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2018 | Book

The Rise of Community Crime Prevention Read chapter Read first chapter

Neighbourhood Watch in a Digital Age

Between Crime Control and Culture of Control

Author: Dr. Vasco Lub

Publisher: Springer International Publishing

Book Series : Crime Prevention and Security Management

Part of: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik"

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About this book

Drawing on data from 340 municipalities in the Netherlands as well as ethnographic fieldwork, this book presents original research on neighbourhood watch groups to illustrate how their actions contribute to collective efficacy and lower crime levels. Technological developments like social media and smartphones have changed the landscape of coproduction in public safety, and this book addresses the resultant issues involved with creating effective policy. While digital innovations and securitization have made neighbourhood watch groups effective, they have simultaneously increased the risk of vigilantism, and Lub reveals how stigmatization, ethnic profiling and excessive social control are very real issues, especially in suburban middle-class districts.

Crucially, this study raises questions about how the increasing popularity of community crime prevention in a digital age should be framed: as a welcome civic contribution to crime control, or as a social phenomenon adding to an undesirable culture of control. Criminologists, city officials, policy makers and anyone studying neighbourhood activism will find this a fascinating work on crime control.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter

Neighbourhood Watch in the Netherlands: Introduction and Figures

Frontmatter
Chapter 1. The Rise of Community Crime Prevention
Abstract
This chapter outlines the social circumstances that set the stage for the increasing popularity of neighbourhood watch schemes in the Netherlands. The emergence of neighbourhood watch is part of a general trend in which the government and the police promote the participation of citizens when it comes to quality of life issues and crime. Security is increasingly seen as a civic responsibility. The chapter presents the analytical framework of the study, which splits into three sub-themes: (1) the causal mechanisms of neighbourhood watch; (2) the capacity of neighbourhood watch teams as a form of co-production of public safety; and (3) the moral implications of neighbourhood watch in light of digilantism and securitisation.
Vasco Lub
Chapter 2. Previous Research into Neighbourhood Watch
Abstract
This chapter covers studies on neighbourhood watch from the English-speaking world as well as all available studies from the Netherlands, where research on the topic is still in its infancy. In the English-speaking world, the phenomenon of neighbourhood watch has been investigated since at least the 1980s, primarily in terms of its effective contribution to lower crime levels. The literature overview starts in the 1990s by discussing findings from meta-analyses and some single studies. One of the main conclusions is that the international literature on neighbourhood watch is too much focussed on efficacy (does it work?) and not enough on social effects and mechanisms (how does it work?).
Vasco Lub
Chapter 3. Quantitative Data on Neighbourhood Watch in the Netherlands
Abstract
This chapter presents original data on neighbourhood watch in the Netherlands of 340 Dutch municipalities (85%). The analysis includes demographic and geographical variables and data on property crime and perceptions of safety. The data confirm that neighbourhood watch in the Netherlands has become a popular phenomenon. Almost 700 watch teams are active in half of Dutch municipalities. Most neighbourhood watch groups were founded in the last five years and focus on preventing home burglaries. As the income level of a municipality increases, both the probability of neighbourhood watch and the chances of this happening at the initiative of residents increase. The analysis further suggests that neighbourhood watch is not so much an answer to a factual lack of security but mostly a product of securitisation.
Vasco Lub

To the Streets: Four Ethnographic Case Studies

Frontmatter
Chapter 4. Watch Group 1: More than Just a Watch Group
Abstract
This chapter presents an ethnographic study of the neighbourhood watch team Burgerblauw in the district of Tarwewijk in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The Tarwewijk is a relatively poor district where dilapidation, petty crime, drug trafficking and a neglected public space constitute acute problems. The watch team seems to thrive under a certainly indistinctive image. Precisely because Burgerblauw is not always taken seriously by certain civil bodies and operates in relative calm and clandestinity, the team is able to gather information that contributes effectively to combating crime and disorder. In Burgerblauw, residents find a safe buffer to communicate reports and tips about crime or disturbances. The ostensibly contradictory combination of keeping a low profile and perseverance makes the Burgerblauw team into a subtle but influential local factor.
Vasco Lub
Chapter 5. Watch Group 2: Countering Burglars
Abstract
This chapter comprises an ethnographic study of the neighbourhood watch team in the district of the Kruidenbuurt in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The Kruidenbuurt is known as an average middle-class neighbourhood. A sudden wave of home burglaries triggered the establishment of the watch team. The team patrols daily. Volunteers use modern means of communication, including Facebook, WhatsApp and the BuitenBeter app, a municipal reporting system for smartphones. The fieldwork shows that it is often unclear to what degree reports refer to actual crimes or illegal acts. False alarms are not uncommon. A learnt lesson of the team is to keep the WhatsApp groups of the team and the wider neighbourhood population separate, to prevent residents from taking matters into their own hands after reports.
Vasco Lub
Chapter 6. Watch Group 3: A Team in Need
Abstract
This chapter comprises an ethnographic study of the neighbourhood watch team in the district of Hordijkerveld in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. More than half of all households in the district have to make ends meet with a lower income. The team was founded more than a decade ago at the initiative of residents and the local police, and focuses on preventing home burglaries, (petty) crime and quality-of-life issues. The team in Hordijkerveld makes a subtle contribution to fighting crime. By systematically noting license plate numbers and dealer spots it has been possible to apprehend drug dealers. A lot of attention goes out to informing residents about safety, although this is done mainly via leaflets and less through direct verbal communication or social media.
Vasco Lub
Chapter 7. Watch Group 4: Suburban Diligence
Abstract
This chapter comprises an ethnographic study of a neighbourhood watch team in the large suburban district of Reeshof in Tilburg, the Netherlands. Currently, 16 watch teams are active in the Reeshof and 800 residents are connected to the wider crime-reporting WhatsApp group. Participatory research was done with the watch team of the V-neighbourhood, consisting of 20 volunteers. Thanks to municipal support, volunteers have access to various technological tools, special clothing and informational material. The case study indicates that neighbourhood watch can generate a deterrent effect on criminal actions and disturbances, provided that many residents are connected to WhatsApp groups on top of the patrolling watch members, mobilising many ‘eyes and ears’. However, this also causes risks of ethnic profiling and excessive social control.
Vasco Lub

Conclusions and Discussion

Frontmatter
Chapter 8. Conclusions
Abstract
In this chapter, conclusions about neighbourhood watch in the Netherlands are presented in light of previous literature and theory. As the status of a neighbourhood increases, the mechanisms of providing information, acting as a deterrent, and limiting the opportunity to crime by educating residents, all become more plausible theories about neighbourhood watch. In contrast to high-status neighbourhoods, a watch team in a disadvantaged area is particularly successful if it can maintain an insignificant image. The diffuseness about what constitutes an ‘unsafe situation’ makes information sharing via social media or WhatsApp problematic. Particularly in high-status areas, observations that deviate from familiar neighbourhood life can be seen as a potential threat. Social media and digital surveillance techniques often exacerbate such sentiments.
Vasco Lub
Chapter 9. Discussion
Abstract
This final chapter explores the position of neighbourhood watch on the axis between crime control and culture of control. Contrasting effects raise questions about how both the phenomenon of neighbourhood watch and the increasing popularity of community crime prevention in a digital age should be framed: as a welcome civic instrument of crime control, or as a social phenomenon adding to an undesirable culture of control. To strengthen the positive effects of watch teams and to diminish their risks, the chapter presents a framework which can be seen as a guideline for governments and active citizens, applying Zedner’s security principles of social defence, necessity, minimalism and proportionality.
Vasco Lub
Backmatter
Metadata
Title
Neighbourhood Watch in a Digital Age
Author
Dr. Vasco Lub
Copyright Year
2018
Electronic ISBN
978-3-319-67747-7
Print ISBN
978-3-319-67746-0
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67747-7