Peter Koutsovasilis

One of the fundamental services provided by police is to respond to calls-for-service made by members of the public. The traditional measure of performance has been the number of calls attended. The priority is often to effectively respond to domestic violence. The examination of how the geographies of domestic violence calls-for-service (DYCFS) correspond to the socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of urban spaces, and the development of an understanding of how such knowledge may be translated into solid policing effectiveness, would compliment the objective of police to effectively respond to domestic violence. This paper seeks to advance our understanding of the geographic context of DYCFS, so that police can develop strategies to enhance efficiency and effectiveness of operations for dealing with domestic violence.

This paper combines theories and analytical techniques from both crime analysis and the discipline of geography. The study is guided by a search for socio-economic and demographic indicators that are likely the cause for domestic violence in certain communities. Based on empirical data and the indicators, this study models the spatial relationship between the number of calls-for-service and local characteristics of urban places. The use of computer mapping applications and geographic information systems (GIS) is at the core of this study, with the purpose to reveal and measure the underlying spatial relationships.