A woman's place is in the home: Females and residential burglary

Little is known about the nature of women's participation in residential burglary, an offense statistically dominated by males. This paper examines women's involvement in residential burglary by comparing the characteristics of female burglars to those of their male counterparts and by outlining a typology of female burglars which emphasizes their roles during offenses. In some respects, female and male burglars do not appear to differ significantly. Nevertheless, the results suggest that important differences also may exist. Most important, the findings demonstrate that women's involvement in residential burglary, like men's, is marked by diversity. The theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.     

THE NARROWING GENDER GAP IN ARRESTS: ASSESSING COMPETING EXPLANATIONS USING SELF‐REPORT,TRAFFIC FATALITY,AND OFFICIAL DATA ON DRUNK DRIVING, 1980–2004*

We evaluate two alternative explanations for the converging gender gap in arrest—changes in women's behavior versus changes in mechanisms of social control. Using the offense of drunk driving and three methodologically diverse data sets, we explore trends in the DUI gender gap. We probe for change across various age groups and across measures tapping DUI prevalence and chronicity. Augmented Dickey‐Fuller time‐series techniques are used to assess changes in the gender gap and levels of drunk driving from 1980 to 2004. Analyses show women of all ages making arrest gains on men—a converging gender gap. In contrast, self‐report and traffic data indicate little or no systematic change in the DUI gender gap. Findings support the conclusion that mechanisms of social control have shifted to target female offending patterns disproportionately. Little support exists for the contention that increased strain and liberalized gender roles have altered the gender gap or female drunk‐driving patterns.     

AN EXPLORATION OF THE DETERMINANTS OF REPORTING CRIME TO THE POLICE IN THE CITY OF TIANJIN,CHINA*

Western research has investigated three types of correlates of crime reporting–victim‐specific (individual or household), incident‐specific, and environment‐specific variables. The current study applies this general, analytical framework to explore the determinants of crime reporting to the police in contemporary urban China. Using data collected from a recent survey of criminal victimization in Tianjin, we assess the determinants for reporting of robbery, assault, personal theft, and household burglary. The results consistently show that offense seriousness is a significant predictor of reporting for all offenses studied. Also, a nonlinear relationship between neighborhood disadvantage and reporting of burglary is found. In contrast, individual‐specific and household‐specific factors do not affect reporting, with the exception of a cumulative measure of victimization experience. Measures of neighborhood social cohesion and informal control are also not associated with reporting. The implications of these findings are discussed with reference to the unique neighborhood organizational infrastructure in urban China.     

Exploratory Space–Time Analysis of Burglary Patterns

This paper introduces two new methods for the exploratory analysis of the spatial and temporal dynamics of residential burglary patterns. The first is a conditional spatial Markov chain which considers the extent to which a location??s probability of experiencing a residential burglary in a future period is related to the prevalence of residential burglaries in its surrounding neighborhood in an initial period. The second measure extends this conditional perspective to examine the joint evolution of residential burglary in a location and its surrounding neighborhood. These methods are applied to a case study of residential burglary patterns in Mesa, Arizona over the period October 2005 through December 2009. Strong patterns of spatial clustering of burglary activity are present in each year, and this clustering is found to have an important influence on both the conditional and joint evolution of burglary activity across space and time.     

Architectural Style,Aesthetic Landscaping,Home Value,and Crime Prevention

In this article, burglary-prevention measures are reviewed. Despite an abundance of literature on residential burglary prevention, both theoretical and practical, homeowners are still slow to take the necessary measures to avoid burglaries. The conclusion of the article is that, if certain architectural styles and types of landscaping, which add to aesthetic value as well as burglary deterrence of the house, can be promoted by means of some financial incentives, all parties concerned—homeowners, public and private agencies—will benefit.     

ROLE OF THE STREET NETWORK IN BURGLARS' SPATIAL DECISION‐MAKING*

Explaining why crime is spatially concentrated has been a central theme of much criminological research. Although various theories focus on neighborhood social processes, environmental criminology asserts that the physical environment plays a central role by shaping people's activity patterns and the opportunities for crime. Here, we test theoretical expectations regarding the role of the road network in shaping the spatial distribution of crime and, in contrast to prior research, disentangle how it might influence offender awareness of criminal opportunities and the supply of ambient guardianship. With a mixed logit (discrete choice) model, we use data regarding (N = 459) residential burglaries (for the first time) to model offender spatial decision‐making at the street segment level. Novel graph theory metrics are developed to estimate offender awareness of street segments and to estimate levels of ambient guardianship, distinguishing between local and nonlocal guardianship. As predicted by crime pattern theory, novel metrics concerning offender familiarity and effort were significant predictors of residential burglary location choices. And, in line with Newman's (1972) concept of defensible space, nonlocal (local) pedestrian traffic was found to be associated with an increase (decrease) in burglary risk. Our findings also demonstrate that “taste” preferences vary across offenders, which presents a challenge for future research to explain.     

GENDER,STREETLIFE AND CRIMINAL RETALIATION*

Recent work in criminology has highlighted the central role of retaliation in shaping criminal violence in America's inner cities. Most of this work, however, has been based on male offenders. It has also failed to consider whether and how gender structures payback in real‐life settings and circumstances. In this paper, we analyze in‐depth, semi‐structured interviews with forty men and twelve women who recently engaged in one or more episodes of retaliatory violence to examine the ways in which gender shapes vengeance. We hope to provide an insider's view of how gender frames the context and dynamics of retaliatory events for both men and women.     

RELIGION AND CRIME REEXAMINED: THE IMPACT OF RELIGION,SECULAR CONTROLS,AND SOCIAL ECOLOGY ON ADULT CRIMINALITY*

Since Hirschi and Stark's (1969) surprising failure to find religious (“hellfire”) effects on delinquency, subsequent research has generally revealed an inverse relationship between religiosity and various forms of deviance, delinquency, and crime. The complexity of the relationship and conditions under which it holds, however, continue to be debated. Although a few researchers have found that religion's influence is noncontingent, most have found support—especially among youths—for effects that vary by denomination, type of offense, and social and/or religious context. More recently the relationship has been reported as spurious when relevant secular controls are included. Our research attempts to resolve these issues by testing the religion-crime relationship in models with a comprehensive crime measure and three separate dimensions of religiosity. We also control for secular constraints, religious networks, and social ecology. We found that, among our religiosity measures, participation in religious activities was a persistent and noncontingent inhibiter of adult crime.     

CAUSALITY,ECONOMIC CONDITIONS,AND BURGLARY*

This study examines the extent to which the symmetry-asymmetry distinction and offense aggregation bias obfuscate the relationship between economic conditions and crime. Specifically, we use ARIMA techniques to assess the impact of incremental and abrupt changes in oil prices on counts of total, commercial, and residential burglaries in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Taken together, the bivariate and interrupted time series analyses indicate that the causal impact of oil prices on burglary is asymmetrical and varies across the two subcategories of breaking and entering.     

DOING HER OWN TIME? WOMEN'S RESPONSES TO PRISON IN THE CONTEXT OF THE OLD AND THE NEW PENOLOGY*

Assumptions about gender role socialization dominated explanations for gender differences in responses to incarceration. We suspend these gender comparisons, which produced the focus on homosexuality and kinship networks in women's prisons, to determine how women's pre‐prison experiences, in the context of two different institutions, influence the way they “do time.” We analyze in‐depth interviews with a diverse sample of 70 female inmates housed in the California Institution for Women (CIW)—the oldest prison for women in the state—and Valley State Prison (VSP)—the newest prison for women. These two institutions differ in structure, size, and management philosophy, and accordingly necessitate the consideration of moderating situational effects. We use qualitative analysis to examine how women do time and to determine whether individual variations in doing time are similar across very different institutions.     

RACIAL DISCRIMINATION,RACIAL SOCIALIZATION,AND CRIME OVER TIME: A SOCIAL SCHEMATIC THEORY MODEL

Recent studies evince that interpersonal racial discrimination (IRD) increases the risk of crime among African Americans and familial racial socialization fosters resilience to discrimination's criminogenic effects. Yet, studies have focused on the short‐term effects of IRD and racial socialization largely among adolescents. In this study, we seek to advance knowledge by elucidating how racialized experiences—in interactions and socialization—influence crime for African Americans over time. Elaborating Simons and Burt's (2011) social schematic theory, we trace the effects of childhood IRD and familial racial socialization on adult offending through cognitive and social pathways and their interplay. We test this life‐course SST model using data from the FACHS, a multisite study of Black youth and their families from ages 10 to 25. Consistent with the model, analyses reveal that the criminogenic consequences of childhood IRD are mediated cognitively by a criminogenic knowledge structure and socially through the nature of social relationships in concert with ongoing offending and discrimination experiences. Specifically, by increasing criminogenic cognitive schemas, IRD decreases embeddedness in supportive romantic, educational, and employment relations, which influence social schemas and later crime. Consonant with expectations, the findings also indicate that racial socialization provides enduring resilience by both compensating for and buffering discrimination's criminogenic effects.     

Studying deterrence with active residential burglars

Research designed to test deterrence/rational choice theory has contributed much to the knowledge of sanction threats, and the extent to which they are used in individuals' decision-making processes. The accumulation of knowledge about such perceptions among active and incarcerated offenders has surfaced only in recent years. We identified and interviewed active residential burglars to examine how they take into consideration the perceptions of risks and rewards before committing a burglary. Employing a series of estimation techniques which have not yet been used to study this research question, we find that offenders are influenced by the perceptions of both risk and rewards, though the latter are a stronger predictor of the decision to engage in a residential burglary. Theoretical implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Establishing Connections: Gender,Motor Vehicle Theft,and Disposal Networks

Motor vehicle theft is an offense typically dominated by male offenders. As with all other major forms of criminal activity that are male dominated, women do participate in the theft of vehicles; yet, few studies have endeavored to examine their involvement in auto theft and even fewer have directly compared women's experiences alongside that of men's. This paper examines the gendered nature of motor vehicle theft through direct comparison of in‐depth interviews with 35 men and women actively involved in auto theft in St. Louis, Missouri. By tracing similarities and differences between men's and women's initiation into auto theft, enactment methods, and access to networks for vehicle and parts' disposal, we provide a contextual analysis of offender's perceptions and behavior. The findings indicate that while initiation into auto theft and property disposal networks are both governed by male gatekeepers, women experience greater barriers in gaining access to disposal networks than they do entry into auto theft offending which, in turn, leads to some key similarities in techniques between men and women.     

Representation through Participation: A Multilevel Analysis of Jury Deliberations

Fully participatory jury deliberations figure prominently in the idealized view of the American jury system, where balanced participation among diverse jurors leads to more accurate fact‐finding and instills public confidence in the legal system. However, research more than 50 years ago indicated that jury‐room interactions are shaped by social status, with upper‐class men participating more than their lower‐class and female counterparts. The effects of social status on juror participation have been examined only sporadically since then, and rarely with actual jurors. We utilize data from 2,189 criminal jurors serving on 302 juries in four jurisdictions to consider whether—and in what conditions—participation in jury deliberations differs across social groups. Our results indicate the continuing importance of social status in structuring jury‐room interactions, but also reveal some surprising patterns with respect to race and gender that depart from earlier research. We also find that contextual factors including location, case characteristics, and faction size shape the relationship between social status and participation. We conclude with a critical discussion of our results and urge other researchers to take into account contextual factors when examining how individual juror characteristics shape what happens inside the jury room.     

Scandinavian Prospects for a Place‐Based Randomized Experiment on Burglary Reduction

Despite their widespread implementation, there is a surprising absence of clear‐cut, unambiguous evidence concerning the effectiveness of situational crime prevention approaches (e.g. alarms, neighborhood watch, property‐marking) on residential burglary. This absence of evidence—which should not be confused with a presence of contradictory evidence—stems most notably from the fact that very few of the programs enacted to date have been evaluated under controlled, experimental conditions. The current article describes problems with previous evaluations and advocates the use of a place‐based, randomized experimental design—which this author argues should be easier to implement in Scandinavia than elsewhere.     

Guardianship and residential burglary

Guardianship is a key element in the routine activities approach to understanding crime. This paper examines the effects of guardianship on residential burglary. Several features distinguish these analyses from prior work: 1) both primary and proxy guardianship are included: 2) a more direct indicator of primary guardianship is used; and 3) the effects of guardianship on both the initial risk of burglary and the probability that the crime will be completed are examined. The findings suggest that the effects of guardianship on residential burglary may have been underestimated in prior research. The analyses also show that a complete understanding of the effects of guardianship—especially proxy guardianship—on the entire burglary process will require simultaneous consideration of victimization and offending perspectives.     

TRANSITORY MOBILITY,CULTURAL HETEROGENEITY,AND VICTIMIZATION RISK AMONG YOUNG MEN OF COLOR: INSIGHTS FROM AN ETHNOGRAPHIC STUDY IN CAPE TOWN,SOUTH AFRICA

The coupling of racial and economic stratification has been found to result in a range of adverse outcomes for youth of color, including disproportionate exposure to violence and victimization. Primary explanations of these patterns, particularly at the micro‐level, have focused on the impact of street culture. In this article, we draw from a multiyear ethnography in Cape Town, South Africa, to offer a theoretical elaboration of the place of culture in contributing to victimization risks among urban minority young men. The study is based on data collected from a sample of 26 young men of color who lived on the Cape Flats between 2003 and 2006. Using grounded theory methods, we suggest the import of unequal access to spatial mobility as a multifaceted means by which culture mediates young men's risks for victimization in disadvantaged communities. We find that transitory mobility—conceptualized as youth's temporary access to cultural spaces outside their segregated residential neighborhoods—is an important source of cultural heterogeneity in townships that can intensify the strength of local social identities and outgroup antipathies directed at those whose mobility is perceived as a cultural threat. Transitorily mobile young men's cultural repertoires are a key facet of street efficacy that can either insulate them from risk or heighten their vulnerabilities. Our findings are suggestive of important sources of variation in young men's victimization outcomes in disadvantaged communities, offering insights about factors that shape risks beyond those linked to the victim–offender overlap in high‐risk settings.     

“The times have changed,the dope has changed”: Women's cooking roles and gender performances in shake methamphetamine markets*

Drug markets are typically portrayed as male dominated, with men occupying the higher positions and women fulfilling the lower positions. Yet, the results of recent work highlight how women's participation and experiences in drug economies varies by the structure and organization of the specific market. We focus on the shake‐and‐bake (“shake”) methamphetamine (meth) market, which seems to have emerged mainly in response to legal attempts to curtail methamphetamine production. We explore how women adapt to structural changes and how they perform gender to navigate a market in which the focus is on personal consumption instead of on monetary gain. By relying on semistructured interviews with 40 women who cooked meth, we identify the gendered strategies they adopt and how these coincide with their position in the drug market. Cooking roles took three forms (partner, lead, and team), and each role was characterized by distinct patterns of gender performance and autonomy (emphasized femininity, matriarchal control, and gender neutral). We show that certain market conditions allow for increased participation among women in meth manufacturing. Yet, even within favorable conditions, variability remains in women's positions and gender performances. The findings highlight the role of organizational and legal context in shaping both the roles women adopt in drug markets and the ways they perform gender.     

UP IT UP: GENDER AND THE ACCOMPLISHMENT OF STREET ROBBERY*

Attempts to understand women's participation in violence have been plagued by a tendency either to overemphasize gender differences or to downplay the significance of gender. The goal of this research is to reconcile these approaches through an examination of the experiences of female and male street robbers in an urban setting. Based on in-depth interviews with active offenders, the study compares women's and men's accounts of why they commit robbery, as well as how gender organizes the commission of the crime. The research suggests that while women and men articulate similar motives for robbery, their enactment of the crime is strikingly different—a reflection, in part, of practical choices women make in the context of a gender-stratified street setting.     

Toward a typology of sexual burglary: Latent class findings

Purpose

To understand fully the nature of residential burglary one must examine the situational context, and offender's behavior during the burglary. Although several behaviors appear to be distinctly related to sexual burglaries, including voyeurism, fetishism, sexual violence, and sexual murder, a systematic typology of the characteristics of residential sexual burglary is lacking. The purpose of the study was to develop a typology of residential sexual burglary.

Methods

The present study investigated 224 incidents of residential burglary with recorded sexual components. A typology classifying these incidents was developed using Latent Class Analysis.

Results

Three types of sexual burglary were identified. Fetishistic noncontact burglaries typically occurred in unoccupied houses and involve fetishistic behavior, but no theft, violence, and weapon. Versatile contact burglaries were characterized by rapes occurring in apartments and involving theft, violence, and weapon. Finally, perpetrators of sexually oriented contact burglaries raped their victim in houses but these incidents rarely involved theft, violence, or weapon. Previous offenses were also analyzed; the three distinct types of burglary appear to be embedded in different prior offense histories. The practical implications are discussed.

Conclusions

This research underscores the importance of examining the situational context and offender's behavior during a residential burglary with sexual components.