Broken Window Theory Analysis

window breaks in an abandoned building in a neighborhood and it is not fixed, then more windows will be broken and graffiti will occur. In turn, this will make honest people afraid to leave their homes, and only the mischievous people who want to cause trouble will be out on the streets reeking havoc. Thus producing crime. Fixing Broken Windows offers a very desiccated but persuasive look at how to reform the modern criminal justice system by looking at three different aspects: the rise of crime rates in the middle of the 1960’s; the fact that the police are in a reactive role; and how the “broken windows” theory actually works.
The authors state that in the middle of the 1960’s the connection between fear and disorder was recognized. People felt that they had fewer defenses against crime. Rather than moving out of the neighborhoods, citizens purchased guns, knives, and animals to protect them from criminals. Decline and decay increased in many cities. Riots made people focus on disorder. People feared going to parks because they had become threatening places. Americans - whites and blacks - fled the inner city for the suburbs. The ones that did not purchase weapons or animals locked themselves in their homes and only left when absolutely necessary. People became frightened because the violent crime rates had more than tripled. There was an increase in conviction rates for males ages seventeen through twenty-one, found guilty of criminal acts. Also, the 60’s brought on a greater tolerance for new ideas, equal rights issues and individual expression. However, in the 60 's there was a national economic decline that caused unemployment and resentment among many of the citizens throughout the country. In addition to these factors, there was the greater visibility of youth and youth permissiveness. Also, there was less censored media. More women began working outside the home. Divorce rates grew which caused more broken homes then before. The atmosphere of the 60 's