title: Violent crime in San Antonio, Texas: an application of spatial epidemiological methods.
abstract: Violent crimes are rarely considered a public health problem or investigated using epidemiological methods. But patterns of violent crime and other health conditions are often affected by similar characteristics of the built environment. In this paper, methods and perspectives from spatial epidemiology are used in an analysis of violent crimes in San Antonio, TX. Bayesian statistical methods are used to examine the contextual influence of several aspects of the built environment. Additionally, spatial regression models using Bayesian model specifications are used to examine spatial patterns of violent crime risk. Results indicate that the determinants of violent crime depend on the model specification, but are primarily related to the built environment and neighborhood socioeconomic conditions. Results are discussed within the context of a rapidly growing urban area with a diverse population.
authors: Department of Demography, The University of Texas at San Antonio, 501 West Durango Blvd., San Antonio, TX 78207, USA. corey.sparks@utsa.edu
authors: Corey S
authors: CS
authors: Sparks
mesh_terms: D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D003415:Crime / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006798:Housing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D040541:Marketing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008432:Mathematical Computing; D011203:Poverty / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012307:Risk Factors; D062211:Spatio-Temporal Analysis; D013781:Texas / Q000453:epidemiology; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014754:Violence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*