Geographic information system (GIS)
Definition
Software that stores, analyses, and visualises data tied to geographic coordinates. In crime analysis, GIS platforms such as ArcGIS or the open-source QGIS are used to map incident locations, draw hotspot boundaries, overlay demographic and land-use data, and track spatial changes over time.
Related terms
- CompStat
- A police management and accountability system first implemented by the New York City Police Department in 1994. CompStat uses regularly updated crime...
- Crime hotspot
- A small geographic area where crime incidents cluster at a rate significantly higher than surrounding areas over a defined time period. Hotspot...
- Dark figure of crime
- The gap between the actual volume of crime and the amount recorded in official statistics. Crimes go unrecorded when victims do not...
- Recording rate
- The proportion of crimes known to police that are formally entered into official statistics. Recording rates below 100% produce a secondary dark...
- Victimisation survey
- A survey that asks a random population sample about crimes experienced in a reference period, regardless of whether those incidents were reported...
Explained in
- The Dark Figure of Crime and Crime MappingSoftware that stores, analyses, and visualises data tied to geographic coordinates. In crime analysis, GIS platforms such as ArcGIS or the open-source QGIS are...