crime prevention strategies

Question 1

what are the types of crime prevention strategy?

Answer 1

1. situational crime prevention (at the point crime occurs)
2. environmental crime prevention (making an area less attractive for criminals and clamping down on it quickly
3. social and community crime prevention (intervening with individuals at risk of becoming criminal and alternatives to crime

Question 2

Situational explanation

Answer 2

• most crime is opportunistic- people happen to see opportunities
• CCTV, street lights, barricades, barbed wire, spiky fences, no climb paint etc
• less opportunity for crime (risk/reward) which increases chances of getting caught
• however, they are displaced to an easier target
• example: NYC bus port authority bus terminal- Marcus Felson 1998

Question 3

pros and cons of situational crime prevention

Answer 3

PROS
- low cost depending on sich
- simple solution
- easy and quick fix
- reduce opportunisitc crime
- protects a whole area
- cost effective
- visible and people feel safe

CONS
- displacement
- ignores root causes (Garland 2001)
- not long term
- crime might get more severe
- Crawford and Evans (2013): fortress society created, people feel like they’re being watched and punished when they’re not supposed to be, reduces civil liberties and harms most vulnerable
- inconvenience

Question 4

environmental crime prevention explanation

Answer 4

• clean up grafitti and vandalism immediately- clean cars program NYC
• zero tolerance and broken windows theory
• deal with all crime no matter how petty
• dispersal order, alcohol ban, panopticon

Question 5

environmental crime prevention pros and cons

Answer 5

PROS
- investment in local areas more effective than 0 tol
- long term cost effectice
- long term effects

CONS
- unaffordable to employ enough police (short term fix)
- different governments and reduction in budgets affect it

Question 6

social and community crime prevention

Answer 6

• troubled families programme (2012-2015)
• create sens of community to counteract feelings of marginalisation
• left realists- cause of social crime, prevents crime by improving community

Question 7

pros and cons of social and community crime prevention

Answer 7

PROS
- long term benefits, engaging people
- shared responsibility, we help each other
- cost effective in the long term
- wider unintentional projects
- addresses root causes and tackles LR factors

CONS
- time consuming to take effect, lots of crime happens in meantime and the programme may be stopped before taking effect
- romanticising criminality
- expensive and people demand gov results immediately
- won’t always be effective on everyone
- resource heavy and requires a lot of support