The guardianship component of routine activity theory (RAT) remains underexamined. Recent research has emphasized “guardianship-in-action,” or the processes by which individuals evaluate potentially ...problematic situations. Research has also begun to identify conditions conducive to bystander intervention in troublesome situations, but has not been incorporated into the emerging literature on guardianship-in-action. The current study integrates these literatures to understand how individuals perceive problematic social situations by examining how victims’ gender influences guardians’ perceptions of social situations and willingness to intervene across conflicts. Using an experimental vignette design, and a sample of 370 American adults, respondents were randomly assigned to vignettes involving verbal and physical conflicts between two men or a man and a woman. A series of t tests, chi-square tests, and McNemar’s tests assessed mean differences in respondent perceptions. Situations in which victims are female were perceived as being more serious and requiring intervention. Situations involving interpersonal physical violence similarly elicit stronger concerns, and a greater willingness to intervene, from potential guardians. Theory and policy implications are discussed.
With Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) technologies, individuals use electronic 'wallets' to collect information ('credentials') from various parties about themselves and present this information to ...(possibly other) parties. The context in which the information is presented, or used, is often different from the context in which a credential with this information is created and issued. In this paper, we illustrate this with financial guardianship, which is created by a judge in an official court procedure and which gives the guardian rights and duties that can or need to be invoked vis-a-vis a party not being the court. In this illustration, we explore (i) the application of SSI in the context of financial guardianship, (ii) what is characteristic about the gap between the practical (legal) and technical perspective, and (iii) what needs to be done to overcome the challenges. We observe gaps between the legal and technical reality. We offer insights into how to advance the application of SSI in the context of financial guardianship, and possibly beyond, which may be taken up in future research.
The central question of this article is whether routine activity theory (RAT) can be used as an analytical framework to study cybercrimes. Both a theoretical analysis and an analysis of empirical ...studies have thus far failed to provide a clear answer. The multivariate analysis presented in this article tries to avoid some of the limitations of other RAT-based studies. Based on a large sample (N = 9,161), the effects of value, visibility, accessibility, and guardianship on victimization of six cybercrimes have been studied. Analysis shows some RAT elements are more applicable than others. Visibility clearly plays a role within cybercrime victimization. Accessibility and personal capable guardianship show varying results. Value and technical capable guardianship show almost no effects on cybercrime victimization.
Governments have implemented social distancing measures to address the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The measures include instructions that individuals maintain social distance when in public, school ...closures, limitations on gatherings and business operations, and instructions to remain at home. Social distancing may have an impact on the volume and distribution of crime. Crimes such as residential burglary may decrease as a byproduct of increased guardianship over personal space and property. Crimes such as domestic violence may increase because of extended periods of contact between potential offenders and victims. Understanding the impact of social distancing on crime is critical for ensuring the safety of police and government capacity to deal with the evolving crisis. Understanding how social distancing policies impact crime may also provide insights into whether people are complying with public health measures. Examination of the most recently available data from both Los Angeles, CA, and Indianapolis, IN, shows that social distancing has had a statistically significant impact on a few specific crime types. However, the overall effect is notably less than might be expected given the scale of the disruption to social and economic life.
The ever-increasing use of telecommunication technologies and the Internet have led to an increase in new technology-facilitated types of crime and deviance. Due to the challenges posed by the unique ...environment of cyberspace on the formal crime control agents (e.g., the police), the role of informal guardians becomes particularly salient. The recent research suggests that informal guardianship against conventional crimes is common and that victims who are more socially active are more likely to receive help. However, it is not clear whether the same patterns of guardianship can be observed in cyberspace. To improve our understanding of how guardianship operates in cyberspace, the current study analyses the data from a sample of U.S. adults who were surveyed about their experiences with cyber abuse. The data was analyzed using mixed methods: a thematic analysis of open-ended responses, followed up by the logistic regression using Bayesian variable selection with the stochastic search algorithm. Our findings suggest that family, friends, intimate partners, authorities, work contacts, online friends, and netizens are most likely to provide guardianship. We also found that similar to conventional crimes like robbery or assault, the levels of guardianship responsibility are predictive of intervention against cyber abuse. Finally, we have established a link between the levels of regular interactions with various social groups and guardians’ availability and willingness to intervene. Implications for theory and practice, as well as future directions for research, are also discussed.
Understanding how offenders choose a crime location is a classic criminological topic. However, previous research on offenders' crime location choice did not consider the impacts of ambient ...population and surveillance cameras on street robbery. Based on the literature, this study integrates ambient population and surveillance cameras data, from the perspective of guardianship. The discrete spatial choice modeling is used to test the impact of their guardianship role on street robbers' crime location choice, accounting for accessibility and proximity, crime attractors and generators, and social disorganization. The results demonstrate that ambient population and surveillance cameras have a significant hindering impact on street robbers' crime location choice, and they play a guardianship role in street robbers' criminal activities. In particular, we find that the guardianship effect of ambient population is greater than that of surveillance cameras. Further, the inclusion of ambient population and surveillance cameras increases the fitness of the model, which underscores the guardianship role of these two factors on street robbers' choice of location on committing a robbery. These findings can have important implications for the role of the ambient population and the deployment of surveillance cameras for crime reduction.
•Ambient population and surveillance cameras play a guardianship role in street robbers' criminal activities.•Ambient population generated from mobile phones could help explain offenders' crime location choice.
THE ARTICLE PROPOSES AN ANALYSIS OF THE MAIN LEGAL INSTITUTIONS FOR THE PROTECTION OF INCAPABLE PERSONS IN ROMAN PRIVATE LAW, RESPECTIVELY GUARDIANSHIP AND GUARDIANSHIP. AFTER A SHORT INTRODUCTORY ...PART, THE CATEGORIES OF GUARDIANSHIP ARE ANALYZED, THE GUARDIANSHIP OF THE IMPUBER, THE GUARDIANSHIP OFTURIS'S WIFE, AND THE GUARDIANSHIP, HIGHLIGHTING THE GUARDIANSHIP OF THE INSANE, THE GUARDIANSHIP OF THE WASTEFUL AND THE GUARDIANSHIP OF THE MINOR WHO HAS NOT REACHED THE AGE OF 25. THE ARTICLE IS ENTIRELY PART OF CONCLUSIONS