Validating a measure of work stress for correctional staff: A structural equation modeling approach

The purpose of this study is to examine the structure of a measure of work stress. More specifically, the research investigated whether six items properly identified a latent measure of work stress for correctional staff. Using data from a nonrandom sample of correctional staff, the results of the structural equation model analysis supported the view that the six items form one latent construct. The implications of these results are presented as well.Journal Articl

Theft in Price-Volatile Markets: On the Relationship between Copper Price and Copper Theft

Recently, against a backdrop of general reductions in acquisitive crime, increases have been observed in the frequency of metal theft offences. This is generally attributed to increases in metal prices in response to global demand exceeding supply. The main objective of this article was to examine the relationship between the price of copper and levels of copper theft, focusing specifically on copper cable theft from the British railway network. Results indicated a significant positive correlation between lagged increases in copper price and copper cable theft. No support was found for rival hypotheses concerning U.K. unemployment levels and the general popularity of theft as crime type. An ancillary aim was to explore offender modus operandi over time, which is discussed in terms of its implications for preventing copper cable theft. The authors finish with a discussion of theft of other commodities in price-volatile markets

Crime concentration theory

A range of concepts and lexicon of terms denote crime’s tendency to concentrate. The most established are repeat offending, repeat and near repeat victimization, geographical hotspots, and hot products. Complementary terms include hot dots, hot places, hot targets, super-targets, risky facilities, risky routes, crime sprees and spates. This study charts the relationships, offers a potentially unifying concept and examines the causal mechanisms by which crime becomes concentrated. It is concluded that further effort to integrate concepts and explanations relating to concentrations of crime may provide insights useful to theory, policy and practice