Citation

Sparks CS. Spat. Spatiotemporal Epidemiol. 2011; 2(4): 301-309.

Affiliation

Department of Demography, The University of Texas at San Antonio, 501 West Durango Blvd., San Antonio, TX 78207, USA; Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.sste.2011.10.001

PMID

22748228

Abstract

Violent crimes are rarely considered a public health problem or investigated using epidemiological methods. But patterns of violent crime and other health conditions are often affected by similar characteristics of the built environment. In this paper, methods and perspectives from spatial epidemiology are used in an analysis of violent crimes in San Antonio, TX. Bayesian statistical methods are used to examine the contextual influence of several aspects of the built environment. Additionally, spatial regression models using Bayesian model specifications are used to examine spatial patterns of violent crime risk. Results indicate that the determinants of violent crime depend on the model specification, but are primarily related to the built environment and neighborhood socioeconomic conditions. Results are discussed within the context of a rapidly growing urban area with a diverse population.

Language: en