In Search of Public Perceptions of Disorder and Crime: Examining the Core Tenets of Broken Windows Theory

A cornerstone of broken windows theory concerns public perceptions of disorder and crime, and the citizens’ “panic response” with the onset of disorder in their neighborhoods. Naturally, assuming this dynamic to exist lends support for a significant expansion of police operations from traditional cr...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Authors: Ren, Ling (Author) ; Zhao, Jihong (Solomon) (Author) ; Luo, Fei (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2024
In: International journal of offender therapy and comparative criminology
Year: 2024, Volume: 68, Issue: 12, Pages: 1296-1320
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Keywords:
Description
Summary:A cornerstone of broken windows theory concerns public perceptions of disorder and crime, and the citizens’ “panic response” with the onset of disorder in their neighborhoods. Naturally, assuming this dynamic to exist lends support for a significant expansion of police operations from traditional crime control to order maintenance. More specifically, the advocates of the theory presume that citizens view disorder and crime as two distinctive constructs, and further that the former triggers the latter. Broken windows theory was quite popular during the 1990s and early 2000s, a period in which order maintenance or quality of life policing reached its apex of popularity. Findings from recent studies on public perceptions of disorder and crime, however, have called into serious question: the cognitive distinction between crime and disorder. Using data collected from a random telephone survey of residents residing in the Houston metropolitan area, we follow this line of research and test the hypothesized dynamics underlying broken windows theory. Our principal findings suggest that neither a one-factor model (convergent) nor a two-factor model (discriminant) fit the empirical data when an appropriate concept validation process is carried out. Implications are drawn for broken windows theory and some specific recommendations are made for future research at the end of the study.
ISSN:1552-6933
DOI:10.1177/0306624X221124856