Walter and Acolin Release New Commentary on Micro-Scale Approaches to Research
Posted: 5/21/2023 (CSDE Research)
A new paper from CSDE affiliates Rebecca Walter and Arthur Acolin as well as co-authors draws on crime and prevention research to illustrate the benefits of micro-scale approaches to quantitative analyses in the field of urban planning. The paper entitled “Scaling Down from the Neighborhood in Urban Planning Research and Practice: The Potential Benefits of a Micro-Scale Focus” was recently published in the Journal of Planning Education and Research. The neighborhood has been the dominant spatial unit in urban planning since the early 20th century. Criticisms of the neighborhood unit include disagreements about defining boundaries, methodological challenges in capturing neighborhood effects, and negative impacts on communities. With advancements in data management, and public data available at smaller units (street block or property), quantitative analyses are possible at the micro-scale.