NCJ Number
87326
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 22 Issue: 4 Dated: (October 1982) Pages: 386-402
Date Published
1982
Length
17 pages
Annotation
A British survey of crime victims among 531 randomly sampled residents of an ethnically-mixed community in North Central Birmingham indicates that victimization varies even across small areas according to multiple deprivation, suggesting that crime can be prevented through planning for targeted areas.
Abstract
Data indicate that the rate of crime victimization in the inner city is related to locational disadvantage, and even in deprived areas themselves, where a person lives affects the likelihood of his/her being victimized. Since the scope for large-scale structural change in Britain is currently limited, attention should be given to removal at the local level of some of the precursors of vulnerability to crime victimization, particularly those associated with a decaying physical environment, such as insecurable dwellings, vacant buildings, broken fences which make for easy access, and a shortage of garages which prompts high rates of on-street parking. While such local modifications are short-term and relatively superficial, they can substantially increase the quality of life for the victim-prone. Victimization was also found to be significantly related to the volume and type of leisure-time activity. Persons spending a great deal of time outside the home involved in public entertainment activities are more likely to become crime victims than those who spend their leisure time within the home. Such a pattern of crime risk does not appear amenable to revision, however, since it would involve reduction in rather than improvement in the quality of life as a means for reducing victimization. Tabular data and 33 references are provided.