Thinking beyond the map : Towards a unified framework in drug hotspot research

Sammanfattning

The study examines how mico-locations with high drug activity, defined as drug hotspots, emerge, persist, and adjust. It further explores how drug hotspots connect to wider patterns of crime and disorder while addressing gaps in the existing literature. The research has drawn on 43 English-language publications from 2016 to 2026, following th PRISMA 2020 guidelines for systematic literature review and subsequently conducted a thematic analysis. This analysis sythesised theoretical and empirical work from different fields, including theories of enviromental criminology, sociology, policing, and public health. The four themes identified are as follows: what factors shaped drug hotspots and their organisation; the spatial concentration and temporal dynamics of drug hotspots; how drug incidents overlap with other types of crime; and how drug hotspots persist and adapt even in the face of intevention efforts. Findings suggest that drug-telated incidents concentrate at specific micro-locations shaped by enviornmental, structural, and social conditions, and that drug hotspots dmeonstrate dynamic stability, persisting over time while adapting in form and intensity. Additionally, there is a link identified between drug hotspots and crime incidents, although not aways straightforward. One significant limitation that the thesis acknowledges is the fragmentation of terminology within the literature. To address this, the thesis proposes a preliminary unified framework that focuses on two dimensions: spatial and placial analysis. Overall, the study argues that research on drug hotspots should be more comprehensive and theoretically grounded, and that existinng gaps ahouls be addressed.