Local Community Involvement and Participation in Neighbourhood Watch: A Case-study in Cork, Ireland

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Abstract
It is often assumed that community policing will develop as a response to local crime and out of a sense of collective solidarity, although the evidence for both is inconclusive and often conflicting. This was examined in Cork, Ireland, by relating peoples' attitudes to neighbourhood watch and their willingness to participate to their perceptions of local crime, their experiences of it, and their involvement in a range of local community behaviours. Discriminant analyses show that the effect of crime is complicated. Serious crime deters involvement, although when this is held constant, victimisation to some offenses results in a greater willingness to join. Of the community variables, only involvement in a community organisation and strong value orientations encourage participation. Other dimensions, like social interaction and affect for the neighbourhood, have no significant influence.