Public Value

Due to poor socioeconomic conditions such as declining wages and high unemployment rates, unskilled young people may be drawn to the commission of crime. Several recent studies have found that worsening economic conditions cause social disorder and crime. The purpose of this study is to assess whether various socioeconomic indicators have a positive impact on both violent and property crime rates at the county level within the state of Texas in the United States. The present study hypothesizes that: 1)violent and property crime rates are higher in counties with high levels of poverty; 2)violent and property crime rates are higher in counties with high levels of unemployment; 3)violent and property crime rates are higher in counties with low levels of median household income; 4)violent and property crime rates are higher in counties with low levels of educational attainment. The data used in the analysis was collected from the Uniform Crime Report(UCR) and the United States Department of Agriculture: Economic Research Service(USDA) for the year 2015. Within the present study, the total enumeration of counties(254) located in the state of Texas(United States) was designated as the units of analysis. This study measures two dependent variables: violent crime rates and property crime rates. Four unique independent variables were chosen for the analysis based off findings in the current body of literature: (a)poverty, (b)unemployment, (c)median household income, and (d)educational attainment. An Ordinary Least Squares(OLS) regression model is employed to empirically investigate the relationships between socioeconomic indicators and crime rates. In addition, Geographic Information Systems(GIS) were employed to demonstrate the link between unemployment, violent crime, and property crime. The findings of the current study reveal that (1)violent crime rates are on average higher in counties with high levels of unemployment; (2)property crime rates are higher on average in counties with higher levels of unemployment. To clarify, a 1 Standard Deviation(SD) unit increase in unemployment predicts a 6% increase in the expected count of violent crime(p < .001). Also, a 1 SD unit increase in unemployment predicts a 29% increase in the expected count of property crime(p < .001). Unemployment is the only significant independent variable and can thus be viewed as a possible source of criminality within the counties in Texas. One method of reducing unemployment and ultimately reducing crime is by implementing a community development model. This will lead to the creation of a “community network” that draws local resources, services, and facilities together for the creation of more jobs. The contributions, limitations and suggestions for the future study were discussed in conclusion.

CPTED(Crime Prevention through Environmental Design) theory was first introduced in Korea in late 1980s, and research began in full scale from late 1990s. Moreover, academic circles have vigorously pressed ahead with research into the preconditions for CPTED application, supportive organization activities, physical environment design factors, analysis of citizens’ awareness based on pilot projects, etc. While various researches have been conducted in Korea, ranging from consideration of traditional theories to actual applications, criticisms have been raised about passive implementation of projects focusing on conceptual elements of CPTED. This study was intended to introduce the cases of CPTED applications in Korea and to examine the anticipated effects of crime prevention based on results of such CPTED applications. Additionally, the results would provide theoretical basic data for constructive alternative for CPTED application projects, along with discussion on future direction of CPTED application projects. Additionally, the results would provide theoretical basic data for constructive alternative for CPTED application projects, along with discussion on future direction of CPTED application projects. In practical application of CPTED strategy, surveillance network should be put into place which serves as in-visible psychological barrier blocking criminals, as well as physical environment creation such as natural surveil-lance, access control, and boundary reinforcement. Collaborative network with security organizations can be built, buttressed by the attention and support of residents. Constant efforts to create bright image of streets bustling with residents and maintain a pleasant environment will eventually lead to crime reduction. Active participation and attention of local residents is of utmost importance for placing a lot of pressure on criminals conscious of around-the-clock surveillance on them by local residents and reinforcing the boundaries unnatural and difficult to access for criminals. The image of safe village, which is embedded in the minds of the public, has been benchmarked as a best practice in the neighboring area. CPTED is highlighted in the process of improving the quality of life. Thus, future CPTED application projects should serve as pivot for vitalization of local community and induce active participation of local residents. For the purpose, a process should be established to heed the opinions of residents from the stage of project planning and allow residents to take initiatives spontaneously.

The problem of the elderly is an issue that many people do not recognize among social problems caused by aging. In Korea, the damage caused by elderly crimes has increased every year since 1995. These elderly crimes are occurring commonly not only in Korea but also in other countries worldwide. More seriously, elderly crimes are increasing steadily at the same time as violent crimes such as murder, larceny, arson, assault, bodily harm, etc. Most of the elderly crimes were motivated primarily for survival and livelihood previously, but in recent years, the crimes committed by the elderly have increasingly fallen into the category of the major 5 crimes. The inci-dence and proportion of elderly crimes have been increasing steadily over time. In addition, some incidents of crimes perpetrated by the elderly population are indescribably horrendous, compared to those of the past, and therefore, thorough countermeasures would need to be mapped out. There has been a growing importance of practical research, such as the research into characteristics of elderly crime, factors inducing elderly crimes, and polices for prevention of elderly crime, etc., from the standpoint of criminology in respect of crimes committed by the elderly population in Korea. Thus, it would be important to analyze the characteristics of elderly crimes committed recently in Korea based on various statistical data and literature related to elderly crimes, and based on that, to identify the causes of skyrocketing elderly crimes and establish countermeasures. With the increase in the relative ratio of elderly crimes and elderly population, it is expected that elderly crimes would be highlighted as a serious social problem when the baby boomers join the ranks of elderly population in the period ahead. Therefore, this study was intended to investigate current status and causes of the elderly crimes in Korea, which actually occurred or were likely to occur in Korea in the period ahead and to seek countermeasures. Thus, the study can consider the following policy proposals for achieving a society without elderly crimes. First, it would be necessary to promote a shift in the awareness of the public towards elderly crimes. Second, it is necessary to promote and strengthen role-sharing among social welfare organizations. Third, it is necessary to create a pool of professional manpower for prevention of elderly crimes. Efficient countermeasures would need to be taken against elderly crimes by securing professionals specialized in prevention of elderly crimes in order to accommodate the aging and environmental changes. Fourth, elderly crime control system would need to be es-tablished by criminal justice organizations. Elderly crimes are accidents that occur in communities and require cooperation with concerned local authorities and organizations.

In Korea, cultivation of humanity, which is traditionally the role of family, was transferred to the school as the transformation from complex family types to nuclear family type has progressed. As a result, schools have be-come a space for realizing institutionalized whole education, not a place for knowledge acquisition and training to achieve learning goals. However, as verbal abuse, violence, bullying, sexual assault, etc., among students in schools have emerged as social issues, schools can no longer be a protected area or a haven for students. In Korea, the prevailing perception was that school violence cannot be present until the term ‘school violence’ began to be used widely in the society, and the response to school violence, such as physical violence, verbal abuse, bullying, etc., among students relied primarily on ethical guidance of teachers rather than dealing with school violence as crime. However, a series of suicides caused due to school violence have been reported through media, leading to an emphasis on the importance of preventing school violence, and eventually legislation has been made to prevent school violence. The 「Act on the Prevention and Countermeasures against Violence in School」 was enacted in 2004 and institutional measures have been proposed. However, no significant results have been achieved as short-term and temporary responses were made, rather than systematic response based on precise diagnosis of causes. And the study intended to present the possibility of leveraging the sports activities and education based on sports such activities as one of educational techniques while emphasizing the importance of school violence preventive education on the basis of the recognition that approach from various perspectives is important for prevention of school violence. In addition, the study intend to present school violence prevention activities through sports edu-cation in Korea and discuss the impact that such school violence prevention activities would have on the society. Therefore, it would be necessary to promote physical education in school, and at the same time, to recognize the importance for establishing moral values based on the influence of martial sports and martial art instructors as part of personality cultivation education for prevention of school violence, and furthermore, to provide insti-tutional support. Moreover, it would be also necessary to cultivate fair-play spirit through martial sports and to increase the interest in fostering professional martial sports instructors to guide the students in the cultivation of personality.

Korea has strengthened inspection of respective social welfare facilities and schools for handicapped and dis-abled across the country in response to the emergence of sexual assault crime against children with disabilities as a social issue. Children with disabilities often find it painful to live with disabilities, but are unable to protect or defense themselves or are sometimes unaware that they are being victimized due to their mental illnesses and physical disabilities, etc. Even if when they want to claim that they have fallen victim to by sexual assault crime, they do not know how to come forward and make their cases. Another problem is that perpetrators of sexual assault crime against children with disabilities are not punished and that compensation and treatment are not provided properly to those children, the victims of sexual assault crimes. In addition, sexual assault crimes committed against children with disabilities pose many problems in whole processes until the cases are closed. To resolve such problems, the priority would need to be given to understand-ing the specificity of children with disabilities in the process of crime cases. Efforts need to be made constantly to establish the system ensuring thorough investigation and imposing strong punishment on perpetrators of sexual assault crime against children with disabilities and to improve human rights for persons with disabilities. Thus, this study was intended to identify current status and problems of sexual assault crimes perpetrated against children with disabilities and to propose measures at policy level for prevention of such sexual assault crimes. When the sexual assault crime against children with disabilities was brought up as a social issue, it was pos-sible to see controversies swirling and then subsiding over time. Therefore, long-term policies need to be mapped out constantly for prevention of sexual assault crimes, instead of one-time countermeasure, to fundamentally resolve the issue of sexual assault crimes perpetrated against children with disabilities. For the purpose, first of all, it is necessary to understand the specificity of children with disabilities and reflect it in the process where cases of such crimes are handled. Additionally, more stringent punishment and expeditious and precise investigation would be needed in making response to sexual assault crime against children with dis-abilities. Moreover, the new government would need to devise comprehensive measures in parallel with practical support through amendment of Social Welfare Service Act so as to ensure human right protection for children with disabilities.