The answer to the question will likely vary depending on who you ask! Within the sub-discipline of criminology, environmental criminology, the answer is ‘yes’ (and I would say so myself as well). In lecture, we were presented with 3 theories from environmental criminology: (1) Routine Activity Theory; (2) Rational Choice Theory; and (3) Criminal Pattern Theory. I was very much familiar with the Routine Activity Theory from conducting literature review for another course. Routine Activity Theory suggests that the daily routine activities of people (e.g., commute to work) tend to place offenders and targets in proximity, which highlights the temporal, socio-economic and spatial aspects of routine activities. Rational Choice Theory assumes utilitarian belief that people (i.e., offenders) make a rational choice after weighing various options, such as considering the likelihood of capture between places and by time. Crime Pattern Theory is the observation that offenders are influenced by their daily routine activities, and thus will tend to concentrate in areas that are familiar to them. Altogether, researchers can model whether offenders are likely to commit a crime, their thought process if a crime is committed, and where and when the offence will occur.
So, environmental criminology is a reflection that the geographical distribution of offences, of victimization, and offender residence is not a random process. Crime distribution across space is not random because crimes are human-related phenomena. Thus, its main concerns are: (1) the spatial distribution of offences; and (2) the spatial distribution of offenders. This allows us to develop an understanding of why and where crimes occur, which can subsequently help us combat crime.
Crime analysis involves both the qualitative and quantitative study of crime and law enforcement information in combination with other factors, such as socio-demographic and spatial factors. Its goal of the analyses are to apprehend criminals, prevent crime, reduce disorder, and evaluate organizational procedures. Lastly, examples of crime analysis applications include criminal investigative analysis, intelligence analysis, tactical crime analysis, strategic crime analysis, and administrative crime analysis. The role of GIS is still emerging in crime analysis, and I think it is a fascinating discipline to study, though also very complicated (given the risk and security).
Keywords: Environmental Criminology, Routine Activity Theory, Rational Choice Theory, Criminal Pattern Theory, and Crime Analysis.