Differential female homicide victimization rates across United States cities: A test of alternative explanations
Description
For the period 1981 to 1993, women represented between 21 percent and 26 percent of homicide victims in the United States annually. Although a considerable amount of research has been devoted to determining structural correlates of aggregate homicide rates across places in the United States, recent research shows that general correlates may not hold when homicide rates are disaggregated for specific subpopulations, for example, women. Using multiple regression techniques, this macro-level study analyzes 1990 data from 233 U.S. central cities to discern the utility of factors derived from traditional theories of homicide for explaining female rates of homicide. A model of female homicide victimization that includes factors derived from feminist theoretical arguments related to gender inequality and its supposed relationship to violence against women is also estimated A third model estimates the effects of gender inequality upon female homicide victimization rates when controlling for traditional correlates of homicide. The three models are then reestimated with the residuals of female homicide victimization rates against male rates to determine the utility of measures of social disorganization and gender equality when controlling for the influence of male rates. Results support traditional theoretical arguments for the influence of general social-structural factors of communities upon female homicide risk. The results do not, however, show support for the hypothesized relationship between measures of gender equality and female homicide victimization. Future research implications from this study are suggested