Guardianship for crime prevention: a critical review of the literature

Hollis-Peel, Meghan E.; Reynald, Danielle M.; Bavel, Maud van; Elffers, Henk; Welsh, Brandon C.

doi:10.1007/s10611-011-9309-2

Cited by 159 publications

(131 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Hollis-Peel et al [18] found that although there has been substantial research on routine activities theory, the guardianship component of the theory has been largely ignored. Felson (in [16]: 53) describes guardianship as being exercised by those who serve "by simple presence to prevent crime and by absence to make crime more likely."…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Guardianship and crime: an international comparative study of guardianship in action

Hollis-Peel

Reynald

Welsh

2012

Crime Law Soc Change

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An observational tool was developed to measure guardianship potential and guardianship in action in residential areas in The Hague, the Netherlands by Reynald (Crime Prevention and Community Safety 11(1):1-20, 2009; Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 47(3):358-390, 2010). Guardianship potential was measured using the defensible space-based measures from the Block Environment Inventory (BEI), while Guardianship in Action (GIA) was observed by recording whether or not guardians (1) were visibly available, (2) were monitoring, and (3) intervened when necessary. This article reports on an international comparison of GIA in The Hague and in an American city. A comparative understanding will help advance knowledge on the measurement of active guardianship and related defensible space dimensions and identify socio-cultural differences in the application and meaning of the guardianship concept. Key results include that the observable dimensions of guardianship in action were reliable and valid, but some differences existed between the two sites including significant differences related to the social interaction measure. Similarities and differences across the two sites are examined, and implications for theory and research are explored.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Guardianship and crime: an international comparative study of guardianship in action

Hollis-Peel

Reynald

Welsh

2012

Crime Law Soc Change

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“…Rangers are not the only capable guardians; informal guardians can also prevent a criminal act from happening (Brown and Altman 1982;Hollis-Peel et al 2011). In this study's context this includes private landowners and tourist operators, who are capable of reporting suspicious Fig.…”

Section: Minimize Riskmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding site selection of illegal border crossings into a fenced protected area: a rational choice approach

2018

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This study investigates illegal border crossings by rhino poachers into a fenced reserve in South Africa, comparing journeys to and after crime using a rational choice approach. Using various regression models, our analysis indicates poachers prefer to enter and exit the reserve near high rhino densities, while high road densities outside the reserve increase the odds of an illegal entry. The results also show that half of the incursions occurred at a single location, leading us to describe the special circumstances of this outlier. The study lays a foundation for understanding the location choices poachers make and presents a methodology that can be replicated in other reserves.

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“…For example, Hollis-Peel et al, in a literature review of the guardian figure in routine activity theory, have defined guardianship as "the physical or symbolic presence of an individual (or group of individuals) that acts (either intentionally or unintentionally) to deter a potential criminal event" (Hollis-Peel, Reynald, van Bavel, Elffers, & Welsh, 2011, p. 54), a definition that includes elements that they view as insufficiently specified in the original article by Cohen and Felson (1979) as well as later works. One example is closed-circuit television (CCTV), which is operated by people whose presence at the crime site is not physical (Hollis-Peel et al, 2011). Felson himself, in an effort to tie his theory to Hirschi's social control theory (1969), refines the figure of the guardian, distinguishing the "intimate handler" from the "place manager" (Felson, 1995).…”

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confidence: 99%

Routine Activity Theory

Miró¹

2014

The Encyclopedia of Theoretical Criminology

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Routine activity theory, first formulated by Lawrence E. Cohen and Marcus Felson (1979) and later developed by Felson, is one of the most widely cited and influential theoretical constructs in the field of criminology and in crime science more broadly. In contrast to theories of criminality, which are centered on the figure of the criminal and the psychological, biological, or social factors that motivated the criminal act, the focus of routine activity is the study of crime as an event, highlighting its relation to space and time and emphasizing its ecological nature and the implications thereof.In their initial formulation, Cohen and Felson postulated that changes in the structure of the patterns of daily activity of people in cities following World War II could explain the rise in crime that had occurred, according to leading studies at the time. Their hypothesis was that postmodernity had facilitated the convergence in space and time of likely offenders with the goal of committing crimes against suitable targets in the absence of capable guardians. From this they derived two apparently simple ideas with significant implications: first, that the opportunity for crime may depend on a configuration of distinct (though not disaggregated) elements of the aggressor or criminal; second, a correlate of the first, that the absence of either of the first two elements (aggressor and target) or the presence of the third (capable guardians) would be sufficient in itself to prevent a potential criminal event.Routine activity theory is, in short, an attempt to identify, at a macro-level, criminal activities and their patterns through explanation of changes in crime rate trends (Cohen & Felson, 1979). It is based on criminal events, on the distribution and grouping in space and time of the minimal elements that make them up, rather than on the search for offenders' motives, and it thus offers a frame of reference for concrete and individualized crime analysis and facilitates the application The Encyclopedia of Theoretical Criminology, First Edition. Edited by J. Mitchell Miller.

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Guardianship for crime prevention: a critical review of the literature

Cited by 159 publications

References 41 publications

Guardianship and crime: an international comparative study of guardianship in action

Guardianship and crime: an international comparative study of guardianship in action

Understanding site selection of illegal border crossings into a fenced protected area: a rational choice approach

Routine Activity Theory

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