| This study seeks to explain the degree to which Agnew's macro-level general strain theory will explain domestic violence. Few studies have empirically tested macro strain theory and even fewer have utilized the theory to explain domestic violence rates in neighborhoods. In order to fill this gap in the literature, this study elaborates macro strain theory to include home foreclosure rates as a measure of objective financial strain. If macro strain theory is correct then foreclosure rates (or strain) will have a positive and significant effect on domestic violence even while controlling for indicators of neighborhood deprivation.;Previous research on domestic violence has uncovered several risk factors that fall into three main categorical areas: (i) socio-cultural risk factors, (ii) individual risk factors, and (iii) social structural risk factors. Within social structural risk factors, the literature has made great strides in the assessment of neighborhood characteristics and domestic violence. This study builds upon this literature to test whether macro strain theory is an appropriate theoretical test for assessing community risk factors of domestic violence. Agnew's macro strain theory includes measures of economic deprivation, income inequality, density or overcrowding, population mobility, and percent of the neighborhood that is non-white. Elaborating upon Agnew's macro strain theory, this study tests how social deprivation, economic deprivation, residential mobility, neighborhood density and home foreclosure rates affect reported domestic violence rates.;The problem statement of this study is as follows: The purpose of this study is to assess the degree to which macro level general strain theory can explain domestic violence. In so doing the study will assess the degree to which home foreclosures explain domestic violence while controlling for neighborhood economic and social deprivation. The following research questions, which will be addressed in this study, were derived from the literature and the theory: Do foreclosures have an independently important direct effect on rates of domestic violence? Is there a spatial relationship, causing a spillover effect, between home foreclosure rates and rates of domestic violence?;Secondary analysis of data previously collected by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, Mecklenburg County Land Records Office, and the U.S. Bureau of the Census are used for this study. Neighborhoods are assessed at the census block group level of analysis. The data includes law enforcement calls for service, public use data from the U.S. Bureau of the Census, and public record data on home foreclosures. All data were aggregated up to the census block group level of analysis. There are a total of 373 census block groups in Mecklenburg County; one block group was omitted from the study as it housed neither residents nor any housing units. Only calls for service in which an officer actually responded were included in the study. Only foreclosures on residential type properties were included in the study.;Domestic violence calls for service and home foreclosures data were calculated into rates per one thousand (1,000) households for standardization across block groups and to deal with possible effect size issues. This study spans a total of seven years, 2003 through 2009, covering those years prior to and during the housing market "meltdown". In congruence with previous research, indicators of social and economic deprivation are loaded into a factor analysis, principal components extraction and a varimax method of rotation to reduce multicollinearity among model variables. The following factors were produced: economic deprivation, social deprivation, residential mobility, neighborhood density, and foreclosure rates. An interaction effect between neighborhoods experiencing economic deprivation and home foreclosures is also tested. This study employs ordinary least squares (OLS) regression, spatial lag regression, and spatial error regression modeling. Geographic information system (GIS) is also used for data visualization.;The tenants of macro strain theory are supported. Foreclosure rates, as a measure of strain, are found to have a positive and significant effect on domestic violence. While there is an independent direct effect of foreclosure rates on rates of domestic violence, indicators of social and economic deprivation remain the most important explanatory variables in explaining rates of domestic violence. Spatial dependence was also uncovered in the model. Spatial regression analysis improves the model from R2 = .8048 in the OLS spatial regression model to R2 = .8364 in the spatial lag model, and to R2 = .8322 in the spatial error model. The spatial error in the data is not found to be statistically significant. The spatial lag model has the best data fit. This suggests that neighborhood deprivation and foreclosures occurring in one neighborhood are affecting domestic violence rates in neighboring communities. In short, a contagion effect is occurring in the data. Findings of the study have implications for theory, policy and future researchers. |
