ABSTRACT
A study is proposed of how the locations where crimes are committed can be used to indicate where the offender may have a base, and other aspects of their criminality. This illustrates the design of a ‘field experiment’. In this case the experiment consists of a comparison between urban and rural areas of patterns of criminal spatial activity. The empirical background to this is described, drawing on what is known of the typical distances offenders travel from their home, as well as a common spatial formation of crimes around the home. Theories explaining these findings are considered, notably cognitive representations of places. Ways of evaluating the effectiveness of any geographical profiling method are discussed.
