NCJ Number
183655
Journal
Social Science Quarterly Volume: 81 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2000 Pages: 555-570
Date Published
June 2000
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study was intended to fill a gap in the literature between the more traditional research on poverty and the recent proffering of the impact of poverty concentration on violence.
Abstract
In an effort to disentangle the theoretical and empirical distinctiveness of poverty from constructs of extreme concentrated poverty, the study assessed the differential impact of these measures on black and white homicide rates. Data for the analysis were obtained from the Urban Underclass Database, and the race-specific homicide rates were computed from information compiled in the Uniform Crime Report. The study found that race-specific measures of poverty and poverty concentration were highly correlated, challenging claims of their empirical distinctiveness. A closer inspection of the data, however, found that although poverty and poverty concentration affected the white homicide rate, only the traditional measure of poverty impacted black homicide. The finding of differential impacts of poverty and poverty concentration on black and white homicide rates is reflective of works by Wilson, Massey, and colleagues, as well as of criminological writings. Future research should extend the study of poverty concentration in the area of measurement and the potential impact concentrated poverty may have on various types of crime and victimization. 3 tables and 44 references