Criminology Research Council grant ; (24/97-8)
Following an earlier study of neighbourhoods and child abuse, subsequent mapping of confirmed cases of abuse in the study area revealed that they were spatially clustered. Rather than work on the traditional collectors' district (CD) as the unit of study, the data from the earlier project, which had been analysed by CDs, was re-analysed according to whether or not respondents lived within the identified clusters areas. This re-analysis yielded significantly different results from the earlier investigation. Cluster area residents were significantly more likely to entertain negative perceptions of their neighbourhood, than residents not in the clusters. They were more likely to feel they did not belong, to want to move out given the opportunity, to not value association with others in their neighbourhood and to view the locality as a poor place to raise children.
In an additional small study human service practitioners in the area accurately identified the cluster areas and the micro-social environments existing within them. This may indicate that, in working to prevent child abuse, directing scarce resources at larger aggregations of families may be less efficient than working within a small number of identified street blocks.