Crime Prevention Officers frequently encourage people to walk around in their neighborhoods. The idea is to have eyes and ears out in the neighborhood to detect crime or suspicious activity.
Some citizens take this seriously, “patrolling” regularly,
maybe even setting up a patrol schedule with some neighbors. While neighbors
might start out with a good faith effort, patrols can fall off after things die
down and there is nothing more to report.
A better strategy is to go for a walk, not just to patrol,
but to get some exercise. This is an activity that anyone in the neighborhood
can participate in when they want, in the morning, afternoon, or evening. Go for
the exercise. But be aware of your surroundings. If you see any suspicious
activity or a crime in progress call 911 on your cell phone.
And walking your dog helps lower crime in
neighborhoods according to one study. A study out of Ohio State University showed
that neighborhoods with more dogs had lower rates of homicide, robbery and,
aggravated assaults compared to neighborhoods with fewer dogs. So, walking your
dog can help make a safe neighborhood.
The study also ties neighbors who trust each other to
lower crime rates. With dog walking and high trust comes lower crime.
This makes sense. If people are out walking, with or
without their dogs, there is more opportunity to say hi and from time to time
to chat on the sidewalk. Dogs often create attention and opportunities to chat
and for neighbors to get to know one another. Building trust.
With high trust comes a higher likelihood that
neighbors will help each other when a threat is present.
The study also found that with more dogs, fewer
property crimes, such as burglaries, occurred in the neighborhood. The physical
presence of dogs and the attention that barking provides act as a deterrent to
the property crimes.
The lesson is to get some exercise. Get to know your
neighbors. Give your dog some exercise. While you are out be aware of your
surroundings. Don’t keep your eyes buried on the screen of your cell phone. Enjoy
your neighborhood while you keep it safe.
Phys.org:
No comments:
Post a Comment