Economic Conditions, Neighborhood Organization, and Urban Crime (From Communities and Crime, P 231-270, 1986, Albert J Reiss, Jr and Michael Tonry, eds. - See NCJ-103315)

• NCJ Number: 103322
• Author(s): R M McGahey
• Date Published: 1986
• Length: 40 pages
• Grant Number(s): 84-IJ-CX-0011
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Justice (NIJ); US Dept of Justice NIJ Pub
• Sale Source: University of Chicago Press
• Publication Type: Issue Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS.

Annotation

This essay discusses legitimate economies among impoverished urban neighborhoods, examines neighborhood crime patterns in relation to employment and social disorganization, and explores the role of public policy in stabilizing neighborhoods.

Abstract

Poor local economic conditions and inadequate participation in the labor market can both cause and result from social disruption. Recent research conducted by the Vera Institute of Justice on employment and crime patterns among high-risk youths in Brooklyn, N.Y., indicated that persistent unemployment among adult residents limited the development of stable households and youth employment opportunities. The resulting lack of informal social controls contributed to the persistence of crime in some poor urban neighborhoods. Property crime, drug sales, and other illegal activities provided income to youths in neighborhoods where employment options were scarce or offered low wages and sporadic hours. Public policy on crime control in poor neighborhoods has concentrated on providing delinquents with vocational training, but the results have not been encouraging. This essay gives special attention to the Mobilization for Youth program which attempted more profound social reforms in the 1960's and met with varying degrees of success. Approximately 100 references. (Author abstract modified)