Crime prevention in Colombia: A pilot study

A need to develop effective crime prevention strategies has been recognised throughout history. Due to the financial constraints of criminal justice systems, there are major global efforts to ensure that the strategies employed are highly cost-effective, rational, and evidence-based. To aid such eff...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of comparative and applied criminal justice 2023-07, Vol.47 (3), p.279-298
Main Authors: Inzunza, Miguel, Carlsson, Niclas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
autonomy
Crime prevention
hot spots
police science
police visibility
polisforskning
problem-oriented policing
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:A need to develop effective crime prevention strategies has been recognised throughout history. Due to the financial constraints of criminal justice systems, there are major global efforts to ensure that the strategies employed are highly cost-effective, rational, and evidence-based. To aid such efforts, this study explores the impact of a collaborative, community-oriented crime prevention initiative in Colombia. Empirically, it is based on pre- and post-intervention views of police officers and citizens (assessed by questionnaires) in areas covered by the initiative and control areas, complemented with focus group interviews and crime statistics. The police officers appreciated the greater autonomy provided by the approach and associated changes in organisational culture. The citizens had substantial trust in the police, despite high perceptions of general disorder and personal fear of crime. The preliminary findings indicate that the approach has had some promising effects, but several aspects require more attention.
ISSN:0192-4036
2157-6475
2157-6475
DOI:10.1080/01924036.2021.1992640