Link Between Crime and the Built Environment - The Current State of Knowledge, Volume 1

• NCJ Number: 77056
• Author(s): C Murray; T Motoyama; W V Rouse; H RubensteinRubenstein H
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 110 pages
• Contract Number(s): J-LEAA-026-78
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Justice (NIJ); US Dept of Justice NIJ Pub
• Corporate Author: American Institutes for Research
• Sale Source: Superintendent of Documents, GPO; National Institute of Justice/
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Volume 2, The Link Between Crime and the Built Environment: Methodological Reviews of Individual Crime-Environment Studies, will not be published but is available on loan from NCJRS.

Annotation

This study, designed to assess the state of knowledge on the link between crime and the built environment at the end of the 1970's, focuses on two topics: what has been established about this link, and what are the key outstanding issues.

Abstract

The answers were based on a methodological review of 52 empirical studies conducted on the topic during the last decade; 15 major studies were subjected to more intensive analysis. Studies were included in the review if they had some sort of empirical base, if they used the built environment as the independent variable, and if the dependent variable included occurrence of stranger-to-stranger crimes or the fear of crime in a given area. Findings indicated that elements of the physical environment and combinations of elements can reduce crime and the fear of crime. The strongest evidence found was for the effectiveness of procedures to control or monitor movement (locks, alarms, surveillance cameras, guard stations, etc.). Some evidence was also found for the importance of factors that increase visibility, and for the ability of physical design to influence social behavior to reduce crime and fear. What the evidence does not show is why the effects occur when they occur; thus, it is difficult to use the present knowledge base to tell whether a given strategy is likely to be effective, suggest the kinds of numbers or strategies to use, or identify the conditions under which a design strategy is a cost-effective approach. The study suggests that the limited evidence on the crime-built environment link should not constrain the applications of these ideas; however, many of the design features suggested by the theory are reasonable in cost (such as better locks). Some are desirable in themselves (such as fewer families per floor or per building). Recommended research includes (1) studies in real environments of the hypothesized links between built environments, intervening behaviors, and crime; (2) development of improvements in the operationalizing and measurement of basic constructs and variables; (3) understanding of the role of the built environment in supporting other anticrime methods, and (4) studies of offender perceptions and behavior in relation to the built environment. Figures illustrating three underlying rationales for the crime-built environment link are given. An appendix contains the literature review strategy and a bibliography of approximately 265 references.