The Relationship Between City “Greenness” and Homicide in the US
Evidence Over a 30-Year Period
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21314799 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jonnell C Sanciangco (0000-0001-8268-3180, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA), Gregory Breetzke (0000-0002-0324-2254, University of Pretoria), Gregory D Breetzke (University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa), Zihan Lin (0000-0003-2213-7959, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA), Yuhao Wang (0009-0008-5833-2418, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA), Kimberly A Clevenger (0000-0003-2993-3587, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA), Amber L Pearson (0000-0002-8848-1798, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 54 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 538-571 |
| Publication date | 2022-02-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Environment and Behavior (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0013-9165 • E-ISSN: 1552-390X |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/00139165211045095 |
| OpenAlex | W3200491102 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 10 |
| References cited | 127 |
Residents in US cities are exposed to high levels of stress and violent crime. At the same time, a number of cities have put forward “greening” efforts which may promote nature’s calming effects and reduce stressful stimuli. Previous research has shown that greening may lower aggressive behaviors and violent crime. In this study we examined, for the first time, the longitudinal effects over a 30-year period of average city greenness on homicide rates across 290 major cities in the US, using multilevel linear growth curve modeling. Overall, homicide rates in US cities decreased over this time-period (52.1–33.5 per 100,000 population) while the average greenness increased slightly (0.41–0.43 NDVI). Change in average city greenness was negatively associated with homicide, controlling for a range of variables (β = −.30, p-value = .02). The results of this study suggest that efforts to increase urban greenness may have small but significant violence-reduction benefits
Criminology · Economics · Environmental health · Geography · Greening · Homicide · Injury prevention · Poison control · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Violent crime · Demography · Ecology · Impact of Light on Environment and Health · Land Use and Ecosystem Services · Medicine · Psychology · Urban Green Space and Health
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Exploring the Spatial Relationship between Street Crime Events and the Distribution of Urban Greenspace
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Greenness, Deprivation, and Fatal Police Shootings
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A Difference-in-Differences Analysis of Health, Safety, and Greening Vacant Urban Space
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Validation of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index as a Measure of Neighborhood Greenness
The influence of urban green environments on stress relief measures
Spending at least 120 minutes a week in nature is associated with good health and wellbeing
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Exposure to restorative environments helps restore attentional capacity
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Title unavailable
Multiple imputation using chained equations
Human Aggression
The International Crime Drop
The Effect of Education on Crime
Nodes, paths and edges
Active and Passive Use of Green Space, Health, and Well-Being amongst University Students
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Comparing the Ucr and NCS Over Time
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Structural Variations in Juvenile Court Processing
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Using Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems to Study Urban Quality of Life and Urban Forest Amenities
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Work and Crime
The Sex Ratio, Family Disruption, and Rates of Violent Crime
Social Disorganization Theory and the Contextual Nature of Crime in Nonmetropolitan Counties
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| Unique citing works | 10 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2,5 |
| Citation span | 2022 - 2025 (4) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 9 |