Criminology - Course 7 : Crime as a Product of the Situation PDF

# Criminologie - Cours 7 - Le crime comme produit de la situation ## 1. Origine de l'approche situationnelle (environnemental) - Traditional theories focus on the delinquent (and motivations) - Reductionist. - New approach. - Pioneers of social medicine and preventative medicine of the 19th centur...

# Criminologie - Cours 7 - Le crime comme produit de la situation ## 1. Origine de l'approche situationnelle (environnemental) - Traditional theories focus on the delinquent (and motivations) - Reductionist. - New approach. - Pioneers of social medicine and preventative medicine of the 19th century are precursors of the situational approach (prevention of diseases). - Questioned the role of opportunities for committing a crime. - **Leslie Wilkins** is a precursor of this theory and criminology. - He studied the situation during WWII (RAF). - Due to human errors, there were aircraft losses. - He noticed people did not follow protocols. - He created preventative training/education. - Studied the impact of prevention on reducing crime. - **Aristotle** noted that proximity between offender and victim facilitated the commission of a crime, and that people were more likely to steal readily accessible items. - Theologians have always highlighted the role of temptation. ## 2. Theories ### 2.1 The Lifestyle Theory (Hindelang, Gottfredson & Garofalo, 1978) * From data a theory was created. * Questioned how lifestyle might influence crime? * Lifestyle can determine an individual's risk of victimization (in the public sphere). * **Lifestyle analysis** based on early surveys: * Every individual has demographic characteristics, role expectations, structural constraints, associations, adaptation, lifestyle, exposure and personal victimization. * Explains that exposure varies greatly depending on the individual. * The key ideas are: * Time spent in public spaces increases the chance of being a victim. * Being a victim of a crime is possible if a person has similar sociodemographic characteristics as the perpetrator. * The victim's time spent outside their home increases their chance of being a victim. * The victim’s proximity to areas with high crime rate increases their chance of being a victim. * Aim of the theory is to understand the mechanisms of victimization. * The theory is tested by examining four key variables: * Frequency of outings * Types of outings * Frequency of late arrivals * Proximity to places with high crime rates (homeless shelters, drug addicts, delinquents, etc) * **Risk of victimization**: Young men who go out often. * Comparing groups based on their odds ratio of victimization: * Risk of being a victim of robbery and assault increases by 25% for individuals who spend more time outside of their home. * Risk of being a victim of sexual assault increases by 20% for individuals who go to discos. * Risk of being a victim of robbery or assault increases by 15% for individuals who are younger than 35 years old. * Risk of being a victim of robbery or assault increases by 15% for individuals who rely on public transportation. * Risk of being a victim of robbery or assault increases by 10% for individuals who feel invincible. ### 2.2 Routine Activities Theory (Cohen & Felson, 1979) * Focuses mainly on burglaries. * Explains the increase and decrease in crime. * Directly links crime to the interaction between an offender, the target and the absence of a guardian * Explains the increase in crime in the United States between 1947 and 1977. * Crime is increasing after WW II, even though poverty rate is down. * There is a belief that when poverty is low, so will crime, but that’s not true. * The increase in crime is due to the increase in wealth and the ability to make purchases. * Smaller objects are easier to steal. * More single-household families, more women involved in paid work, and more people out of the house in general. * This theory can also explain the decrease in property crime in the Western United States since the 1990s. * The decrease is due to reduced home resale value, less cash in circulation, and the implementation of situational crime prevention (protecting targets). * **The crime triangle**: * A motivated perpetrator * An attractive victim * Absence of a guardian ### 2.3 Situational Prevention Theory * This is a practical approach. * **Aim:** Reduce crime. * **Question:** What can be done to reduce crime? #### 2.3.1 Clarke and Mayhew Model * Crime depends on five factors: 1. Number of available targets 2. Ease of acquiring targets 3. Attractiveness of targets 4. Risk of being caught 5. Legitimate alternatives **Aim:** * Reduce the number of available targets * Increase the difficulty of acquiring targets * Decrease the attractiveness of targets * Increase the risk of being caught (perceived risk for offender) * Increase the appeal of legitimate alternatives #### 2.3.2 25 Techniques of Situational Crime Prevention These techniques should be used democratically and with restraint. - **Increase the effort for the offender**: * Strengthen targets * Control access to infrastructure * Filter exits * Detour offenders * Control weapons and tools - **Increase the risks to the offender**: * Increase protection * Develop natural surveillance * Reduce anonymity * Use place managers * Strengthen formal surveillance * - **Reduce the rewards to the offender**: * Disguise targets * Remove targets * Identify goods * Disrupt markets * Refuse benefits * Reducing the frustration and stress of the offender - **Reducing the provocations of the offender**: * Reduce provocation for the offender: * Reduce frustration and stress * Avoid conflict * Reduce emotional reactions * Neutralize peer pressure * Discourage imitation - **Reducing the excuses for the offender**: * Set rules * Display instructions * Raise awareness * Facilitate compliance with standards * Control drugs and alcohol #### 2.3.3 Critique of Situational Prevention Theory * Is it prevention or just displacement? * Critiques point to a "hydraulic" view of crime. **Point to the following**: * Eliminating opportunities will only cause crime to seek out new targets. * Situational prevention increases social inequality by pushing crime onto marginalized groups. * Increased visibility of anti-crime measures increases fear of crime. * **Argument**: The displacement hypothesis assumes criminal motivations are fixed. In reality, criminals are capable of adapting to changing circumstances, but this adaptation has limitations. * **Meta-analysis (Guerette & Bowers, 2009)**: 26% displacement of crime, 27% displacement of benefits. #### 2.3.4 Examples of situational crime prevention in practice * **Target hardening (vulnerability)**: * **Locks for cars** * **Suppression of weapons** * **Suppression of instruments of crime**: * Detoxification of household gas * Removing firearms from homes * Restricting the sale of firearms to potentially "dangerous" individuals. * **Suppression of targets**: * **Removing objects of value**. * **Prevention of theft from vending machines**: * Replacing cash with vending machines accepting credit cards. * Replacing coin-operated pay phones. * Replacing coin-operated parking meters. * **Suppression of benefits**: * **Controlling the distribution of illegal substances**: * Replacing a black market with legal pharmacies. * Promoting preventative drug abuse treatment. * Legalization of certain substances. * **Examples of crime reduction**: * **Interdiction of slot machines**: Increased the rate of burglaries in cafés and restaurants in St. Gall. * **Introduction of helmet laws**: Reduced motorcycle thefts in German-speaking Switzerland. * **Reduction of gun ownership**: Countries with a higher rate of gun ownership had a higher rate of suicide by firearms. ## 3. Situational Approach and Society ### 3.1 The Broken Windows Theory (Killias) * There is ongoing technological development, generating new "broken windows". * This constantly creates new opportunities for crime. * Security must adapt to these developments. * Situational prevention attempts to plug those holes, but legal frameworks are often slow to catch up. * **Benefits:** * Creates a more proactive approach to preventing crime. * Focuses on the environment in which crime occurs. * **Challenges**: * May be ineffective in preventing crime in the long term. * Can be difficult to implement effectively. * May lead to a focus on "fixing" individuals, rather than addressing the underlying social conditions that contribute to crime. ### 3.2 Positive Measures * Aim: To provide criminals with alternative, legal means of achieving their goals. * Examples: * Safe access to abortion. * Regulation of organ trafficking. * Fighting corruption. * Combating tax fraud. ### 3.3 Moral Aspect * Moralizing is widespread among experts who prioritize human development, preferring to reduce crime by modifying human nature. * Critiques often overlook the importance of opportunity in the learning process of criminals. * Less serious crimes provide a "training ground" for committing more significant offences. * It is possible to reduce crime without eliminating its root causes. * Criminality is a fundamental part of human nature. It cannot be eliminated.