Yeoh,i agree ,its fallacy,there are no perfect environments,that's why humans are better than other animals,we adopt,adapt and adjust to our environments.A complete environment is an environment having the good,bad and ugly.

I experience the increasing rationalization of crime in times of recession. Somehow the individual perception of crime also change among ppl affected by the existential consequences of recession. F.e. in my country, grey employment gained a perfectly normal, i could say even normative status everywhere expect in multinatonal and governmental environment. I was able to observe the emergence and normalization of new communicational and institutional structures, among others, of tax evasion (in the new enterpreneurial class) and private money lending. Government fight against these new structures only in words, because they know that destroying them would harm the stability of the whole society. I'm interested in researching these new structures but they seem to be functioning in strictly closed circles which are atm inpenetrable for me, so i can not gain first-hand experience.

Last year (1 May 2013), my bag was snatched and I fell down. I was just near the entrance of Mines Shopping Fair (MSF), Serdang, my home town. MSF is quite well known in this region. A former Prime Minister lives in the vicinity. It was a good thing that I was with a friend, who helped me to make a police report and get medical help for my cuts.

It's not just locals like me, who get mugged. Tourists also suffered in a similar manner. I guess certain people are not concerned about the tourism industry of my country.

Thanks Janos, Ijeoma. I wish I could find out how much of the crime is caused by locals, and how much by illegal foreigners. Is it really because of poverty that they are stealing, house breaking etc?

Dear Miranda,

To answer your question one needs to get statistical data which is not always easy. Regarding our situation we have been in recession for more than 15 years. Soft crime may be experienced in everyday life. Where I work at the university - an open public institution, anybody can enter it - one cannot leave open office doors because some steal money, computers even sun glasses etc. When travelling on train one should concern his/her personnel things.

Andras and friends, thanks for your views. In my college, we have a large shared common staffroom. It's always open, during office hours. But my college is safe.

On the streets, it's not so safe.

I was thinking, that if people steal because they are so poor, we can forgive them. And make better conditions for the poor with safety net etc. But I don't think that is the real reason for crime these days, in my community.

Of course crime rate has increased in recession. Chain snatching, house breaking, thefts are commonly occurring probably because there are many jobless people around. It's influence on research is indirect, in the sense that, a feeling of insecurity may arise. If data on computer is stolen, it may directly affect research. If a researcher is robbed, his ongoing research work may be hampered.

I agree with you Miranda that in all over the world crime increases, and this may be attributed partially to recession.

Thanks Jaya and Mahfuz, for your views. We will wait for our other friends to share their experiences. I have many things to share, after them...

All these things are happening: 'Chain snatching, house breaking, thefts..'

My Indian friends lost their heavy gold necklaces to snatch thieves.

Well, crime has increased in my city, Delhi, in the past decade or so. But the problem is how do we say that it is due to recession.

Social scientists have been forecasting for the last two decades or so that there would be rise in crime rate due to higher Ginnie index which measures inequalities. They say the rise in Ginnie index is attributable to globalization, which causes these inequalities. This is indeed is quite true.

In Delhi, where I live, the newspapers are full of crime stories every day, though we need hard data to prove this. I think it is largely happening due to the rise in inequalities of incomes. may be recession has enhanced it too.

Thanks Prof Debi, it's not just poverty that leads to crime. Inequality causes envy and the desire to have what others have. I don't know of research in this area, as yet.

Well it does not affect researchers at all

Miranda: I think it is accurate (although increasingly not “PC”) to say that stealing, mugging, house breaking etc. may not always has its roots in poverty and existential needs. In certain communities (beyond or independent from material needs) these are considered as important elements of socialisation and identity-construction; a kind of passage rite that establish or strenghten group status and individual positions. Something similar on what "culture of poverty" theorists hypothesized. But, like András said, we need to get statistical data for analysis and not jump into conclusions.

Yes friends and Janos, thanks for reading the things I have expressed on this thread. My neighbor suffered a lot more than me. Her bag was snatched once, and her house was broken into twice. As long as we live in the same non ideal world, we face the same hardships; it's just that the researcher instinct gives me a little advantage. Will share with you all soon.

But I must stop now to watch my evening news about the search for MH 370. Thank you friends, I will get back when I can.

Miranda ,my dear,without any empirical study or any extrapolation,crime rate depends on the concern of Government on ensuring safety.Whle recess can hke crime rate but a concerned Government can ensure that financial votes for security is given priority,I live in uganda..kampala,but the crime rate here is not high,compared to most countries whose economy is far better,I think they do not joke with security,and mean it by the way they go about it.Crime is inborn in humans but the rod of correction can drive it far..If the people are also taught the act of self defense,it will reduce,hahaha asuming all of us knows how to snatch bags,or beat down a bags-natcher,then it will reduce.So,we need self defense taught in schools and then security consciousnes.But seriosly,if you know i could be carrying a dagger while passing a lonely street,wont the snatcher also fear me?And if a policeman is stationed at corners on lonely streets,wont snatchers avoid such streets?? Let the government not play ignorant of hike in crime in recess.

Yes it is! Just a personal answer: My laptop bag had been stolen in Italy and I lost lots of data and my research reports, and many other valuable details along with the laptop.

I have noticed increase of crime recently. However, without hard data, it is impossible to decide reasons exactly. It is too easy to be influenced by constant flow of TV news to stay strictly objective on given question.

Dear friends, thanks for sharing my concern and burden about crime.

@Ijeoma, one of my girls (a 17 yr old student) fought off an attacker who wanted to snatch her bag. She ended up with so many bruises.

@Lijo, losing a laptop is like losing our recent history, very PERSONAL PRECIOUS LOSS, agree?

Tomy, I just share my own experience, no 'hard data' - next post ok?

Earlier I shared that my bag was snatched on 1 May 2013. I was near the entrance of a large mall. I fell forward and had many bruises. Before that incident, one lady lost a backpack to a thief. She was with her husband at that time. She fell backward and passed away soon after.

About 3 months after that in August, I got out from church, with 2 large bags. We cook and serve lunch in church, so I have many things to bring home. It was about 1 pm on a Sunday. Suddenly I heard a special sound. I stood still on the pavement. One dark man on a bike passed me, looked at me, turned his bike around and looked at me again. His face was partly shielded by the helmet. He did this 3x, then he sped off. I went to the police station to make a report. During the months that followed, I watched on TV that many unemployed illegal foreigners were caught and had to return to their homeland.

Many researchers think that unemployment and financial desperation are not so inexorably linked to theft and murder. The factors that influence crime rates are far more varied and complex than any economic indicator.

Increasing crime rate everywhere is a common problem as Prof. Kamal already mentioned. Even Tucson where I work and stay in US is also badly affected. Recession, increasing rate of job loss , lack of education and unemployment play important role to commit any criminal activity.

Tucson is place where trafficking drug is increasing due to very advantageous geographical location an it's easy accessibility from neighboring countries.

Friends, thanks for your views. Sorry that I'm late in responding. Easter duties, this year some of us visited the Old Folks Home nearby. I have just come back to college, the it started raining heavily. We need the rain badly :)

@Ahed, most of the time lead contamination is due to lead pipes carrying water? Is this so, or what is the source of lead of the prisoners in your study?

@ Miranda, when I was talking about lack od hard data, I talked about my country only. Recession might be one case, almost universal amnesty, which had been done by our former president Klaus, might be another, jut to name a few.

I have had security and self-defense issues as a hobby for decades now.

From my practical point of view only Ijeoma Anumaka described practical solutions to this matter. By that I mean some official approach to the general security, either on governmental or on community level.

If this kind of crime is really issue in your country, I would recommend to contact Police and ask for lecture on this issue. Cops usually have PR department which is able to provide that.

And I would bet that they will advise not to fight back and to give property to attacker voluntarily.

Issues of effective self-defense are just too complicated to be described here, but you can forget these ads type :"self-defense master in one week". The same is for security awareness.

This initial scene from Costner's "Bodyguard" (this one in undergroud garage and comment after that) explains it sufficiently.

As for training to be self-defense master, watch movie "36 Chambers of Shaolin" I have never seen better movie on this issue.

Yes Tomy, thanks. This is so: 'advise not to fight back and to give property to attacker'. Even though I didn't hold on to my bag, I had so many bruises. If I hanged on, I would just be dragged on the road. Thanks again.

Yes @Miranda, gold chain snatching is also being reported more than ever before in these recession times.

As a researcher, i work on snakes and smuggling of snakes has increased for sure.

Amazing, Darasingh! Even SNAKES are not safe in times of recession! I don't know if I should laugh or cry...

According to me, we cannot generalize this "more crime in times of recession".

There are many other reasons for increase in crime rate as Prof. Kamal stated.

As far as its effect on research is concerned, for me, it causes distraction.

Regards,

Nitish

Thanks Nitish. Prof K did say about:

'many factors including recession, inequality, unemployment, poverty, corruptions (even rich people steel the money through corruptions), and redirections of police effort against fighting terrorist acts and decreasing their effort to fight criminal acts, and so on. '

Dear All, Lijo Francis, Patrick Low and others that you know are not able any longer to log in their RG account from yesterday. RG suspended their accounts without any reason. I don't know why, but I find this an outstanding abuse. Please help them and inform all other participants as this is a signal that things are not going in the right way in RG before it happens to you!

Regards

Gianni

Dear Prof G, we wait for this matter to resolve.

Responding to Prof Gianni et al:

Friends, sometimes Blessings come in disguise. Now Lijo has more time to work on his research without RG cares or commitments. Lijo wrote this 5 hours ago to us all:

'Just now I have received the Cyprus Visa in my Passport.

Now I am going to prepare the PPT slides to present my papers in Cyprus EDS Conference. Since I have two papers to present.

Conference will be from 11-15 May.'

This is what I recently found concerning crime in my country. Doing all my activities during daylight hours is definitely safer.

http://www.numbeo.com/crime/city_result.jsp?country=Malaysia&city=Kuala+Lumpur

Just about a week ago, many of my colleagues told me about this crime. It's terrible, many such cases happen in my country. And often to little girls, children. Sad about it :(

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/30/us-malaysia-crime-idUSKBN0EA15K20140530