Which factors will you address?You will need to identify only those risk or protective factors that can be addressed and influenced by your project. A single issue can have many risk factors. A single project is only able to tackle a few of them. It's important to focus on one or two -- but which ones? Many factors influence the amount of crime, victimization and fear of crime in a community. Which are the most important factors? These may not be clear. What is clear -- and what you do know -- is your organization's ability to address certain factors. Some risk or protective factors cannot be changed (like gender or age). However, attitudes toward gender or age can be changed. To identify the key factors that your project will address, you will want to: - Consult specialists and research on the issue
- Talk to other people affected by the issue
- Consult your project partners
- Use your own experience and judgement to decide which factors your project will address
Risk factor examplesThere are many possible risk factors. The extent to which they have an influence on crime or victimization will depend on the particular situation. Here are just a few examples: - Negative attitudes, values or beliefs
- Low self-esteem
- Drug, alcohol or solvent abuse
- Poverty
- Children of parents in conflict with the law
- Homelessness
- Presence of neighbourhood crime
- Early and repeated anti-social behaviour
- Lack of positive role models
| - Children who witness violence
- Lack of services (social, recreational, cultural, etc)
- Unemployment/underemployment
- Family distress
- Racism
- Mental or physical illness
- Low literacy
- Leaving institutional/government care (hospital, foster care, correctional facility, etc)
- Family violence
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Protective factor examplesThere are many possible protective factors. The extent to which they have an influence on the prevention of crime or victimization will depend on the particular situation. Here are just a few examples: - Positive attitudes, values or beliefs
- Conflict resolution skills
- Good mental, physical, spiritual and emotional health
- Positive self-esteem
- Success at school
- Good parenting skills
- Parental supervision
- Strong social supports
- Community engagement
| - Problem-solving skills
- Positive adult role models, coaches, mentors
- Healthy prenatal and early childhood development
- Participation in traditional healing and cultural activities
- Good peer group/friends
- Steady employment
- Stable housing
- Availability of services (social, recreational, cultural, etc)
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What level will your project address?If you think about what influences crime and victimization, you'll notice that underlying factors are found at many "levels." Your project activities should focus primarily on one of the following levels: Individual level Focus on factors that can place individuals at risk of becoming involved in crime or becoming victims of crime. The activities encourage significant participation by individuals in all parts of the project. Examples include conflict-resolution classes, skill-building training groups or intergenerational projects where community elders share knowledge and traditions with youth. Family/peer level Focus on enhancing the strength and well being of families or peer groups (such as friends, classmates). The activities may encourage the involvement, support and skill development of parents, especially parents of young, at-risk children or youth. They may also focus on kids of a certain age or in a certain neighbourhood to try to promote positive attitudes and behaviours. Examples of projects include mentoring programs for young fathers and mothers, after-school programs involving parents and teachers in leadership roles, peer mentoring programs in school subjects or social skills, programs that work with families of offenders, etc. Community/ school/workplace level Focus on increasing the ability of schools, workplaces or of your community in general to prevent crime and victimization. These activities involve a wide range of partners (schools, parents, teachers, workplaces, social agencies, etc) to promote community co-operation for crime prevention through social development. Examples include hosting public meetings or workshops on community issues; developing community action plans; public awareness and consensus building; school-based anti-bullying campaigns or the creation of networks and coalitions to address crime and victimization problems. Societal level Focus on increasing the ability of society to promote positive values, laws, rules and customs. These activities place priority on early intervention. Projects can address the portrayal of violence in the media, socio-economic disadvantage, sexism, racism and cultural beliefs and behaviours involving violence. Projects can also seek to increase access to support services by informing policy change recommendations. They may include initiatives that support citizens by building structures and social systems to aid in the development of a supportive, as opposed to a fragmented, society.
Root causes map |