Do Stop, Question, and Frisk Practices Deter Crime?: Evidence at Microunits of Space and Time
Abstract
Research Summary: Existing studies examining the crime impacts of stop, question, and frisks (SQFs) have focused on large geographic areas. Weisburd, Telep, and Lawton (2014) suggested that SQFs in New York City (NYC) were highly concentrated at crime hot spots, implying that a microlevel unit of analysis may be more appropriate. The current study aims to address the limitations of prior studies by exploring the impact of SQFs on daily and weekly crime incidents in NYC at a microgeographic level. The findings suggest that SQFs produce a significant yet modest deterrent effect on crime . Policy Implications: These findings support those who argue that SQFs deter crime. Nonetheless, it is not clear whether other policing strategies may have similar or even stronger crime‐control outcomes. In turn, the level of SQFs needed to produce meaningful crime reductions are costly in terms of police time and are potentially harmful to police legitimacy .
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NYPD strategies were associated with modest crime control gains.
“Although there is evidence that these NYPD strategies were associated with modest crime control gains (MacDonald et al., 2016;Weisburd et al., 2016), numerous studies suggested that these policing efforts generated racially disparate impacts on police stops and arrests of Black and Hispanic residents (e.g., Fagan & Davies, 2000;Gelman et al., 2007;Jones-Brown et al., 2010).”
From Police reform in public housing contexts: Body‐worn cameras, surveillance, and harm reduction in New York City Housing Authority Developments (2024) · cites this paper as Weisburd et al., 2016
Cites
General deterrent effects of police patrol in crime “hot spots”: A randomized, controlled trial
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Self-citationWEISBURD, D., WYCKOFF, L. A., READY, J., ECK, J. E., HINKLE, J. C., & GAJEWSKI, F. (2006) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.2006.00057.x · Cited by 533 · see citing works
Self-citationSherman, L. W. (2007) · Journal of Experimental Criminology · doi:10.1007/s11292-007-9044-y · Cited by 183 · see citing works
Effects of Hot Spots Policing on Crime <sup/>
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The Effects of Local Police Surges on Crime and Arrests in New York City
MacDonald, J., Fagan, J., & Geller, A. (2016) · PLOS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0157223 · Cited by 145 · see citing works
Police stops to reduce crime: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Petersen, K., Weisburd, D., Fay, S., Eggins, E., & Mazerolle, L. (2023) · Campbell Systematic Reviews: Better Evidence for a Better World · doi:10.1002/cl2.1302 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Self-citationDavenport, M. A., Romero, M. E., Lewis, C. D., Lawson, T., Ferguson, B., Stichter, J., & Kahng, S. (2023) · Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders · doi:10.1007/s10803-021-05181-8 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Braga, A. A., MacDonald, J. M., & McCabe, J. E. (2024) · Criminology & Public Policy · doi:10.1111/1745-9133.12679 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
- Authors
- Weisburd, D., Wooditch, A., Weisburd, S., & Yang, S.
- Affiliations
- George Mason University (US)
- Tel Aviv University (IL)
- Corresponding author
- Weisburd, David
- Venue
- Criminology & Public Policy
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2015-11-11
- Volume
- 15
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 31-56
- ISSN
- 1538-6473 (ISSN-L)
- 1745-9133
- OpenAlex
- W2170145824
- Cited by
- 114
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 19 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 18 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 4
- FWCI
- 84.55
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Criminology & Public Policy (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Policing Practices and Perceptions
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Crime Patterns and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Law › Criminal Justice and Penology
- Keywords
- crime deterrence, crime hotspots, New York City, police legitimacy, policing strategies, crime control
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