| Term |
Definition |
Step # |
| 3-D Mapping |
High-definition mapping that portrays locations within buildings |
24 |
| 80-20 rule |
The principle that a few people or places are involved in a large proportion of events |
18, 20, 22, 30, 31, 54 |
| Acute hot spots |
Hot spots that suddenly appear, i.e., have not been present for a long time, not chronic (See Chronic hotspots and Chronic problems) |
23 |
| Acute temporal clustering |
A very high concentration of crime in a small part of 24-hour cycles |
25 |
| Acute troubles |
Transient sets of recurring events that might go away without engaging in problem solving activities, but could also evolve into chronic problems |
14 |
| Adaptation |
Long-term changes in offender population behaviors in response to crime prevention |
11, 46 |
| Analysis |
The second stage in the SARA process, involving systematic examination of the problem to identify possible causes that might be susceptible to responses |
4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 14, 15, 16, 18, 20, 23, 32, 33, 35, 36, 38, 44, 46, 52, 54, 55, 58, 60 |
| Anticipatory benefits |
Benefits from crime prevention that begin prior to initiation of crime prevention treatment |
11, 46, 52 |
| Anticipatory benefits, pseudo |
The appearance of anticipatory benefits caused by smoothing data (i.e., the use of a moving average) |
52 |
| Aoristic analysis |
A statistical method for determining the 24-hour rhythm of crimes when the exact time of crime commission is unknown |
25 |
| Assessment |
The fourth stage in the SARA process, involving evaluating the effectiveness of the response |
1, 4, 7, 24, 37, 38, 46, 54, 55, 60 |
| Attractors, Crime |
Areas of criminal opportunities well known to offenders |
17, 28 |
| Behaviors |
One of two criteria for classifying problems describing aspects of harm, intent, and offender-target relationships (see Environments) |
15 |
| Boost accounts |
An explanation for repeat victimization that suggests that the rewards to the offender for the first crime encourage the offender to repeat the offense against the same victim or to tell other offenders who then attack the same victim (see Flag accounts) |
29 |
| Broad-spectrum treatments |
Crime prevention measures that are effective against a wide variety of methods for committing a type of crime |
49 |
| Broken windows policing |
A proposed policing strategy based on the principles that small offenses add up to destroy community life and that small offenses encourage larger ones, consequently police should pay particular attention to disorders |
5 |
| Buffer zone |
Area around a place or area. Often an area around a facility, hot spot, or treatment area |
16, 51 |
| Case-control study |
A systematic comparison of troublesome persons, places, times, or events to untroublesome ones to find out the characteristics that might cause the problem. This type of study is particularly useful when troublesome cases are a very small proportion of all cases |
17, 32, 33 |
| Cases |
The people, places, and events you are studying - offenders, targets, victims, facilities, time periods (e.g., months or weeks), crimes, and so forth. In case-control studies, cases are the problem people, places, or events (see Case-control and Controls) |
22, 32, 33, 37, 53 |
| CHEERS |
Acronym for elements of defining a problem: Community, Harm, Expectation, Events, Recurring, and Similarity |
14, 15, 54 |
| Chronic hot spots |
Hot spots that persist for a long time (see Acute hotspots) |
23 |
| Chronic problems |
Long-term sets of recurring events that show no sign of abating and are largely resistant to traditional police work |
14 |
| Community policing |
Community policing focuses on crime and social disorder through the delivery of police services that includes aspects of traditional law enforcement, as well as prevention, problem-solving, community engagement, and partnerships |
1, 3, 4, 5 |
| CompStat |
A police management system, pioneered in New York City, that uses up-to-date crime pattern information (often processed with a geographic information system) to hold geographic commanders (e.g., precinct and district) accountable for reducing crime |
3, 4, 5 |
| Content |
The substantive information in a table or figure |
56, 57 |
| Control group |
A group of people or an area that is similar to the treatment group or area, but does not receive treatment. Used in evaluations to control for the impact of other, non-treatment influences on crime |
47, 49, 51 |
| Controls (for analysis) |
Statistical and evaluation design procedures to isolate the effect of one factor on some outcome from that of others. A group of people or areas not getting a response that are compared to those receiving the response to show what would have happened to the response group if the response group had not received the intervention (see Control group) |
47, 48, 49, 51 |
| Controls (in case-control studies) |
In a case-control study, controls are those people, places, times, or events that do not have the outcome being studied, in contrast to cases which do have the outcome. For example, in a case-control study of high-assault bars, the cases are bars with many assaults and the controls are bars with few or no assaults (see Cases, and Case-control study) |
32, 33 |
| Controls (on offenders) |
People and situations that reduce potential offenders' willingness or capabilities to commit crimes |
9, 15, 17, 39, 42, 43, 48 |
| Correlation |
A measure of association between two characteristics |
33 |
| Costs |
Expenses or hardships associated with criminal events or prevention measures |
6, 12, 38, 40, 44, |
| CPTED |
See Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design |
|
| CRAVED |
An acronym describing the characteristics of items most likely to be stolen and standing for Concealable, Removable, Available, Valuable, Enjoyable, and Disposable |
28, 31 |
| Crime Mapping/Maps |
Examining how crime is spread geographically by showing where it is occurring on maps. See Geographic Information Systems |
1, 4, 5, 16, 17, 21, 23, 24, 29, 55, 58 |
| Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design |
A set of principles for designing and laying-out secure buildings and public spaces |
24 |
| Crime triangle |
See Problem analysis triangle |
8, 35, 54, 58 |
| Crime-neutral areas |
Areas attracting neither offenders nor targets, with adequate controls on behaviors |
17 |
| Cycles |
Regular fluctuations in crime that correspond to daily, weekly, monthly, annual, or longer changes in human activity |
22, 25, 26, 47, 50 |
| Defiance |
Offenders challenge the legitimacy of prevention efforts and commit more offenses rather than fewer |
11 |
| Den (of iniquity) problems |
Problem characterized by substantial involvement of repeat places (see Problem analysis triangle, place). Occurs when new potential offenders and new potential targets encounter each other in a place where management is weak |
8, 15 |
| Diffused temporal clustering |
A relatively even, or random, spread of crime throughout 24-hour cycles |
25 |
| Diffusion contamination |
Occurs when diffusion of benefits influences the control group or area during an evaluation. Leads to undervaluing the treatment (see Displacement contamination) |
51 |
| Diffusion of benefits |
Reducing crime beyond the focus of the prevention scheme; a multiplier of effectiveness |
11, 13, 38, 47, 49, 51 |
| Diffusion of benefits, crime type |
Additional crime types blocked |
13 |
| Diffusion of benefits, geographical |
Additional prevention over space |
13 |
| Diffusion of benefits, tactical |
Additional methods thwarted |
13 |
| Diffusion of benefits, target |
Additional targets protected |
13 |
| Diffusion of benefits, temporal |
Additional prevention over time |
13 |
| Diffusion-Displacement sites |
Areas used to detect diffusion of benefits and displacement that are separate from control group and treatment group |
51 |
| Displacement |
Offenders changing their behaviour to thwart preventive actions |
1, 4, 11, 12, 13, 38, 40, 46, 48, 49, 50, 51, 54 |
| Displacement contamination |
Occurs when crime is displaced into the control group or area during an evaluation. Leads to inflation of effectiveness (see Diffusion contamination) |
48, 49 |
| Displacement countermeasures |
Prevention implemented to prevent expected displacement |
48 |
| Displacement, crime type |
Offenders change type of crime |
12, 13, 49 |
| Displacement, geographical |
Offenders move spatially |
12, 13, 46, 48 |
| Displacement, tactical |
Offenders switch method for committing crime |
12, 13, 49 |
| Displacement, target |
Offenders switch type of target or victim |
12, 13, 49 |
| Displacement, temporal |
Offenders switch time or day |
12, 13, 48, 49 |
| Distribution |
A distribution shows how many cases, or what proportions of the cases, have each of the values for a variable |
22 |
| Duck (sitting) problems |
Problems characterized by substantial involvement of repeat victims (see Crime triangle). Occurs when victims continually interact with potential offenders at different places, but the victims do not increase their precautionary measures and their guardians are either absent or ineffective |
8, 15 |
| Edges |
Boundaries between areas where people live, work, shop, or seek entertainment |
16 |
| Enablers, crime |
Places with little regulation of behavior |
17 |
| Environments |
A criterion for classifying problems describing where the problem takes place (see Behaviors) |
15, 28, 30 |
| Facilitators |
Physical items, social situations, or chemical substances that help offenders commit crimes or acts of disorder |
34 |
| Facilitators, chemical |
Substances that increase offenders' abilities to ignore risk, reward, or excuses |
34 |
| Facilitators, physical |
Things that augment offenders' capabilities, help overcome prevention measures, or incite deviancy |
34 |
| Facilitators, social |
Situations that provide support that stimulates crime or disorder by enhancing rewards from crime, legitimating excuses to offend, or by encouraging offending |
34 |
| Facilities |
Places that have special functions, like schools, businesses, and restaurants |
15, 18, 20, 23, 25, 27, 28, 30, 34, 38, 39, 42, 43, 44, 48 |
| Facilities, risky |
Facilities that are frequent sites for crime and disorder |
18, 20, 23, 27, 28, 29, 34, 44 |
| False Negative |
An error in which the decision maker predicts something will not occur, but it does occur. Also known as a Type 1 error |
37, 53 |
| False Positive |
An error in which the decision maker predicts something will occur, but it does not occur. Also known as a Type 2 error |
37, 53 |
| Flag accounts |
An explanation for repeat victimization that suggests that some people are particularly vulnerable because of their occupation or their ownership of hot products (see Boost accounts) |
29 |
| Focused temporal clustering |
Clustering of crime in distinct time ranges during 24-hour periods |
25 |
| Framework, story |
A general"story shell" linking multiple interacting factors and that can be applied to a variety of problems |
54, 58 |
| Generators, crime |
Areas to which large numbers of people are attracted for reasons unrelated to criminal motivation |
17 |
| Geographic Information System |
See GIS |
|
| GIS |
Abbreviation for Geographic Information Systems. These are computer databases where all information is linked to geographic locations so that the data can be mapped. This allows comparisons of different areas and places for the same information, and examination of how two or more types of information vary together geographically. GIS is at the heart of all modern crime mapping processes |
2, 24, 29 |
| Graded response |
The response increases in intensity or form as the number of repeat victimizations increases. An intervention used to reduce repeat victimization |
29 |
| Handler |
Someone who knows the offender well and who is in a position to exert some control over his or her actions |
25, 28 |
| Home Office |
The British equivalent of the U.S. Department of Justice, which has funded much research on crime prevention |
10, 19, 36, 38, 40, 41 |
| Hot areas |
Types of hot spots showing neighborhoods where crime is concentrated |
23 |
| Hot dots |
Types of hot spots showing locations with high crime levels |
23 |
| Hot lines |
Types of hot spots showing street segments where crime is concentrated |
23 |
| Hot products |
Things that are particularly attractive for theft |
18, 28, 29, 31 |
| Hot spots |
Geographic concentrations of crime |
3, 5, 16, 17, 18, 23, 48, 55 |
| Hypothesis |
An answer to a question about a problem that can be true or false, and may or may not be supported by evidence |
20, 50 |
| Impact evaluation |
A research study to determine if the response changed the problem |
46 |
| Inner quartile range |
The upper and lower bounds of the 50% of the cases centered on the median |
22 |
| Input |
Resources used in a response |
46 |
| Intervention |
The response being applied to a problem (also called a treatment or response - see Response) |
4, 7, 11, 20, 35, 40, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52 |
| Manager |
A person who has some responsibility for controlling behaviour in a specific location |
5, 8, 24, 28, 30, 33, 38, 40, 58 |
| Mean |
A measure of central tendency, also known as the arithmetical average, calculated by summing the values for all the cases and dividing the sum by the number of cases. Useful for ratio data and symmetrical distributions |
22 |
| Median |
A measure of central tendency that divides the cases into two equal groups, half below the median value and half above |
22 |
| Mode |
A measure of central tendency that shows the value that the largest number of cases possesses |
22 |
| Moving average |
A method for reducing random fluctuation in a time series by recomputing the value for every data point based on the average of preceding time periods (see Smoothing) |
26, 52 |
| Near repeats |
See Virtual repeats |
29 |
| Nodes |
Destination places such as home, work, shopping, entertainment, and school (see Paths) |
16 |
| Nominal Scale |
Values only name and cannot be ranked |
22 |
| Odds Ratio |
A measure of association between two characteristics; useful when a case-control study is used |
33 |
| Offender |
A person who commits a crime or act of disorder |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22, 28, 29, 30, 31, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 46, 48, 49, 50, 52, 54, 58 |
| Offenders, repeat |
People who commit many crimes or acts of disorder (see Wolf) |
3, 18, 30 |
| Opportunity |
Short for"crime opportunity structur" and meaning the ephysical and social arrangements that make crime possible |
9, 12, 38, 44, 48, 50 |
| Ordinal Scale |
A measurement scale in which values can be ranked but no other mathematical process can be applied to them |
22 |
| Outcome |
The impact of the response on the problem |
11, 33, 37, 46, 54 |
| Packaging |
The lines and labels used in tables and figures (see Content). Small amounts are needed to help interpret content, but large amounts obscure content |
56, 57 |
| Paths |
Routes connecting nodes |
16 |
| Perceptions, offenders' |
How offenders view situations and prevention measures |
11, 34 |
| Place |
A very small area, such as an address, street corner, or block face (see Crime triangle, den) |
8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 20, 27, 30, 32, 38, 39, 40, 48 |
| POP |
See Problem-Oriented Policing |
4, 5, 6, 8, 14, 19, 46 |
| POP Guides |
Summaries of research and practice dealing with specific problems and recommending particular responses. Available from www.popcenter.org and www.cops.usdoj.gov |
3, 19 |
| Problem analysis triangle |
A graphic showing the six principal elements of routine activity theory - offenders, handlers, targets/victims, guardians, places, and managers - and used to organized the analysis of problems |
8, 16 |
| Problem-Oriented Policing |
Policing that changes the conditions that give rise to recurring crime problems, and does not simply rely on responding to incidents as they occur or forestalling them through preventive patrols |
1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 15, 19, 21, 28, 38, 55, 60 |
| Process evaluation |
Assessing how a response was implemented |
46, 47, 55 |
| Provocations |
Physical designs or the way places are managed that provoke misconduct |
34, 38, 42, 54 |
| p-value |
The probability that the difference between two sets of statistics is due to randomness (see Significance test) |
53 |
| Random fluctuations |
Short-term changes in problems caused by a large number of very small effects |
26, 53 |
| Range |
A measure of dispersion showing the minimum and maximum value in a distribution |
22, 25 |
| Rates, crime |
The ratio of crimes to targets for an area. Used to control for differences in the number of targets (see Risk, crime) |
9, 17, 20, 24, 26, 27, 28, 32, 37, 42, 44, 49, 51 |
| Ratio Scale |
A measurement scale in which there are equal intervals between the ranked values and a theoretically meaningful zero. Any mathematical procedure can be used on date measured on aratio scale |
22 |
| Regression to the mean |
The tendency for abnormal high or low levels of crime to move back to their normal levels |
47, 52 |
| Response |
The third stage in the SARA process involving the development and implementation of an intervention designed to reduce a problem. Also a term for the preventive treatment or intervention being applied (see Intervention or Treatment) |
2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 21, 23, 26, 29, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 58, 60 |
| Response group |
People or places receiving prevention, in contrast to control group |
47 |
| Results |
Activities accomplished in a response |
46 |
| Risk, crime |
The chance a target will be involved in a crime |
6, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 33, 34, 38, 39, 41 |
| SARA |
An acronym for the problem solving process (see Scanning, Analysis, Response, and Assessment) |
7, 21 |
| Scanning |
The first stage in the SARA process, involving problem identification, verification, and classification |
1, 7, 14, 16, 18, 38, 54 |
| Scripts |
Standard actions carried out in a particular order by offenders to commit crimes |
35, 36 |
| Significance level |
A threshold below which one rejects the possibility that the difference between two sets of statistics is due to randomness. Often, .05 (or 5%) is the rejection threshold (see Significance test) |
53 |
| Significance test |
A statistical procedure used to determine whether the difference between two groups of numbers is due to randomness |
53 |
| Situational Crime Prevention |
The science of reducing opportunities for crime |
1, 13, 16, 34, 38, 41, 54 |
| Smoothing |
Removing random fluctuations from a time series by using a moving average (see Moving average) |
26, 52 |
| Standard Deviation |
A common measure of spread useful for symmetrical distributions and ratio data. |
22, 53 |
| Standard model |
Policing that relies primarily on the use of patrolling, rapid response, and follow-up investigations to prevent crime |
3 |
| Target |
The person or thing an offender attacks, takes, or harms (see Victim) |
2, 8, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 34, 35, 38, 39, 41, 44, 47, 48, 49, 52, 54, 58 |
| Targets at risk |
Persons or things vulnerable to being attacked, taken, or harmed |
26, 27 |
| Temporal clustering |
Concentration of crime over 24 hours (See Acute, Diffused, and Focused temporal clustering) |
25 |
| Time-window effect |
The underestimation of repeat victimization due to using a set time period |
29 |
| Treatment |
See Response or Intervention |
48, 49, 51 |
| Treatment area |
Areas receiving the response in contrast to control areas (see Response group) |
48, 51 |
| Treatment group |
See Response group |
49, 51 |
| Trend |
A steady increase, decrease, or stable level of crime over some period of time |
2, 20, 22, 26, 47, 49, 52, 57 |
| Uncontrolled case study |
A comparison of troublesome persons, places, times, or events without examining similar untroublesome ones. The results of such a study are often highly misleading. |
32 |
| Victim |
A human target or the owner of stolen goods or damaged property (see Target) |
1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 14, 15, 16, 18, 21, 22, 23, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 42, 44, 46, 47, 48, 54, 55 |
| Victim, repeat |
A person or place with multiple crimes or acts of disorder (see Duck) |
18, 23, 28, 29 |
| Victimization, repeat |
The process leading to repeat victims |
8, 28, 29, 30, 33, 38, 46 |
| Virtual repeats |
Victimization of targets that are very similar, though not identical (as in the case of repeat victims or places). Also called "near" repeats |
29 |
| Wolf (ravenous) problems |
Problems characterized by substantial involvement of repeat offenders (see Crime triangle). Occurs when offenders are able to locate temporarily vulnerable targets and places |
8, 15 |
