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Abstract A substantial body of work has aimed to elucidate the spatial distribution of hate crimes, frequently referencing the defended neighborhood hypothesis and traditional ecological theories of crime, such as social disorganization theory. Although both theoretical frameworks recognize the importance of community characteristics, they differ in their interpretation of the underlying theoretical mechanisms. To date, however, comprehensive evaluations of the explanatory power of these theories have been constrained by the reliance on official hate crime statistics, which are plagued by issues of underreporting and underrecording. This study addresses these limitations by employing the area-identified version of the 2005–2015 National Crime Victimization Survey, complemented by contextual data sources, to evaluate the applicability of both theoretical frameworks. Consistent with social disorganization theory, the results from survey logit regression models reveal that ethnic heterogeneity and residential instability are positively associated with the risk of hate crime victimization. Additionally, the likelihood of hate crime victimizations is higher in predominantly White areas undergoing an influx of Black residents, supporting the defended neighborhood hypothesis. Finally, the effect of being Black increases as the percentage of the White population rises. These results highlight the interplay between contextual characteristics and hate crime victimization, while underscoring the importance of both theoretical frameworks.
Piatkowska et al. (Tue,) studied this question.