In China, child trafficking remains a critical public safety issue that undermines family harmony and social stability. However, the various factors contributing to child trafficking at the origin have not been thoroughly investigated due to data scarcity. To address this gap, this study utilized a database from a public welfare website dedicated to missing persons to collect 9016 child trafficking cases recorded between 1949 and 2022 in Southwest China. We then employed the Local Moran’s I spatial statistic to identify spatial clusters of child trafficking. The stepwise regression model was employed to examine the association between socioeconomic, demographic, and policy factors and child trafficking in the origin areas. The results indicated that prior to 1985, child trafficking exhibited spatial clustering in the adjacent regions of Sichuan and Chongqing. Subsequently, an intense spatial clustering emerged in the adjacent regions of Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Chongqing. Large income disparities and high unemployment rates were the direct factors contributing to child trafficking. This issue was exacerbated by low education levels. Families with more children faced a higher risk of child trafficking due to lower levels of guardianship. Diverse festivals created more opportunities for child trafficking to take place. Additionally, the impact of the one-child policy on child trafficking was prominent during a specific period. Therefore, authorities should comprehensively consider these factors to formulate strategies and reduce child trafficking.

Understanding the relationship between historical climate change and famine is crucial for current disaster prevention and mitigation efforts. This study investigates how climatic variability and disasters influenced the timing, severity, and spatial patterns of famines in Jiangsu during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644 AD). Using semantic quantitative, spatiotemporal, and statistical analyses, a total of 1034 famine records were compiled, with an average of 3.73 counties affected per year. Famine events occurred most frequently in summer–autumn, particularly in May, June, and July, which together accounted for 71.7% of all occurrences. Based on both the scope and severity of events, a famine index defines four stages: low-frequency, high-frequency, occasional, and outbreak. These stages correspond to periodic cycles of 112, 58, and 19 years. Spatially, famine distribution exhibited significant variation, with southern Jiangsu experiencing more severe famine than the northern regions. At the county level, famine occurrences exhibited high spatial autocorrelation, forming a dual-core structure centered around Xuzhou and Nanjing. The driving mechanisms of famine were primarily associated with droughts, floods, locust plagues, and cold damage, with droughts being particularly impactful. These disasters were closely linked to solar activity and large-scale atmospheric circulations, which together shaped cold-dry periods marked by lower temperatures and reduced precipitation. Such climatic conditions were strongly associated with more frequent famine events, especially during the late Ming dynasty (after 1600 AD).

Using a new database from China Judgments Online between 1990 and 2020, this study focuses on child trafficking in Southwest China. This study provides the spatial analysis and crime script analysis to examine the pattern and operational steps involved in child trafficking and the decisions made by offenders in different phrases. The results showed that habitual residence of offenders and the origin where trafficking occurs tend to overlap in space. Offenders tended to find target close to their home area, then they prefer to operate in groups of 3 to 5 members and have loose and fluid structures. Offenders preferred to move children by car in short-distance transportation, while they would prioritize the trains, followed by buses in long-distance transportation. Child trafficking spanned a continuum involving the acquiring/purchase, transfer, keeping, advertising/introduction and sale. Offenders made decisions in different phases of child trafficking and the reasons for doing so depended on whether it was at the onset or progression of trafficking. The ease of achieving a target, expected risk and expected profits are the three key factors influencing offenders. The results provide novel evidence for targeted efforts to combat and prevent child trafficking.

Child trafficking is a serious social problem in China that has led to numerous family tragedies and drawn considerable attention. Here, we used a new database to investigate child trafficking in Henan Province in central China from a geographical perspective to help researchers better understand and explain trafficking activity. We discovered that trafficking cases involved more male than female children and that the trafficking rate was the highest for younger age groups. Child trafficking presented an interannual variation of 'rise and fall' between 1949 and 2018. An increasing trend in trafficking cases was observed after 1981, peaking in 1991, followed by a rapid decline in trafficking cases in subsequent years. Trafficking occurs more frequently during the summer than in the winter. The geographic hotspots of trafficking have continuously expanded over time from central to southwestern to southeastern Henan Province, thus revealing a triangular trafficking pattern of decentralization. The spatial pattern of child trafficking is strongly influenced by transportation. We expect these findings to provide a valuable reference for local governments in their efforts to prevent and combat child trafficking.

Background: Illegal adoption, which mainly includes child trafficking and informal adoption, has long been a prevalent social issue in China. However, the processes and patterns of illegal adoption are not well understood due to the scarcity of data.Objective: The findings are expected to provide insightful clues for the government and the public to better understand the two categories of illegal adoption. Participants and setting: This study included 4296 trafficking cases and 4499 informal adoption cases between 1949 and 2018. The data came from the 'Baby Coming Back Home' (https://www. baobeihuijia.com) website, which is the most comprehensive commonweal forum established by nongovernmental volunteers for finding missing persons in China.Methods: Mathematical statistics and hot spot analysis were used to visualize the spatiotemporal pattern of illegal adoption.Results: Child trafficking and informal adoption show opposite gender preferences and different age gradients. The numbers of both cases peaked in the early 1990s and then dropped. More than 50 % of all trafficked children were male, whereas approximately 83 % cases of informal adoption were female between 1980 and 2000. Hot spots of illegal adoption have shifted from the cities of the Huai River Basin to the southeastern coastal cities over time, 39.40 % of trafficking cases occurred in rural residential areas, and 52.45 % of informal adoption cases were observed in hospitals.Conclusions: Child trafficking and informal adoption are two different ways of adopting children in China. The combination of the one-child policy and the traditional culture of son preference shaped the different characteristics of the illegal adoption of children during a critical period.

本文基于实地田野调查和在线网络访谈获取的案例资料,在社会—生态系统视角下揭示被拐儿童原生家庭的压力与认知、结构与功能、风险与韧性变化,构建原生家庭的风险应对策略.结果表明:拐卖事件在短时间内对原生家庭造成强烈冲击,而寻亲活动与寻亲成功后的多重要素在长时间内对原生家庭造成持续扰动.微观尺度中家庭成员面临的压力挑战与观念认知影响着原生家庭的变化.在中观尺度,拐卖破坏了家庭"三角关系"结构,呈现离散型、聚合型和中间型三种家庭类型,直接导致原生家庭的经济功能、健康照顾功能、家庭抚育功能与情感功能衰退.在宏观尺度,由于原生家庭受到外部因素的扰动程度各不相同,他们经历的风险阶段以及在每个阶段停留的时间长短各有差异,原生家庭的韧性强度也存在一定差异,呈现非线性和异质性的复杂特征.

利用田野调查和网站登记的案例资料,运用生命历程理论与模糊损失理论,从被拐卖、被收养、开始寻亲到寻亲成功这一过程揭示被拐儿童的生命轨迹变迁型态与走向,并进一步探究其影响机制.结果发现:①被拐儿童的生命轨迹线整体呈现波动型和平稳型两种型态,寻亲成功后,他们的生命轨迹线仍然按照各自的处境持续发生变化.②被拐儿童的生命轨迹变迁型态与收养家庭的优劣程度密切相关,生活在恶劣型家庭的被拐儿童的生命轨迹线波动起伏较大,生活在中间型和良好型家庭的被拐儿童生命轨迹线比较平缓.③在整个寻亲过程中,宏观的社会变迁对被拐儿童的生命轨迹具有非常强的形塑力,但个体能动性的诠释力也不容忽视.④即使生命轨迹平稳向上流动的被拐儿童,也难以抵消拐卖经历带来的不利影响,拐卖事件通过连锁反应、持久作用、交互作用与累积效应多重作用力持续影响被拐儿童的生命轨迹变迁.

The crime of transnational human trafficking significantly impacts social stability and state relations, and thus, deserves in-depth research from a geographical perspective. Based on 2008-2022 case data on the transnational trafficking of women in Anhui Province, obtained from "China Judgments Online," this study uses statistical and spatial analysis methods to comprehensively explore group characteristics, spatial-temporal differentiation, and the formation mechanism of transnational women trafficking in Anhui. The results show that: (1) Tripartite-group characteristics are significantly different. The perpetrators are mainly young and middle-aged men, with a general education level of junior high school or below, mostly from the Han and Miao ethnic groups. Most victims are primarily from four countries-Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos-with Vietnamese women making up the largest group. Victims are generally abducted into China voluntarily, on the pretext of finding a job to earn money. After the crime, most are repatriated to their home countries or stay voluntarily in the place of abduction. Most buyers are male farmers of marriageable age and their parents. (2) Transnational women trafficking in Anhui has followed a "peak" trend overall; It has evolved through three stages: low volatility in 2003-2009, volatile growth in 2010-2017, and rapid decline in 2018-2020. This pattern has evidently been affected by China's population policy, anti-trafficking efforts, and website-platform development. (3) Transit provinces are distributed in an arc, with the highest incidence in Yunnan, Jiangxi, and Anhui, in that order. Transit cities have a significant adjacent-boundary feature, with Wenshan, Jingdezhen, Honghe, and Lincang as the main points of contact. The destination cities show north-south parallel double arcs distribution pattern, radiating eastward, which radiate eastwards. The northern arc is dominated by Fuyang, Bozhou, and Suizhou, while the southern arc is dominated by Anqing, Hefei, and Maanshan. The destination counties are evidently characterized by geographic proximity. Northern Anhui exhibits the characteristics of scattered-point distribution, while central Anhui is generally patchy around the high-incidence areas. The main crime paths, including Vietnam to Wenshan Prefecture; Yunnan Province to Hanshan County and Maanshan City; Cambodia to Jingdezhen City; and Jiangxi Province to Lujiang County and Hefei City, constitute a channel from countries neighboring China into Anhui through the border or inland provinces. (4) Push-pull theory is combined with telecoupling theory to explore the formation mechanism of transnational women trafficking in many parts of Anhui. Finally, based on the research results, prevention and control countermeasures are proposed, and future research avenues are explored.

儿童非正常迁移的现象在中国社会存在已久,其中以拐卖犯罪与民间抱养为主,对涉及其中的儿童和家庭都产生了不可估量的影响,逐渐成为社会和学界关注的焦点.基于对网络平台寻亲资料的挖掘和整合,综合运用文本分析、数理统计与空间分析等方法,将拐卖与抱养进行对比分析以探究川渝地区儿童非正常迁移的时空分异特征与影响因素.研究发现:(1)时间上,拐卖犯罪和民间抱养的年际变化分别呈倒"V"型和"M"型波动变化态势,月份变化较小,且周六、周日拐卖与抱养高发.(2)川渝地区儿童非正常迁移的空间分布差异显著,主要集中于川渝中东部地区;流出川渝的路径较为分散,主要呈现"两源两汇"的格局,具有"路径依赖"特征;流入川渝的路径总体呈现"邻近流入"特征.(3)运用地理探测器探索其影响因素,发现人口性别比、城乡收入差距、乡村从业率与城镇登记失业率、客运量、受教育水平是儿童非正常迁移的主要影响因子.

The crime of trafficking crime has a long period and high social harm, which can easily cause life-long memory trauma to the victims, which has aroused the attention of all walks of life. As a vulnerable group, minors are vulnerable to the crime of trafficking crime. Earlier related studies were mainly concentrated in the fields of law and sociology. The research on the analysis of minor trafficking crimes from a geographical perspective started late, and there was a lack of research on Yunnan Province, a high-incidence area of minor trafficking crimes. Therefore, based on the data of the public welfare platform "Baby Coming Home" website, this paper uses mathematical statistics, spatial analysis, and other methods to explore the spatiotemporal pattern and influencing factors of minor trafficking crimes in Yunnan Province from the perspective of minor victims. This study found that: 1) The inter-annual change of the crimes of trafficking minor in Yunnan province shows a strong concentration and fluctuation. The rise and fall of the number of crimes is closely related to the household registration reform system, the family planning policy, and the efforts to crack down on the crime of trafficking; In terms of age and gender, most of the trafficked minors came from rural areas, which tended to be younger; in terms of gender, there was a strong preference for younger males and older females. 2) From 1958 to 2019, the number of minor trafficking in Yunnan Province showed an "inverted V-shaped" fluctuation in time, and the high incidence period was from 1994 to 2005. 3) On the urban scale, the crime of trafficking gradually decreasing from the east to the west of Yunnan province. While trafficking was prevalent throughout the province, Qujing, Kunming, and Zhaotong had high incidence rates.On the county scale, it spreads from the Guandu district of Kunming city to the surrounding areas, the diffusion rate in the east is fast and the total number of crimes is high. 4) In terms of influencing factors, natural factors have the least impact on child abduction crimes, and there is no significant change in different time periods. Population factors are affected by regional culture, fertility preferences, and marriage and family systems, and become the dominant factor in the rapid growth period of child trafficking crimes. Social and economic factors have a significant effect on the high and low crime periods.

The crime of trafficking has a long history of causing serious harm to the victims, their families, and social stability, which has aroused widespread concern from the public and academic circles. Studies have shown that the southwest region of China has the highest incidence of trafficking crimes; thus, this study examines the trial data of Chinese judgment documents of the southwestern regions (Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Chongqing) from 2008 to 2020. The study comprehensively uses text analysis, mathematical statistics, spatial analysis, and negative binomial regression test to explore spatial and temporal variation patterns and the factors influencing them. The study then proposes countermeasures for prevention, control, and management. The research shows that: (1) The overall high incidence of trafficking crimes occurred in the period 2009-2014, showing a wavy pattern of "three peaks and two valleys." The "three peaks" occurred in 2009, 2012, and 2014, whereas the "two valleys" occurred in 2010 and 2013. The highest incidence was in December, with the next highest incidences concentrated in May, June, July, and September for women, and May, July, August and September for children. On the whole, trafficking crimes occurred mostly in the summer months. The four provinces have had different degrees of inter-year and inter-month variations in the trafficking of women and children. (2) The overall spatial distribution is in the shape of a significant "southeast-northwest" axis, which is highly consistent with the boundary line between Sichuan and Chongqing, Yunnan, and Guizhou, and the inter-provincial border area is a hotspot for trafficking crimes. The provincial spatial distribution is the highest in Yunnan Province and the lowest in Chongqing. Trafficking mostly occurs at medical care institutions, stations, and rural residences with a large flow of people. (3) Negative binomial regression analysis of the random effects panel shows the incidence of trafficking crimes as influenced by the gender ratio of the population and the number of urban and rural residents' minimum living standards, while the per capita disposable income of rural residents, the registered urban unemployment rate, the child dependency ratio,and the volume of passenger transport have negative effects; whereas the population sex ratio, passenger traffic, and the number of urban and rural residents on the minimum subsistence allowance have a greater impact on the crime of trafficking of women. Finally, based on the analysis of the influencing factors, the three aspects of strengthening social construction, innovating prevention mechanisms, and strengthening combating mechanisms are proposed as the prevention and control countermeasures, with a view to dismantle the breeding ground for the crime of trafficking of women and children.

Sending children out for adoption has a long history. It completely changes the trajectory of children's survival and development. Trapped in the complexity, concealment, and dispersion of this behavior, the relevant definition is controversial and research data is difficult to obtain,the systemic and deep understanding are urgently needed. Based on public welfare website cases, this study uses social networks, spatial analysis, mathematical statistics and Geodetector to explore the spatiotemporal differentiation characteristics of informal adoption-out from 1981 to 2010 and further summarize the process and causal mechanism of informal adoption-out. The results are as follows: (1) Adopted children are mostly females under one-year of age. The young age of the group is because of the birth families' independent decision-making. Influenced by contemporary birth policy, economic conditions, and other factors, they make decisions as early as possible. During the family planning period, the number of children was strictly controlled. Influenced by the preference for sons, some families gave up girls to have the opportunity to have boys. Traditional fertility concepts have been highlighted in the narrow fertility space. (2) Over time, an inverted U-shaped distribution of "increasing first and decreasing later" is presented. From 1981 to 1983, adopted children were mainly affected by the family's economic situation. The violation of the birth policy became the dominant factor around 1990. Spatially, it is mainly distributed in the eastern, central Sichuan-Chongqing regions of China. (3) Economic poverty, birth-policy violations, son preference, and family accidents can explain about 90% of informal adopted-out cases. Children are most likely to be dispatched when the survival and development of families and children cannot be guaranteed. (4) Population factors are the most important factors affecting the spatial distribution. Natural disasters, birth control, and economic factors have a greater impact on each period in that order. The time interval interaction detection result shows that, when families are faced with poverty and change (for example, parent is ill or dies), the probability of children being sent out for adoption greatly increases. A parent's absence will not only worsen the family's economic situation, but also reduce the emotional willingness to raise children. (5) Based on the rational choice theory, this study posits the influencing mechanism of sending children out for adoption: Culture, the fertility system, laws, and the economy constitute the macro environment of informal adoption, which also thoroughly affects family decision-making. As a basic research unit, the collection of decision-making results has both similarities and regional characteristics in macro. In 2015, China enacted the "Two-child policy," which may have led to a large number of adoptions. The goal of adoption has gradually shifted from "maximizing the interests of the family" to "maximizing the rights and interests of children." Therefore, we should learn from historical experience, rapidly improve the laws related to adoption, clarify the legal boundaries of children sent out by birth families, and combat the occurrence of crimes such as child trafficking, so as to protect their legitimate rights and interests.

The paper compares and discusses human trafficking from the perspective of state governance in these two countries; the five different aspect of strategies, laws and regulations, working institutions, police systems, and victim rescue and resettlement are examined. The strengths and weaknesses of the two countries in tackling human trafficking are also compared in this study. National strategies for human trafficking governance in China and the United States are formulated under the framework of "people-oriented, coordinated prevention, legal crackdown, active assistance, and proper resettlement". China is more concerned with combating the domestic trafficking of women and children, whereas the United States focuses on the governance of commercial, transnational human trafficking. China's governance is characterized by top-down management and bottom-up autonomy. Once strategies, laws, and regulations are formed, they can be quickly implemented across the entire country. In the United States, the federal government and state governments are cooperative rather than subordinate, and the separation of powers and two-party political system are other issues that indicate the need for further investigations regarding the national implementation and linkage of the governance of human trafficking. This paper concludes with several recommendations on how China should respond to and combat human trafficking crime, including escalating the implementation of China's Action Plan against Human Trafficking (2021-2030) and taking specific actions based on local conditions; enhancing the connection with the national laws and absorption from them and continuing to promote special legislations targeting human trafficking crimes; attaching greater importance to social construction and govemance of transnational human trafficking through strengthening international cooperation; refining anti-trafficking work organizations and setting up specialized working groups, special funds and smoother channels for suggestions; constructing and perfecting China's "Reunion System" supporting system.

The problem of missing persons is a major global challenge, which causes serious harm to their families and societies. For this study, we collected 9,193 U.S. missing-persons records for the years 1996-2021 from the Doe Network platform. We used mathematical statistics and Moran's I index to analyze the socio-demographic characteristics, spatio-temporal distribution and its evolution patterns. Then the geodetector was applied to conduct an in-depth analysis of the influencing factors in socio-cultural, economic and demographic aspects. Based on above findings, a sociological theory of the formation mechanism of the missing-person phenomenon in the United States was proposed. Major findings included: (1) With age increasing, the number of missing persons initially increased and then dropped gradually. The highest missing rate was found among adolescents (13-18 years old) and adults (19-59 years old). Although more males than females were reported missing, the high-incidence period of males lagged slightly behind that of females. The high missing rate among adolescent females was linked to sexual crimes, including sex trafficking and rape, while that of adult men tended to be caused by family discord or debt problems. Among racial groups, black people faced the greatest risk of going missing. (2) From 1996, the number of missing-person incidents initially showed a wave upward trended and then fell sharply, after peaking in 2017, because of a series of immigration regulations. In 2020, it declined dramatically again, due to COVID-19. Influenced by the temperature, school holidays, and festivals, most people were reported missing during the months of June, August, and December. Only few missing incidents happened between February and April. (3) Spatially, at the state level, the missing population distribution decreased from the coastal border area to the inland area; over time, areas with a great number of missing-person incidents advanced simultaneously from the eastern and western coastal areas and the southern US-Mexico border to US inland areas. At the county level, they were concentrated on the edge and scattered internally. (4) Missing-person incidents were caused by the interaction of multiple factors; regional population mobility, fertility rate, and the number of vulnerable people had a positive impact on numbers of missing people, while per capital GDP had a negative impact. The power of population-based environmental factors was significantly enhanced after be interacted with social and economic factors, on explaining the missing-person spatial distribution, all of which were above 80%. (5) The underlying mechanism of missing-person incidents could be understood from the perspective of "social anomie". In other words, the disconnect between social goals and means led to social anomie, which then induced deviant behavior, including abduction, murder, and running away from home, increasing the likelihood of missing-person incidents. Finally, we offered suggestions for disappearance prevention and further study directions. The findings provided a basic understanding of the missing-person phenomenon, contributing to global scientific information, which could aid in preventing missing-person incidents.

拐卖现象由来已久,不仅扰乱社会秩序,也给受害者及其家庭造成严重伤害.目前相关研究大多关注受害者,对犯罪者尤其死刑犯的研究开展不足.为此,基于中国裁判文书网数据,综合运用数理统计、空间分析与社会网络分析等方法,聚焦拐卖人口死刑犯,解析中国拐卖人口重罪案件的多维特征与形成机制.研究发现:①死刑犯以男性为主,犯案年龄以25～45岁为最;死刑犯的文化水平低,小学文化占比过半;刑满释放的罪犯实际服刑的平均年限为17年.②典型拐卖人口重罪案件的犯罪网络呈现出"核心-边缘"结构,核心节点为犯罪者,受害者和收买方处于边缘位置.③死刑犯被执行时间随年份呈"M"形波动,分为"增长期""波动期"和"减少期"3个时期;存在2001年和2010年两个峰值年份.④死刑犯的籍贯地在全国呈现出"两片一点"的空间格局,集中分布在西南地区、华北地区和东南地区的福建省.具体来看,西南地区的死刑犯主要集中在云南省(昭通市和文山州).此外,死刑犯的空间路径呈现"西南-华北""西南-华南"与"西南-新疆"的流窜作案特征.最后,从多维度整合分析的视角发现拐卖人口重罪案件的形成主要受"差异梯度力"的影响,不同地区的自然社会条件为拐卖人口犯罪的发生提供了基本要素.

With the rapid development of the economic and social situation and the improvement of public security defense and governance, the quantity of cases of child trafficking by means of theft, forcible robbery, and deception has decreased significantly, and the offense of selling offspring has shown an obvious increasing trend. Based on the case data of child trafficking crime on the website of Chinese Judicial Documents, this study examines the spatiotemporal pattern and criminal decision-making mechanism of offense of selling offspring. The results are as follows: (1) Sold children are characterized by "younger age," most of them are zero-year-old infants, and males are far more represented than females. Most sellers are young and middle-aged men or young women, mainly unemployed, farmers and workers. They sell their offspring to buyers with strong demand through social networks of acquaintances, special occupational groups, traffickers, network media, or persuasion by buyers/intermediaries. The reasons for selling include economic difficulties, out of wedlock birth, extra births, intermediary solicitation, debt repayment. (2) Temporally, the annual change of crime can be divided into three stages: stable sequence and low incidence, rapid growth and sustained high incidence, and steady decline, which are mainly affected by China's population policy, action on combating trafficking, and the development of the website of Chinese Judicial Documents. The monthly change presents a synchronous trend on the birth and betrayal time of the children, with spring and summer being more represented than autumn and winter. (3) Spatially, the origin region of selling presents the pattern of "three sources" with "Sichuan-Shandong-Fujian" as the core, and the destination region of selling presents the pattern of "North-South two sinks" with "Shandong-Fujian" as the core on the macro level. Microscopically, it occurs in closed spaces with a frequent flow of people, and residential buildings and open spaces with a frequent flow of people. The overall trafficking path is "inter-provincial flowing out from the southwest source area and intra-provincial flow of the South-North sink area." Inter-provincial migration is mostly driven by interests and is dominated by trafficking criminal groups, while intra-provincial migration is mostly formed by temporary one-time gang crimes to meet the needs of buying and selling. (4) Based on the theory of rational choice, this study constructs a decision-making framework for the offense of selling offspring, and finds that the crime is mainly affected by the comprehensive influence of background factors, previous experience, and situational induction, and the bounded rational choice made by potential criminals under the decision-making evaluation of "benefit-cost-risk." After deciding to sell their children, potential criminals will choose the appropriate time, place, and way to maximize interests.

This study aimed to observe the sociodemographic characteristics of Chinese senior officials who have committed duty crimes as well as the spatial-temporal heterogeneity of their work place and the social network between the offenders. Further, this study aimed to investigate the formation mechanism of Chinese duty crimes and suggest prevention and control measures. Thus, we conducted text analysis, mathematical statistics, and spatial analysis based on data from 321 officials who were at sub-provincial level or above and committed crimes in China from 1985 to 2020. The results showed that: (1) The number of male officials were significantly higher than their female counterparts, the majority of officials who first disciplined and violated laws were middle-aged, and most of them were middle-aged and older adults when they were disciplined. The criminal charges were mainly corruption and bribery, and crimes mainly occurred in the energy enterprise, government department, and central government-led enterprise. (2) In terms of time, the first time the officials disciplined and violated the laws were concentrated between 1988 and 2008, showing "high fluctuation with three peaks at 1994, 2000, and 2003." The number of offenders showed the trend of "four peaks" and can be divided in to two groups: 2001 and 2004, 2014 and 2017, first increased slightly and thereafter rapidly. After 2011, the number has increased approximately straight, indicating social and economic changes and anti-corruption efforts. (3) Regarding space, most officials resided in North China, East China, and Central China, with hotspots appearing in Shandong, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Tianjin, Beijing, and parts of Henan, Jilin, and Heilongjiang provinces. The officials' work places were concentrated in North China, East China, and Central China, with hotspots and clusters in Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, and Shanxi provinces with a few clusters in Henan, Sichuan, Chongqing, and Guangdong provinces. Most of the officials who changed their places of employment moved to Beijing until they were disciplined, and 36.57% of them worked in their hometown until discipline. The radiation effect of the offenders' criminal behavior appeared to rely on geo-relationships and relatives and friends, take the officials themselves as the center, the members of the officials' social network relations are the key nodes to radiate outward, the criminal trajectories forming the "mobile criminal network" with characteristics of personal life trajectories. (4) Public choice theory can explain the emergence of duty crimes. Officials will take their own conditions and external environment into consideration, compare the costs and benefits of the crime and decide whether to commit duty crimes. These findings suggest that duty crimes can be comprehensively prevented and managed from various aspects.

As a crime that threatens public safety and social stability, child trafficking has attracted widespread attention from all sectors of society. Few studies have been conducted on child trafficking, especially in the literature review conducted from the perspective of comparison between China and abroad, which makes it difficult to fully reveal the system and development of current research. This study clarifies the thematic structure and development of child trafficking in China and abroad, based on the "Web of ScienceTM Core Collection" and CNKI data sources, using CiteSpace software. Specifically, the study comparatively examines the progress of child trafficking studies in China and abroad since 2000 and analyzes future development trends from the time of publication, regional and subject distribution, research institutions, and keyword co-occurrence. We hope that this work provides a relatively complete and objective understanding for innovative future research. The results indicate that: (1) the research on child trafficking started earlier abroad, and the theoretical system and research methods are relatively mature. From 2000 to 2020, a total of 215 articles were published in Web of Science, showing two stages of fluctuating and rapid growth, and USA ranks first worldwide. There are 46 core articles published in CNKI, showing two stages of initial exploration and fluctuating growth overall, with a relatively slow growth rate in China. More studies are distributed in the fields of social studies, psychology, pediatrics, family studies and criminology in abroad, while domestic studies are mainly distributed in the field of law, criminology and sociology. In recent years, the research in the field of geography has risen rapidly, and there is ample room for development. (2) Due to the differences in regional environment and national conditions, international child trafficking is part of a study on human trafficking, which is mainly for the purpose of exploitation, including direct and indirect exploitation, involving various topics such as commercial sexual exploitation, labor exploitation, trafficking human organs, child marriage trafficking, and other types of trafficking. Commercial trafficking and sexual exploitation are the main research hotspots of child trafficking. Child trafficking in China is usually discussed in combination with the trafficking of women, focusing on the provincial trafficking for the purpose of adoption, and "family control" and "lured adoption" are common ways of committing crimes. The legal policy and social reasons surrounding child trafficking are hot topics of concern. (3) With the increase in interdisciplinary integration, child trafficking involves suicide risk and well-being, rehabilitation and return to society, child protection and trafficking prevention and control measures, which have become popular topics abroad. The theme of domestic child trafficking has extended from focusing on legal policies and social reasons to spatial-temporal patterns, influencing factors, resettlement, and social integration. In the future, how to integrate the relevant parties involved in child trafficking (criminals, victims or guardians, and other people) with the spatio-temporal environment (social environment, built environment, and surrounding people flow environment), and explore the evolution of geographical factors and the spatio-temporal activity trajectory of child trafficking from the perspective of criminal geography? It is important to deeply analyze the occurrence mechanism of child trafficking from the interactive perspective of time, space, and humans. How to make full use of the modern technological means to track and combat child trafficking in practice, to contribute to the prevention and management of this issue at home and abroad, constitutes a key question.

Trafficking crime has a long history, violating personal safety and disrupting social order. At present, most relevant studies focus on the places that supply victims of trafficking. Research on the places that create demand is insufficient. As a typical site of trafficking, Hebei Province has a relatively mature "buyers' market". Based on the China Judgment Documents and online interview data, this study focuses on trafficking criminals and analyzes the multidimensional characteristics and formation mechanism of trafficking in Hebei Province, using mathematical statistics, spatial analysis, case analysis and other methods. The findings are: 1) The proportion of male and female trafficking crime offenders is unbalanced and ranges from 30 to 45 years of age. These offenders have a low level of education, with more than half having no more than a primary- or junior-high-school education. The crime of trafficking in women and children accounts for 79.8% of all trafficking crimes; 67.5% of offenders have been imprisoned for correction, and 7.2% have been sentenced to more than 10 years. 2) The interannual change in the occurrence of trafficking crimes in Hebei Province presents an "inverted-spoon shape," which can be divided into three periods: increase, fluctuation, and decrease. Case trial times show a "single peak" in 2014. The average time interval between the occurrence of a trafficking crime and the trial is about 3 years. Between 2011 and 2020, about 23 cases of abduction and trafficking were tried each year on average. 3) Trafficking offenders in Hebei Province have formed a spatial pattern of "two hots and one cold" as they are concentrated in the southern Hebei region and on the border of Yunnan and Guangxi. The victims are also concentrated; trafficked children are concentrated in Southern Hebei, while trafficked women are concentrated in northern Hebei. In addition, major criminal paths have formed, such as internal flow in Handan City, Hengshui-Xingtai-Shijiazhuang, Southern Hebei-Western Shandong, Sichuan-Yunnan-Guangxi-Guizhou region. Finally, from the perspective of a multi-dimensional integration analysis, the present study finds that trafficking crimes in Hebei Province are formed in part by "push-pull" interactions. Differences in the natural, social, economic, and cultural elements in different regions provide the basic conditions for trafficking crimes to form, creating a "push-pull" effect on the populations between regions, and promoting the occurrence of abduction and trafficking crimes. At the same time, a special regional network of kidnapping crimes has developed, based on differences in the natural, social, economic, and cultural conditions in various regions within Hebei Province.

The crime of human trafficking is an abnormal (involuntary, passive) phenomenon of population migration (disappearance, persecution); it has attracted great attention from the public and academic community because of its resultant social harm and far-reaching impacts on individuals and families. Constrained by the concealment, dispersion, variability, and complexity of the crime of human trafficking in China, the perspectives of earlier research topics were relatively clustered and limited. During the last 10 years, geographers have gradually achieved certain new understandings and progress through continuous exploration. From the perspective of the related sub-disciplines of geography, this study focuses on the main progress, existing issues, future trends, and crime governance paths to review studies on the crime of human trafficking in China. The results indicate the following: (1) Regarding the interdisciplinary situation: The crime of human trafficking is a social pain point of common concern among multiple disciplines. Geography has the advantage of being a latecomer and its integration with other disciplines will help understand the problem in depth and solve it systematically. Geographers will have a broad stage for future research in the field of human trafficking crimes. (2) Regarding the research objects: The earlier studies on the crime of child trafficking in China in the international context were actually subject studies of human trafficking in the Chinese criminal law context. The crime of human trafficking in China is unique compared to other countries and other types of crimes. (3) Regarding the research data: In the past, the data sources mainly comprised non-governmental organizations and individuals. The current data sources show the co-occurrence of non-governmental and official sources and the trend of the integration of offline and online availability. The integration and utilization of multi-source data will be the main path to future studies. (4) Regarding field investigation: In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic's impact and the upgrading of related family tracing means, field investigation has opened up new ways, and online investigations (online interviews, participatory observation in live broadcasting rooms, etc.) have become complementary or alternative channels of traditional field investigations and surveys. (5) Regarding patterns and trends: Based on the update and verification of available data, it is found that the stability of the spatiotemporal pattern of trafficking crimes and the dependence on the main routes in China, and cross-border and inter-provincial border areas, are worthy of attention. Future research trend will shift from being independent to comprehensive—from a quantitative study to a qualitative or mixed study; from case numbers to individuals, families, and their social networks; from the source area to the bridging of source, flow, and sink areas; and from a type of human trafficking to multi-type comparisons of missing persons. (6) Regarding measures and suggestions: Combined with the existing research knowledge and current crime trends, this study presents overall strategies and specific paths for dealing with the crime of human trafficking and assisting the abducted and their relatives.