Α qualitative approach of socio-spatial characteristics in the commission of violent crimes against persons

Abstract

The paper aims to explore the interplay between social, spatial, and cultural characteristics in the commission of violent crimes against persons, through a qualitative approach. The research examines court cases from the Athens Mixed Court of Appeal, that focus on three types of criminal offences including homicides, robberies, and rapes, committed in the Greek capital. Thematic analysis indicated two central themes in the examination of spatial- temporal characteristics: (i) absence of surveillance in the public and private sphere and (ii) presence of social control and the role of the bystanders, as well as two central themes from the examination of cultural characteristics: (i) attitudes of the subgroups in which the offender belongs, towards violence and (ii) attitudes of the social surroundings of the offender, regarding the violent event. According to the themes that emerged from the analysis, the informal social control, both by its presence and absence, seems to have a differentiating role in the commission of violent crime, depending on the spatial and cultural characteristics of place.