NCJ Number
61857
Date Published
1978
Length
8 pages
Annotation
CONCEPTUAL AND PRACTICAL APPROACHES TO CRIME PREVENTION ARE EVALUATED, AND REDUCTION IN THE FEAR OF VICTIMIZATION AS A MEASURE OF CRIME PREVENTION IS EXAMINED.
Abstract
AN EXAMINATION OF THE PROBLEMS OF CURRENT RESEARCH ON CRIME PREVENTION CONFIRMS THE UNCERTAINTIES ABOUT THE DEFINITION OF PREVENTION, THE LIMITS OF THE AREA TO BE SUBJECTED TO THEORETICAL INVESTIGATION, AND THE DIFFERENT FIELDS IN WHICH PRACTICAL CRIME PREVENTION OPERATIONS OCCUR. SCANT RESEARCH EXISTS ON THE NATURE OF PUBLIC AND INDIVIDUAL DEMAND FOR PREVENTION BECAUSE OF THE FEARS ASSOCIATED WITH VICTIMIZATION AND THE KINDS OF PREVENTIVE APPROACHES, PARTICULARLY WITH REGARD TO POLICE ACTION, THAT CITIZENS WILL TOLERATE. PREVENTIVE MEASURES HAVE BEEN LIMITED TO INCREASED POLICE PATROLS AND INFORMATION ABOUT SECURITY MEASURES THAT CAN BE TAKEN. THE EMPHASIS ON TIGHTER PATROLS IS LIKELY TO INCREASE CITIZENS' AWARENESS OF POLICE SURVEILLANCE, THUS CONFIRMING THEIR FEARS OF VICTIMIZATION. CURRENTLY, CRIME PREVENTION IS ALMOST SOLELY A FUNCTION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES; IT SHOULD ALSO BE THE CONCERN OF SOCIAL AGENCIES, PARTICULARLY WITH REFERENCE TO A CRIME PREVENTION APPROACH THAT AIMS TO DEAL WITH SOCIOECONOMIC CONDITIONS WHICH SPAWN CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR. MORE EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND CONCEPTUAL INTERACTION BETWEN THEORETICIANS AND PRACTITIONERS IN THE DEVISING OF CRIME PREVENTION STRATEGIES SHOULD BE PROMOTED. MOREOVER, A BROAD-BASED APPROACH TO CRIME PREVENTION SHOULD BRING TOGETHER REPRESENTATIVES FROM ALL GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, AND AGE GROUPS TO DISCUSS AND FORMULATE A COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGY OF CRIME PREVENTION. NO REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (RCB)