The Relationship Between Citizen Perceptions of Collective Efficacy and Neighborhood Violent Crime

The current work assesses the relationship between respondent perceptions of collective efficacy and neighborhood violence. Data used in the analysis combined a community survey from Mesa, Arizona, with census data. Factor analysis provided mixed evidence regarding the factor structure of collective...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Crime and delinquency 2015-02, Vol.61 (1), p.121-142
Main Authors: Armstrong, Todd A., Katz, Charles M., Schnebly, Stephen M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Arizona
Citizens
Crime
Delinquency
Demographics
Discriminant analysis
Neighborhoods
Perceptions
Prediction
Regression analysis
Social Cohesion
Social control
Sociodemographic Factors
Violence
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Summary:The current work assesses the relationship between respondent perceptions of collective efficacy and neighborhood violence. Data used in the analysis combined a community survey from Mesa, Arizona, with census data. Factor analysis provided mixed evidence regarding the factor structure of collective efficacy; therefore, separate regression models were used to test the influence of collective efficacy, social cohesion, and willingness to intervene on levels of neighborhood violence. Analyses found that community structural characteristics including concentrated disadvantage and residential instability significantly predicted perceptions of collective efficacy, social cohesion, and willingness to intervene. In turn each of these variables was related to violent crime after controlling for levels of concentrated disadvantage, residential instability, and individual demographic characteristics. When social cohesion and willingness to intervene were included in a single regression model, only social cohesion was predictive of neighborhood violence. Social cohesion and violent crime had reciprocal effects that were both negative and statistically significant.
ISSN:0011-1287
1552-387X
DOI:10.1177/0011128710386202