NCJ Number
227870
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 49 Issue: 4 Dated: July 2009 Pages: 491-512
Date Published
July 2009
Length
22 pages
Annotation
Using official police records, interviews with motorcycle taxi drivers, and the participant observation of their working activities in Tianzhi city, China, this study examined how and why a dimension of social stratification, i.e., household registration (hukou), was related to the risk of being a robbery victim; and it also assessed the effectiveness of applying lifestyle/routine activity theory to contemporary urban China.
Abstract
Although migrants in China live and work in Chinese cities, their household registration ("hukou") remains at their original rural residence. According to hukou policy, people are classified into one of two categories: those who have agricultural or rural status and those who have nonagricultural or urban status. Significant differences in rights and privileges exist between the hukou statuses, and it is difficult to convert from one status to another. Since migrant workers' hukou remains rural, they cannot enjoy the privileges of local residents regarding good jobs, education for children, public housing, health care, and retirement benefits. The current study found that migrant motorcycle taxi drivers were disproportionately vulnerable to becoming robbery victims. The peak time for robbery coincided with that of the motorcycle taxi drivers' working times (at night). Because of the enforcement of the motorcycle ban policy in Tianzhi, it is illegal for migrants to drive non-local licensed motorcycles. In order to avoid being caught by police, migrant motorcycle taxi drivers have to work outside regular police working times, so the night becomes a "golden time" for migrants, making them at high risk for robbery. This study indicates that lifestyle/routine activity theory should take into account how the socioeconomic context of people's lives is directly related to their lifestyles/routine activities, which in turn influences their risk for criminal victimization. 10 figures and 56 references