Correlates of the victim-offender relationship in homicide

Using a classification of homicides based on the victim-offender relationship, this research analyzes individual-level data from a local prosecutor's office in Taiwan with multinomial logistic regression to locate the more precise correlates of three different homicide relationship types. The results of the analyses provide further support for the hypothesis that such partitioning of homicides is fruitful in revealing the relationships otherwise obscured. They indicate that both sociodemographic variables and situational variables are important correlates of three different homicide relationships, but their strengths vary based on the particular homicide relationship type. Age and crime premises correlate with homicide differently based on the victim-offender relationship. Premeditation is related to acquaintance homicide but not to intimate homicide. In contrast, previous conviction is associated with intimate homicide but not with acquaintance homicide. The implication of the findings is discussed within the limitation of the data.