This paper provides a comprehensive review of space-and place-based criminology, with a focus on the relationship between crime, the built environment, land use, and/or physical geography, through sociological and critical geography lenses. An historical overview of major criminological and spatial theories and contributors is presented before examining the current state of the field. In honor of critical geography's goal to be "a people's geography," 1 this paper aims to be an accessible overview of space-and placebased criminological research, especially for readers who are unfamiliar with these topics.
This study assesses the relationship between land use, measured as percent zoning designation per square kilometer in a census tract, and homicide counts in Portland, Oregon, while controlling for other neighborhood characteristics. Negative binomial models are implemented to account for the overdispersed homicide count indicator. Results suggest that some land use variables—specifically, mixed-use residential (positive association) and single-family residential (negative association)—have significant predictive value for homicide counts beyond neighborhood characteristics and socioeconomic variables deemed important by criminological theory and research.
Historically, graduate students across academic disciplines have been expected to teach courses in their field, at the college level, without sufficient guidance. This is known as a stressful and difficult experience, but for some graduate students this can be compounded by their positionality, both in the hierarchy in academia as well as their individual minoritized statuses (racial, sexual, gender, or otherwise.) Brought about by our own experiences and struggles, this paper addresses two primary questions: (1) How do our identities impact our experiences as graduate student instructors? And (2) How do we use lived experiences as sociologists and instructors to create a better learning experience for our students? We answer these questions and end the discussion with a call to action, highlighting anti-racism and disrupting the status quo of academia. The call to action is especially pertinent considering the current social and political tensions laid bare by the COVID-19 pandemic and the continuous fight for racial justice and equity.
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