Hot Products (CRAVED)
Definition
The acronym CRAVED (Concealable, Removable, Available, Valuable, Enjoyable, Disposable) describes the characteristics that make consumer goods attractive theft targets. Developed by Clarke (1999) to explain which products offenders prefer to steal.
- Acronym
- Concealable, Removable, Available, Valuable, Enjoyable, Disposable
- Originator
- Ronald Clarke, 1999
- Field
- Environmental criminology, situational crime prevention
- Application
- Explains offender product choice in theft and burglary
Common questions
How is CRAVED used in crime prevention practice?+
Retailers and product designers use it to identify goods likely to be targeted and to design against one or more attributes, for example making an item bulkier to reduce concealability or marking it to reduce disposability, a practice sometimes called designing out crime.
Does CRAVED predict which specific item within a category will be stolen?+
Not precisely. It explains why certain product categories, such as small electronics, attract disproportionate theft compared to their market share, but individual target selection still depends on situational factors like guardianship and opportunity at the scene.
How does CRAVED differ from hot spot analysis?+
CRAVED explains why particular products are chosen as targets, a product-level lens, while hot spot analysis explains why particular places accumulate crime, a location-level lens. The two are complementary rather than competing explanations.
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