Crime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico City

Abstract Background This study aimed to determine whether crime patterns in Mexico City changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to test whether any changes observed were associated with the disruption of routine activities, as measured by changes in public transport passenger numbers. Method The f...

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Main Author: Patricio R. Estévez-Soto
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2021-06-01
Series:Crime Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s40163-021-00151-y
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author Patricio R. Estévez-Soto
author_facet Patricio R. Estévez-Soto
author_sort Patricio R. Estévez-Soto
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background This study aimed to determine whether crime patterns in Mexico City changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to test whether any changes observed were associated with the disruption of routine activities, as measured by changes in public transport passenger numbers. Method The first objective was assessed by comparing the observed incidence of crime after the COVID-19 pandemic was detected in the country with that expected based on ARIMA forecasts based on the pre-pandemic trends. The second objective was assessed by examining the association between crime incidence and the number of passengers on public transport using regressions with ARIMA errors. Results Results indicated that most crime categories decreased significantly after the pandemic was detected in the country or after a national lockdown was instituted. Furthermore, the study found that some of the declines observed were associated with the reductions seen in public transport passenger numbers. However, the findings suggested that the changes in mobility explain part of the declines observed, with important variations per crime type. Conclusion The findings contribute to the global evaluation of the effects of COVID-19 on crime and propose a robust method to explicitly test whether the changes observed are associated with changes in routine activities.
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spelling doaj.art-84c396e550ff4217bbbb25d9650fbd5e2022-12-21T19:14:19ZengBMCCrime Science2193-76802021-06-0110111710.1186/s40163-021-00151-yCrime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico CityPatricio R. Estévez-Soto0UCL Department of Security and Crime Science, UCL Jill Dando Institute of Security and Crime ScienceAbstract Background This study aimed to determine whether crime patterns in Mexico City changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and to test whether any changes observed were associated with the disruption of routine activities, as measured by changes in public transport passenger numbers. Method The first objective was assessed by comparing the observed incidence of crime after the COVID-19 pandemic was detected in the country with that expected based on ARIMA forecasts based on the pre-pandemic trends. The second objective was assessed by examining the association between crime incidence and the number of passengers on public transport using regressions with ARIMA errors. Results Results indicated that most crime categories decreased significantly after the pandemic was detected in the country or after a national lockdown was instituted. Furthermore, the study found that some of the declines observed were associated with the reductions seen in public transport passenger numbers. However, the findings suggested that the changes in mobility explain part of the declines observed, with important variations per crime type. Conclusion The findings contribute to the global evaluation of the effects of COVID-19 on crime and propose a robust method to explicitly test whether the changes observed are associated with changes in routine activities.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40163-021-00151-yCOVID-19Crime incidenceARIMAMexico City
spellingShingle Patricio R. Estévez-Soto
Crime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico City
Crime Science
COVID-19
Crime incidence
ARIMA
Mexico City
title Crime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico City
title_full Crime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico City
title_fullStr Crime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico City
title_full_unstemmed Crime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico City
title_short Crime and COVID-19: effect of changes in routine activities in Mexico City
title_sort crime and covid 19 effect of changes in routine activities in mexico city
topic COVID-19
Crime incidence
ARIMA
Mexico City
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s40163-021-00151-y
work_keys_str_mv AT patriciorestevezsoto crimeandcovid19effectofchangesinroutineactivitiesinmexicocity