A multilevel analysis of factors related to business robbery clearance rates in a large city in Texas

Abstract

Purpose Business victimization is a serious and pervasive issue within the USA. According to recent estimates, roughly 2,058,194 businesses are victimized each year. Of those, approximately 33 percent of business victimization cases are solved. Taken together, it is important for research to examine factors that influence business victimization clearance. The purpose of this paper is to examine how broken windows enforcement, social disorganization, community and police organizational factors influence business robbery clearance using data from Houston, Texas over a two-year period from 2010 to 2012. Design/methodology/approach Using a hierarchical linear modeling strategy, the current study found no effect of broken windows tactics, social disorganization elements and various organizational, and community characteristics on business robbery clearance. Findings Significant effects were found for a number of incident and offense characteristics including gang involvement, business type, type of weapon used in the crime, the number of business entities in an area, and racial populous. Originality/value To date, few studies have examined factors that influence clearance rates for business robberies. Thus, the current study adds to and extends upon the literature in theoretically relevant ways by exploring how broken windows policing, social disorganization and various community/police organizational variables influence business robbery clearances in a large city.