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发信人: Evangelinee (龙龙), 信区: AdvancedEdu
标  题: research proposal
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Research Proposal (2): Qualitative orientation

Crystal Loh Wai Ying; M. Phil Proposal; Dept. of Sociology, HKU.

(I) Proposed Title
(II) Introduction
(III) Brief Literature Review

Environmental Variables and Crime
Rational Choice
Crime Prevention Through Environment Design (CPTED)
(IV) Methodology

Participant Observation
Individual Interviews
Community Observation
Analysis of Official/Unofficial Statistic
(V) Proposed Research Time-Table
(VI) References






(I) Proposed Title

The Relationship between Juvenile Delinquency
and Environmental Variables in New Town, Tuen Mun



(II) Introduction

The problem of juvenile delinquency in Tuen Mun's new town' has become more and
more alarming in recent years. According to recent police statistics, the figure
of 662 recorded juvenile arrests in Tuen Mun was the highest among all police d
istricts in the territory in the first half of 1996. Such figures raise public c
oncern about the occurrence of juvenile delinquency in the context of planned ho
using in the new towns. A number of questions arise, such as: " Why does Tuen Mu
n suffer more Juvenile Delinquency than other places? " ; " Is the environment o
f Tuen Mun more favorable for Juvenile Delinquency than other places? " and " Ho
w far do the environmental features influence the chances of delinquency occurri
ng? ". Hence, the following hypothesis will be examined in my proposed study:

" The environment of Tuen Mun's new town invites and provides more opportunities
for juveniles to commit delinquency than other new towns and urban areas of HK.
"


I will compare juvenile delinquency in Tuen Mun's new town with two other areas
in order to make the study more interesting. The first area, also a new town, is
Tseung Kwan O, which has similar environmental features to Tuen Mun. The second
area, Kowloon City, is an urban district and has different characteristics to T
uen Mun.

I will employ the "environmental perspective" in my study in order to attempt to
explain the nature of juvenile delinquency. In addition, the related "situation
al crime prevention" approach which focuses on the "rational choice" of offender
s will also be critically used to supplement an understanding of the factors inv
olved in juvenile delinquency.

The following proposal presents the "What" and "How" of my study. Using the "env
ironmental" approach to study juvenile delinquency is a novel attempt in Hong Ko
ng; therefore, I will rely on the ideas and methods developed in the west by, fo
r example, Newman(1972), the Brantingham(1990) and Clarke and Felson(1993).



(III) Brief Literature Review

Environmental Variables and Crime

The work of the pre-world war II Chicago researchers Shaw and Mcay made a major
contribution to criminology by developing the "Ecological" approach to the under
standing of the interaction between society and environment in crime causation.
They theorized about social relations, urban social structure and their relation
ship with crime. Their study "Juvenile Delinquency and Urban Areas"(1942) showed
that high crime areas usually straddled the industrial zone which was character
ized by very high rates of residential turnover and low rates of home ownership.
Shaw and McKay explained this phenomenon by the theory of "social disorganizati
on". In short, they argued that differences in delinquency rates between areas w
as correlated with environmental variables like housing conditions, demographic
stability and ethnic/social status.

Later, a geographer Davidson (1981) tried to give a full explanation for the rel
ationship between environmental variables and crime. He classified environment i
nto two categories-- physical environment and social environment. Physical envir
onment referred to the structure and design of an area. For example, parks, leis
ure grounds, street patterns, commercial complexes and centers are the basic com
ponents of the physical environment. Social environment referred to a set of con
texts which form the basis for social interaction outside the home such as schoo
l, recreation and neighborhood. Davidson's study suggested how both the social a
nd physical environment provide opportunities for delinquency.

The latest studies about physical environment and crime by Taylor and Harrell (1
996) show how physical features like housing design or block layout, land use, t
erritorial features, and physical deterioration relate to crime risk. My study w
ill attempt to define and examine the pattern of such environmental variables in
Tuen Mun, Tseung Kwan O and Kowloon City. Differences in the kinds of environme
ntal factors found in the three study areas may provide hypothetically an explan
ation for differences in juvenile crime in Hong Kong.



Rational Choice

Clarke (1983, 1993) has applied the "rational choice" perspective to a range of
crimes. His studies examined how offenders think about a crime situation and how
they choose the most "suitable" environment and opportunity to operate in or ta
rget to select. It suggests that the environmental features of a place will prob
ably affect a potential offender's perceptions about a possible crime site, thei
r evaluations of the likelihood of success and the availability and visibility o
f guardians. (Clarke, 1983, 1993, Felson, 1994, Taylor and Harrell, 1996) Theref
ore, my study will explore how juvenile offenders perceive such environmental va
riables and test whether they commit delinquency in a rational fashion.

A study by Beavon (1984, cited in Felson,1994) demonstrated this rational choice
assumption by showing that a shop located in an area with more converging stree
ts suffered more crime than those located elsewhere. Because the street junction
s and intersections made the offender feel that it was more convenient to access
, escape and hide. With this kind of example in mind, my study seeks to find out
how similar sorts of environmental features in Tuen Mun influence juvenile deli
nquents to make this type of rational choice.



Crime Prevention Through Environment Design (CPTED)

CPTED studies provide numerous detailed description and explanations of the rela
tionship between crime and place with a view to minimize crime. For example, Jan
e Jacobs(1961) found a greater tendency for crime to occur in large publicly acc
essible areas created by the newer forms of urban planning. She pointed out that
the new forms of design broke down many of the traditional controls on criminal

behavior, for example, the ability of residents to watch the street and the pre
sence of people using the street both night and day. She suggested that the lack
of "natural guardianship" in the environment promoted crime. A decade later Osc
ar Newman (1972, 1980) contributed a seminal work on crime prevention and enviro
nment, using such concepts as "defensible space", "natural surveillance", and "c
ommunity of interest". Concerning the relationship between the prevalence or abs
ence of "guardianship" or "surveillance" and crime occurrence, my study will exa
mine whether the environment of Tuen Mun's new town provides insufficient "natur
al guardianship" compared to Kowloon City which leads to a high delinquency rate
.

Another major work on environmental criminology by Pat and Paul Brantingham (199
0) further developed the concept of CPTED. The Brantinghams' suggested that "rou
tine activity" such as the way the potential offenders live, work or go to schoo
l, and engage in leisure could influence the offenders to search for crime targe
ts. For example, places near McDonald's restaurants and 7-eleven stores where yo
uths like to gather after school may suffer more property crime than other place
s. Hence, the Brantinghams' suggested that schools should be kept away from shop
ping malls and convenience-stores so youths do not congregate at these places af
ter school or at lunch time. Such a change of space or place could reduce some d
elinquency such as shoplifting. My research following the Brantinghams' suggesti
on will examine and compare what sorts of places and why they are prone to high
juvenile crime in Tuen Mun.



(IV) Methodology

In order to test the hypothesis of the study and examine the main questions rais
ed, the following methodology will be employed.

Participant Observation

Participant observation with a group of juvenile delinquents or marginal youths
in Tuen Mun will be carried out. The aim is to collect more qualitative informat
ion about their life style and behaviour. Through cautious participation and obs
ervation of the juvenile delinquents' daily and routine activities, I hope to fi
nd out how their delinquent patterns have been influenced by environmental facto
rs. I propose to associate myself with Tuen Mun's juvenile delinquents through t
he help of the district outreaching social work team. I will ask them to introdu

ce me to their clients and rely on a "snowball effect" to approach more subjects
. This means making friends with one or more clients and then asking him/her to
introduce their friends to me.



Individual Interviews

Individual interviews by a way of structured questionnaire will also be used to
collect information about the juvenile delinquents' perception of the environmen
t. The interview is especially important for examining questions like "What kind
of environment could encourage juveniles to make the rational choice' to commit
delinquency?". I will also attempt to interview police officers and security gu
ards about the effectiveness of both natural and official "guardianship" in thes
e communities.



Community Observation

To collect information about the physical features of Tuen Mun, Tseung Kwan O an
d Kowloon City, systematic observations will be carried out. Through several com
munity surveys of the physical settings, I will measure the prevalence or absenc
e of environmental features suggested by CPTED as significant to crime control.
By comparing the physical environment of the three studied areas the different e
nvironmental influences on the opportunity for juvenile delinquency can be gauge
d.



Analysis of Official/Unofficial Statistic

In order to gain a fuller picture of the situation of juvenile delinquency in Tu
en Mun, Tseung Kwan O and Kowloon City, a comprehensive analysis of the official
statistics will also be undertaken. Besides official data, other sources of sta
tistical data produced by agencies such as District Social Service Center or You
th Committee and Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department (Crime Victim Survey
) will also be used. I will pay especial attention to information about the loca
tion of juvenile delinquency and the types of delinquency committed in particula
r places.



(V) Proposed Research Time-Table

Sept 1996----Apr 1997 : - Literature review

- Official contact with the outreaching social work team, RHKPF and other agenci
es- Community surveys of the three areas

- Design the questionnaires- Collection of official and unofficial statistic

May 1997----Jun 1997 :

- Statistical analysis of crime and place- Find the targets- Community observati
on (Tuen Mun)

Jul 1997----Sept 1997 : - Field Work

- 1st session Participant Observation of Tuen Mun's JD

Oct 1997----Nov 1997 : - Field Work

- Community observation (Kowloon City and Tseung Kwan O)- Interview the police o
fficers and security guards

Dec 1997----Feb 1998 : - Field Work

- 2nd session Participant Observation of Tuen Mun's JD

Mar 1998----Apr 1998 :


- Analysis of the data obtained from the field work

May 1998----Aug 1998 :

- Write the Thesis



(VI) References
1. Beavon, D.J.(1984) Crime and Environmental Opportunity Structure: The Influen
ce of Street Networks on the Patterning of Property Offenses Unpublished master'
s thesis, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia, Canada.

2. Brantingham, P.J.and Brantingham,P.L.(1990) Environmental Criminology. Prospe
ct Heights,IL: Waveland.

3. Clarke, R.V.(1983) "Situational Crime Prevention: Its Theoretical Basis and P
ractical Scope" in M. Tonry & N. Morris (Eds.) Crime and Justice: An Annual Revi
ew of Research Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

4. Clarke, R.V.and Felson, M.(1993) Routine Activity and Rational Choice; Advanc
es in Criminology Theory (Vol.5) New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Books.

5. Davidson, R.N.(1981) Crime and Environment London: Croom Helm.

6. Felson, M.(1994) Crime and Everyday Life: Insights and Implications for Socie
ty Thousand Oaks: Pine Forge Press.

7. Jacobs,J.(1961) Death and Life of Great American Cities New York: Random Hous
e.

8. Newman, O. (1972) Defensible Space: Crime Prevention Through Urban Design New
York: Macmillan.

9. Newman, O. (1980) Community of Interest Garden City, NY: Anchor.

niversity of Chicago Press.

11. Taylor, R.B. and Harrell, A.V. (1996) Physical Environment and Crime U.S.A.:
National Institute of Justice.


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