Socioeconomic Predictors of Crime in Rural Georgia

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of socioeconomic conditions on property and violent crimes in the 13 predominantly rural counties that form east-central Georgia, using data from 1975 to 1985. The results of the regression analysis serve to reemphasize the importance of socioeconomic variables such as unemployment, poverty, race, and family dependence on government assistance in predicting both property crime and violent crimes. The results suggest that the empirical measures of the independent variables prove to be particularly effective predictors of rural property crimes-more so than violent crimes. This certainly appears to be the case even when cross-sectional and longitudinal data are analyzed. The success of the predictors in explaining property crime rates can be attributed largely to their predictive power in regard to the modal types of property crimes that occur in American society. Theoretical and methodological limitations and policy implications of these findings are discussed. Finally, the need for more studies focusing on socioeconomic conditions and patterns of offending in the rural counties of Georgia is discussed. Such studies will have to account for the impact that uneven socioeconomic development across different regions of the state has on crime.