Functions of Crime: A Paradoxical Process

Sociologist have long been interested in the functions of deviance and crime for the social order. Following Durkheim, functionalists argue that crime or the reaction to it (punishment) brings people together, thereby building social solidarity and cohesiveness, which in turn decreases crime. Recently, theory and research on the fear of crime argue, to the contrary, that crime or the reaction to it (fear) does not bring people together; rather it constrains their social interaction, thereby undermining instead of building social solidarity and cohesiveness. Additionally, opportunity (routine-activities) theory and research suggest that constraining social interaction to safe sites and times limits the opportunities for crime. This article attempts to combine the fear-of-crime and opportunity (routine activities) research traditions in one model. The model first examined is a recursive one in which robbery constrains social interaction that affects other crimes. Then a nonrecursive model where robbery constrains social interaction that affects both other crimes and robbery is examined. Results suggest a model in which crime becomes stabilized through a negative feedback loop,as proposed by funcionalists, but through processes more akin to the proposed in routine-activities theory. As robbery increases, so does the fear of crime that constrains social interaction. Although possibly undermining social solidarity, this process constrains opportunities for crime, thereby decreasing both robbery and other crimes.