What is There to Gain?: A Case Study in Implementing Without Self-Interest (From Putting Theory to Work: Implementing Situational Prevention and Problem-Oriented Policing, P 89-110, 2006, Johannes Knutsson and Ronald V. Clarke, eds. -- See NCJ-215265)

• NCJ Number: 215269
• Author(s): Johannes Knutsson
• Date Published: 2006
• Length: 21 pages
• Sale Source: Criminal Justice Press/Willow Tree Press
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Crime Prevention Studies, Volume 20.

Annotation

This chapter conducted a comparative analysis of crime preventive projects carried out in Sweden and Norway in order to examine the potential outcomes of reasonable, practical crime preventive measures when presented to those who are in a position to affect the opportunities of crime.

Abstract

There is absolutely no way of guaranteeing the successful implementation of crime preventive measures. From the onset, there are organizations or persons with the power to affect opportunity structure for crime who are not always ready to act. Based on experiences from crime prevention projects carried out in Sweden and Norway, where Sweden’s implementation constituted a difficult and tiring task and Norway’s implementation went smoothly and the measures proved effective, factors connected to the success of the Norway project included the way it was organized and how it was carried out. An able and motivated project manager was able to concentrate on the tasks at hand. There was substantial interest shown by the police chief. From the beginning, there was cooperation between the police and the local community. Both local politicians and the local administration were encouraged to cooperate. Taken together, these factors, as well as others are favorable for successful implementation and could explain the success of the Norway project presented and discussed. This chapter provides a detailed examination showing that the organization of the project, the choice of measures, and the process of putting them into practice were all carried out in an efficient way, thereby explaining the success of the Norway crime preventive project. The problem-oriented policing project sought to reduce illegal taxicab activities in the town of Tonsberg. In order to gain some insight into the implementation process, interviews were conducted with key persons involved, such as the police chief, project manager, and chairman of the city council. Getting things accomplished requires hard and well-planned work in combination with insights into the working psyche of persons operating within the organizations involved. Tables, references