Crime Rate and Social Integration <i>The Impact of Metropolitan Mobility</i>

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article examines the effect of residential mobility on the crime rates of the 65 largest Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the country. Mobility variables and population size are found to be better predictors of some crimes than measures traditionally used to measure the opportunity structure. A contextual interpretation of the mobility/crime rate relationship is posited. High rates of mobility are believed to negatively affect social integration, which decreases the effectiveness of community informal control mechanisms.