CRM 201
19S01ACRM029
Explain various crime prevention strategies/approaches
- a) Environmental crime prevention strategy; its objective is to change certain conditions within the environment that may lead to crime to occur. The aim is to bring about modifications and changes within the environment to lead to a decline in the opportunities that may cause crime. The approaches are concerned with identifying, manipulating, and controlling the situational or the environmental factors that lead to crime. This can be achieved through the provision of street lighting to prevent theft.
- b) Developmental crime prevention strategy; aims to address early causes of criminal behavior. It seeks to reduce community and individual risk factors and increase protective factors, thus preventing crime later in life. It is done through public education where many people are taught and developed into young abiding citizens rather than criminals.
- c) Social crime prevention strategy; it addresses the direct causes of crime. It majorly deals with the social elements that make people commit crimes. These elements may include; family breakdown, ignorance, and environmental conditions. The main focus of social crime prevention is to formulate specific means and measures that would enhance individuals’ social living conditions.
- d) Urban design and physical planning strategy; it aims to create a safer environment for people. This is done by designing public spaces that can accommodate many people and with no place that an offender can hide. It is done by either ensuring lighting in areas to prevent robbery and theft and installation of CCTV cameras.
- e) Community development strategy; it relies on the concept that varying the physical or social organization of communities may impact the conduct of individuals who reside there. Provision of education, employment, provision of facilities, health care, civic amenities, and harmony and peace among individuals helps prevent people from committing crimes. It is believed that places underdeveloped and residents are unemployed are more prone to crime as people tend to engage in criminality to fend for themselves and family; thus, employing such people reduces the chances of engaging in crime.