This study adds to the literature on qualitative variations in violence by assessing the incident and contextual-level predictors of offender gun use and physical injuries sustained by victims of robbery and aggravated assault.
A large number of studies have examined predictors of crime quantities yet considerably less attention has been directed toward exploring patterns in the nature or quality of violence within and across communities. The current study adds to the literature on qualitative variations in violence by assessing the incident and contextual-level predictors of offender gun use and physical injuries sustained by victims of robbery and aggravated assault. Specifically, the authors examined incident-level data from the National Incident Based Reporting System in conjunction with contextual-level data on the cities in which the incidents occurred. The authors used hierarchical linear and nonlinear modeling techniques to explore variations in predictors of offender gun use and extent of victim injury. Supporting cultural effects explicated by Anderson, results reveal certain individual-level predictors are conditioned by community characteristics. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.