Broken windows theory
Definition
The proposition by Wilson and Kelling (1982) that visible signs of physical and social disorder invite further disorder and serious crime by signalling weak social control. Has been used to justify order-maintenance policing strategies in many cities.
Related terms
- Collective efficacy
- A concept developed by Robert Sampson referring to the combination of social cohesion among neighbours and their shared willingness to intervene in...
- Conflict criminology
- A family of theories holding that criminal law and its enforcement reflect the interests of powerful social groups rather than universal moral...
- Feminist criminology
- A body of theory and research that critiques the androcentric bias of mainstream criminology, making visible the gendered dimensions of both offending...
- Left realism
- A criminological perspective developed by Jock Young, Roger Matthews, and others in the 1980s, arguing that critical criminology had neglected the real...
- Social disorganisation
- The condition of a neighbourhood in which social institutions have weakened to the point where they can no longer effectively regulate behaviour...
Explained in
- Social Disorganisation and Critical CriminologyThe proposition by Wilson and Kelling (1982) that visible signs of physical and social disorder invite further disorder and serious crime by signalling weak so...