Spatial and temporal variations in motor vehicle theft in a university environment

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this research was to identify spatial and temporal variations in motor vehicle thefts on a public, 4-year University campus and in the surrounding community. Utilizing Routine Activities Theory, it was hypothesized that the presence of tens of thousands of students on campus and in the surrounding area would provide an influx of opportunities (suitable targets) and that guardianship of these vehicles is likely lower among college students than among the general population. Our results generally support the latter hypothesis. The results also show that the locations of thefts and the aggregate measures of motivated offenders, guardianship and opportunities influence the location of thefts. Preventative measures to increase guardianship and decrease target suitability are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Motor vehicle theft
• campus crime
• routine activities theory
• spatial analysis
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1.. Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act, 20 U.S.C. 1092 (f).

2.. The Act was renamed the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act in 1998 (United States Department of Education 2016).

3.. Currently 5 out of 70+ routes are in the University City area. While the area is currently also served by a light rail route, the route was not in operation at the time of the study.

4.. As the data was only available for a short time frame and there was no theoretical justification to assume that rates would have demonstrated a temporal pattern over this time period, we combined the years into a single sample. We did run analysis to double-check whether the time period influenced the findings and found that year was not a significant predictor. We also examined the rate of motor vehicle thefts between the University City division and the rest of the city over this period to determine if the rates varied over the six years examined. While both areas showed slight increases over the study period, the increase was not statistically significant in either area. While we lacked accurate population counts for the university and the area immediately surrounding it, using the campus population as a proxy for the population in this area showed a similar non-significant slight increase in rates across the timespan.

5.. Events were integrated at an x,y tolerance of 30 feet. Fifty, 75, and 100 feet were also examined and the results remained consistent.

6.. The percentage increase in the odds ratio is calculated by the following formula: (e^b – 1) * 100.

7.. We also examined a measure of whether or not the vehicle was a top seller. A best-seller was defined as a vehicle that had been on the Kelley Blue Book list of the 10 best-selling vehicles at least twice between 2011 and 2016 (Automakers & ANDC 2011–2014; Good Car Bad Car, 2011, 2012; Kelley Blue Book -2016). We reran the analysis substituting in this measure for the most frequently stolen vehicle measure. This measure was also insignificant and the results were substantively the same.

8.. Recognizing the importance of student housing in contributing to criminal activity, the campus police have also been forming partnerships with apartment management to help facilitate awareness of these issues and ultimately lead to safer housing for students. More information about this program can be found at https://offcampushousing.uncc.edu/resource/view/id/2873.

9.. Unfortunately, the data does not go far enough back to determine if this campaign has resulted in a reduction of thefts pre and post-implementation.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Science Foundation [1659748].

Notes on contributors

Beth Bjerregaard

Beth Bjerregaard is Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She received her Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the State University of New York at Albany. Her research interests include capital punishment, gang membership, and delinquency, among other things. Her most recent publications have appeared in Justice Quarterly, Crime and Delinquency, Homicide Studies, Police Quarterly, and the Women and Criminal Justice.

Shelleen Akin

Shelleen Akin is currently a graduate student in the Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Sarah Moses

Sarah Moses is a 2017 graduate from the Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.

Crystal Towers

Crystal Towers is currently a graduate student in the Department of Criminal Justice & Political Science at North Dakota State University.