Effective Strategies to Help Reduce Crime

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The question “how do we reduce crime” has been asked for many years. Numerous amount of research has been done on this topic to see if there are other ways to reduce crime. Reducing crime has been a heated debate for many years and continues to be an important topic to study. People often wonder if the policies that are currently in place even work to reduce crime. Statistics have shown for years now that the current techniques being used by police are not as effective as the some people might think there are. According to Weisburd and Eck (2004) our strategy for reducing crime has been based on the standard model for policing. According to this model, it can be applied to all people and situations as a way to reduce crime (Weisburd and Eck, 2004). Many argue that this model states that basic techniques can be used in all situations regardless of how much crime or types of crime there is in that location. This model has been criticized because it is too basic and doesn’t apply to every situation (Weisburd and Eck, 2004). Weisburd and Eck (2004) also found that this model had little effect on crime reduction. The goal is to find new ways to reduce crime because this model is not effective and it not working. Research has since found useful deterrents for crime. Although research has shown that many policies that are in place are ineffective, there are some other strategies that have successfully lowered crime rates.

According to Braga (2005), a technique call hot spot policing has been shown to effectively reduce crime. By police focusing on specific locations, they can deter or stop crime from occurring. Braga (2005) reviewed five randomized controlled trials pertaining to hot spot policing. The results of the me...

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...tional Institute of Justice, Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles/171676.PDF

Sherman, L., & Weisburd, D. (1995) General deterrent effects of police patrol in crime “Hot spots”: A randomized, controlled trial. Justice Quarterly,12(4),625-648.

Weisburd, D., & Eck, J. E. (2004). What can police to reduce crime, disorder, and fear? The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 593(1), 42-65. doi: 10.1177/0002716203262548

Welsh, B. C., & Farrington, D. P. (2005). Evidence-Based Crime Prevention: Conclusions and Directions for a Safer Society. Canadian Journal of Criminology & Criminal Justice, 47(2), 337-354. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Yeh, S. S. (2010). Cost-benefit analysis of reducing crime through electric monitoring of parolees and probationers. Journal of Criminal Justice, 38, 1090-1096. doi: 10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2010.08.001

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