The added value of the criminology of place to the research agenda of environmental criminology: The necessity of mechanism-based frameworks

The present chapter argues that in order to increase our understanding of the law of crime concentration it is required to address the issue of explaining why there is a clustering of crime at micro places. To achieve this goal one can rely on existing spatial theories like (various versions of) social disorganization theory or opportunity theory, or one can make use of promising insights from other disciplines such as the philosophy of science, (the psychology of) geography or sociology. What is needed is to have a solid meta-theoretical framework that allows for the integration of micro places in the study of crime concentrations and their productive, law-like causes.

This chapter aims at contributing to theorizing on crime place by introducing fundamental ideas from philosophers of science and methodologists to the criminology of place that can be very fruitful to the understanding of why crimes cluster. These innovative ideas are centered on the concepts of ‘causal mechanisms’ and ‘emergence’. We submit that these concepts are very useful to understand and to explain why crimes are concentrated at micro places. We argue that, while early studies started from deductive nomological explanations, it is better, and in concordance with contemporary philosophical views, to strive for mechanism-based explanations. Mario Bunge’s emergent systemism is taken as an example. We argue that the criminology of micro places cannot stand without acknowledging the actor who sees action alternatives and makes choices at micro places.