Rob Mawby

Tourist victimisation and the fear of crime on holiday

Abstract This paper reviews research undertaken in the field of tourism and crime which suggests that there is empirical evidence that tourism does contribute to an increase in crime. The paper also focuses on research aimed at assessing the nature of tourist victimisation and the fear of crime exhibited by British holidaymakers. A postal survey of 514 readers of `Holiday Which’ finds that respondents generally experience considerably higher rates of victimisation as tourists than they are likely to experience while at home (when compared to the results of the British Crime Survey). In terms of respondents’ fears of crime while on holiday it is found that neither crime nor incivilities are seen as a major issue. It is concluded that tourism crime rates that are far higher than crime rates within Britain have not, as yet, been translated into a tourism and crime problem.

Victimisation on Holiday: A British Survey

While a number of tourism researchers have considered the relationship between tourism and crime, the topic has rarely been addressed by criminologists, and most of the evidence available is derived from official statistics. Using data from an exploratory survey of peoples experiences and perceptions of crime on holiday, this paper assesses the extent to which holidaymakers are victimised. Compared with BCS data, the findings indicate that tourists are highly likely to experience crime. The reasons for this are considered in terms of the different lifestyles adopted by people on holiday.

Alternative measures of 'fear of crime': results from crime audits in a rural county of England

‘Fear of crime’ has aroused considerable academic debate, with criticisms both of exactly what is being measured and analysis of the relationship between fear and risk. At the same time, national and international surveys have increased reliance on a select ‘package’ of measures of fear. Using more precise questions from a rural crime survey conducted as part of the 2001 Crime Audits, this paper argues that locally contextualised surveys offer the advantage of distinguishing fear or anxiety according to time and place. Respondents here clearly distinguished between the area where they lived and the town they most often visited, and according to daytime or night-time. In each case, levels of fear or anxiety varied according to the social characteristics, experiences and lifestyle of respondents in similar, but not identical, ways to those identified in previous research.

Crime and Disorder: Perceptions of Business People in Cornwall, England

While there has, recently, been a spate of research on the victimisation of businesses, rather less research has focused on the perceptions of the business community, and — in contrast to studies of the general public — little emphasis has been placed on explaining variations in concern over crime and disorder. This article uses data from the 2001 Cornwall Business Crime Survey to explore the extent to which business people in a rural county of England perceive crime and disorder to be a problem locally and are concerned at its impact on their businesses. The findings suggest that crime and disorder were not considered the most serious problems facing local businesses, but nevertheless evoked some concern, particularly among a significant minority of respondents. The article then focuses on explaining variations in perceptions and concludes that these can be understood in terms of the nature of the businesses, their location, and the extent to which businesses had experienced crime. These findings largely parallel Houghs (1995) earlier work explaining anxiety among the general public.

Explaining Patterns of Victimization within a Rural County of England

This article reports on victim surveys carried out in a rural county of England, using a postal questionnaire. Surveys in rural areas are uncommon, but many patterns of risk that were identified here were found to be similar to those identified in national and urban surveys. This suggests both that postal surveys provide a valid measure of variations in risk and that similar explanations for variations in risk apply. Routine activity theory is used to explain the patterns identified. Although the impact of residential location was seen to be less important in the rural context than studies in urban areas have indicated, the question of where people spent their time, including the town or city that they frequented, was significant in predicting victimization. The relationship between location and risk thus appears to be stronger in terms of where people spend their time outside the home than in terms of where they live.

Civilian oversight of the police in England and Wales

The creation of Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) in England and Wales in November 2012 by the Conservative/Liberal Democrat Coalition government, replacing the former police authorities, introduced a new mechanism for civilian oversight of the police. However, the new structure has been heavily criticised, both for the election process and for the ways in which newly elected PCCs have operated. Despite these criticisms, PCCs were retained by the new Conservative government, and the scheduled round of new elections took place in May 2016. This article assesses these elections and compares them with those 2012, in terms of the election process and the attributes of the candidates and those successfully elected.