, „Addiction”, 117(8): 2215–2224.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/add.15880
Ceccato V., 2009, Crime in a city in transition: the case of Tallinn, Estonia, „Urban Studies”, 46(8): 1611–1638.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0042098009105501
Ceccato V., Haining R., Signoretta P., 2002, Exploring crime statistics in Stockholm using spatial analysis tools, „Annals of the Association of American Geographers”, 92(1): 29–51.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8306.00278
Conrow L., Aldstadt J., Mendoza N.S., 2015, A spatio-temporal analysis of on-premises alcohol outlets and violent crime events in Buffalo, NY, „Applied Geography”, 58: 198–205.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2015.02.006
Czarnecki B., 2011, Przestrzenne aspekty przestępczości. Metoda identyfikacji czynników zagrożeń w przestrzeni miejskiej, Oficyna Wydawnicza Politechniki Białostockiej, Białystok.
Google Scholar
Davies M., Mouzos J., 2007, Homicide in Australia: 2005–2006 National Homicide Monitoring Program Annual Report, „Research and Public Policy Series”, 77, https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/rpp/rpp77 (dostęp: 12.10.2022).
Google Scholar
Day P., Breetzke G., Kingham S., Campbell M., 2012, Close proximity to alcohol outlets is associated with increased serious violent crime in New Zealand, „Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health”, 36(1): 48–54.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1753-6405.2012.00827.x
Felson M., Boivin R., 2015, Daily crime flows within a city, „Crime Science”, 4(31): 1–10.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40163-015-0039-0
Freisthler B., 2004, A spatial analysis of social disorganization, alcohol access, and rates of child maltreatment in neighborhoods, „Children and Youth Services Review”, 26(9): 803–819.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2004.02.022
Gajewicz P., 2017, Łódź – Bałuty. Jak się tutaj żyje? (Dzielnicowe opowieści), https://www.morizon.pl/blog/lodz-baluty-jak-sie-tutaj-zyje/ (dostęp: 19.08.2022).
Google Scholar
Gorman D.M., Speer P.W., Gruenewald P.J., Labouvie E.W., 2001, Spatial Dynamics of alcohol availability, neighborhood structure and violent crime, „Journal of Studies on Alcohol”, 62(5): 628–636.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15288/jsa.2001.62.628
Groff E.R., 2011, Exploring „near”: Characterizing the spatial extent of drinking place influence on crime, „Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology”, 44(2): 156–179.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0004865811405253
Groff E.R., Lockwood B., 2014, Criminogenic facilities and crime across street segments in Philadelphia: Uncovering evidence about the spatial extent of facility influence, „Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency”, 51(3): 277–314.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022427813512494
Groff E.R., McCord E.S., 2011, The Role of Neighborhood Parks as Crime Generators, „Security Journal”, 25: 1–24.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/sj.2011.1
Grubesic T.H., Pridemore W.A., 2011, Alcohol outlets and clusters of violence, „International Journal of Health Geographics”, 10: 30.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1476-072X-10-30
Gruenewald P.J., 2011, Regulating availability: How access to alcohol reflects drinking and problems in youth and adults, „Alcohol Research & Health”, 34(2): 248–256.
Google Scholar
Gruenewald P.J., Freisthler B., Remer L., LaScala E.A., Treno A., 2006, Ecological models of alcohol outlets and violent assaults: Crime potentials and geospatial analysis, „Addiction”, 101(5): 666–677.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2006.01405.x
Hammond L., Youngs D., 2011, Decay functions and criminal spatial processes: Geographical offender profiling of volume crime, „Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling”, 8(1): 90–102.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jip.132
Hobbs M., Marek L., Wiki J., Campbell M., Deng B.Y., Sharpe H., McCarthy J., Kingham S., 2020, Close proximity to alcohol outlets is associated with increased crime and hazardous drinking: Pooled nationally representative data from New Zealand, „Health & Place”, 65: 102397.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2020.102397
Homel R., Hauritz M., Wortley R., McIlwain G., Carvolth R., 1997, Preventing Alcohol-related Crime Through Community Action: The Surfers Paradise Safety Action Project, [w:] R. Homel (red.), Policing for Prevention: Reducing Crime, Public Intoxication and Injury, Criminal Justice Press, Monsey: 35–90, http://hdl.handle.net/10072/12385 (dostęp: 12.10.2022).
Google Scholar
Kumar N., Waylor C.R.M., 2003, Proximity to Alcohol-serving Establishments and Crime Probabilities in Savannah, Georgia: A Statistical and GIS Analysis, „Southeastern Geographer”, 43(1): 125–142.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1353/sgo.2003.0015
Lardier D.T., Reid R.J., Yu D., Garcia‐Reid P., 2020, A spatial analysis of alcohol outlet density and abandoned properties on violent crime in Paterson New Jersey, „Journal of Community Health”, 45(3): 534–541.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-019-00772-0
Livingston M., 2011, A longitudinal analysis of alcohol outlet density and domestic violence, „Addiction”, 106(5): 919–925.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2010.03333.x
Loukaitou-Sideris A., 2012, Safe on the Move: The Importance of the Built Environment, [w:] V. Ceccato (red.), The Urban Fabric of Crime and Fear, Springer, Dordrecht: 85–110.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4210-9_4
Loukaitou-Sideris A., Liggett R., Iseki H., Thurlow W., 2001, Measuring the effects of built environment on bus stop crime, „Environment and Planning B”, 28(2): 255–280.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1068/b2642r
Madensen T.D., Eck J.E., 2008, Violence in bars: Exploring the impact of place manager decision-making, „Crime Prevention and Community Safety”, 10(2): 111–125.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/cpcs.2008.2
Marco M., Freisthler B., Gracia E., López‐Quílez A., Lila M., 2017, Neighborhood characteristics, alcohol outlet density, and alcohol‐related calls‐for‐service: A spatiotemporal analysis in a wet drinking country, „International Journal of Geo‐Information”, 6(12): 380.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6120380
Matthews S.A., Yang T.C., Hayslett K.L., Ruback R.B., 2010, Built environment and property crime in Seattle, 1998–2000: A Bayesian analysis, „Environment & Planning A”, 42(6): 1403–1420.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1068/a42393
McCord E.S., Ratcliffe J.H., 2009, Intensity value analysis and the criminogenic effects of land use features on local crime problems, „Crime Patterns and Analysis”, 2(1): 17–30.
Google Scholar
McCord E., Ratcliffe J.H., Garcia R.M., Taylor R.B., 2007, Nonresidential crime attractors and generators elevate perceived neighborhood crime and incivilities, „Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency”, 44(3): 295–320.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022427807301676
Mordwa S., 2013, Przestępczość i poczucie bezpieczeństwa w przestrzeni miasta. Przykład Łodzi, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego, Łódź.
Google Scholar
Mordwa S., 2015, Techniki GIS – w poszukiwaniu hot spotów przestępczości, „Archiwum Kryminologii”, 37: 279–302.
Google Scholar
Mordwa S., 2016, The geography of crime in Poland and its interrelationship with other fields of study, „Geographia Polonica”, 89(2): 187–202.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7163/GPol.0053
Newton A., Hirschfield A.F., 2009, Measuring Violence in and around Licensed Premises: The Need for a Better Evidence Base, „Crime Prevention and Community Safety”, 11(3): 171–188.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/cpcs.2009.12
Quetelet L.A.J., 2014, A Treatise on Man and the Development of his Faculties, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139864909
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139864909
Quick M., Law J., Luan H., 2017, The influence of on‐premise and off‐premise alcohol outlets on reported violent crime in the region of Waterloo, Ontario: Applying Bayesian spatial modeling to inform land use planning and policy, „Applied Spatial Analysis and Policy”, 10(3): 435–454.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12061-016-9191-5
Ratcliffe J.H., 2004, Geocoding crime and a first estimate of a minimum acceptable hit rate, „International Journal of Geographical Information Science”, 18(1): 61–72.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13658810310001596076
Ratcliffe J.H., 2012, The Spatial Extent of Criminogenic Places: A Changepoint Regression of Violence around Bars, „Geographical Analysis”, 44(4): 302–320.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-4632.2012.00856.x
Roman C.G., Reid S.E., 2012, Assessing the relationship between alcohol outlets and domestic violence: routine activities and the neighborhood environment, „Violence and Victims”, 27(5): 811–828.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.27.5.811
Romley J.A., Cohen D.A., Ringel J.S., Sturm R., 2007, The density of liquor stores and bars in urban neighborhoods in the United States, „Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs”, 68(1): 48–55.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15288/jsad.2007.68.48
Roncek D.W., Bell R., 1981, Bars, blocks, and crimes, „Journal of Environmental Systems”, 11(1): 35–47.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2190/R0G0-FRWY-100J-6KTB
Roncek D.W., Maier P.A., 1991, Bars, Blocks, and Crimes Revisited Linking the Theory of Routine Activities to the Empiricism of „Hot Spots”, „Criminology”, 29(4): 725–753.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-9125.1991.tb01086.x
Rutkiewicz P., 2018, Limanka. Tu morda nie szklanka. Jak się żyje przy okrytej złą sławą ulicy w Łodzi?, https://lodz.wyborcza.pl/lodz/7,44788,23778730,limanka-tu-morda-nie-szklanka-jak-sie-zyje-przy-okrytejzla.html (dostęp: 19.08.2022).
Google Scholar
Shaw C.R., McKay H.D., 1942, Juvenile delinquency and urban areas, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1334446
Sherman L.W., Gartin P.R., Buerger M.E., 1989, Hot spots of predatory crime: Routine activities and the criminology of place, „Criminology”, 27(1): 27–56.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-9125.1989.tb00862.x
Snowden A.J., 2019, Exploring violence: The role of neighborhood characteristics, alcohol outlets, and other micro-places, „Social Science Research”, 82: 181–194.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2019.04.018
Spicer V., Reid A.A., Ginther J., Seifi H., Dabbaghian V., 2012, Bars on blocks: A cellular automata model of crime and liquor licensed establishment density, „Computers, Environment and Urban Systems”, 36(5): 412–422.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compenvurbsys.2012.02.004
Sypion-Dutkowska N., 2014, Uwarunkowania przestrzenne przestępczości w wielkim mieście w ujęciu GIS (na przykładzie Szczecina), „Studia Komitetu Przestrzennego Zagospodarowania Kraju Polskiej Akademii Nauk”, 159.
Google Scholar
Sypion-Dutkowska N., Leitner M., 2017, Land Use Influencing the Spatial Distribution of Urban Crime: A Case Study of Szczecin, Poland, „ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information”, 6(3): 74.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6030074
Toomey T.L., Erickson D.J., Carlin B.P., Lenk K.M., Quick H.S., Jones A.M., Harwood E.M., 2012, The association between density of alcohol establishments and violent crime within urban neighborhoods, „Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research”, 36(8): 1468–1473.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1530-0277.2012.01753.x
Wang F., Hu Y., Wang S., Li X., 2017, Local Indicator of Colocation Quotient with a Statistical Significance Test: Examining Spatial Association of Crime and Facilities, „The Professional Geographer”, 69(1): 22–31.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00330124.2016.1157498
White R.C., 1932, The relationship of felonies to environmental factors in Indianapolis, „Social Forces”, 10(4): 498–513.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2569897
Yue H., Zhu X., Ye X., Guo W., 2017, The Local Colocation Patterns of Crime and Land-Use Features in Wuhan, China, „ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information”, 6(10): 307.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi6100307
Zhu L., Gorman D.M., Horel S., 2004, Alcohol outlet density and violence: a geospatial analysis, „Alcohol and Alcoholism”, 39(4): 369–375.
Google Scholar
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/alcalc/agh062
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.