Pubdate: Wed, 16 Jul 2008 Source: Chronicle Herald (CN NS) Copyright: 2008 The Halifax Herald Limited Contact: http://thechronicleherald.ca/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/180 DRUGS TOP WORRY StatsCan: Canadians See Dealers, Users As Biggest Blights On Neighbourhoods OTTAWA (CP) - Drug use and drug dealing were commonly seen by Canadians as the biggest problem plaguing their neighbourhoods, according to a study released Tuesday by Statistics Canada. The report looked at Canadians' perception of signs of crime across 12 major cities. Signs of crime included physical crime, such as graffiti, litter and vandalism, and social crime, such as loud parties, public drunkenness and prostitution. Between nine and 19 per cent of people deemed drug dealing and drug use the biggest blight on their neighbourhood. Overall, nine per cent of people living in Canada's 12 largest cities saw garbage or litter lying around to be a problem in their neighbourhood. The study was based on data collected in the 2004 General Social Survey monitoring changes and emerging trends in Canadian society. The report said a person's perception of signs of crime, or incivility, stem from "a constellation of influences," including personal experience, the tone of media reports about the "crime" problem in a city and/or neighbourhood and anecdotes recounted by significant people in the individual's life. Statistics Canada social science researcher Leslie-Anne Keown said the survey was the first of its kind asking in-depth questions concerning perception of signs of crime at a national level. Keown said among the most interesting findings was that perception of signs of crime in one area, such as drug use or drug dealing, were generally seen with other types of incivilities having to do with conditions in the environment, like littering and graffiti. "Basically, when we see one we see the other, if we live in a downtown kind of urban area, whereas when we live in a suburb we seem to see them less frequently linked together," she said. Criminology expert Vincent Sacco said among the things requiring further exploration is what the implications of people's perception of signs of crime signify in the bigger picture. "What we've found in several American studies, for example, is that when people perceive these things as problems, they have quite a different attitude towards their community than when they don't perceive them as problems," said Sacco, a professor with the sociology department at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. "In other words, they like the community less, they feel less comfortable in it, they may be less trusting of their neighbours, etc." "There could be important implications that emerge out of those perceptions, but all this report does thus far, really, is describe to us what those perceptions are." Sacco said law enforcement and other community agencies have been paying a lot of attention to the issue, with community policing initiatives in many Canadian cities oriented toward attempting to do something about incivility. Sacco said the concept finds its origins in the "broken windows" idea of policing which stems partly out of New York City's experience - namely, if you want to do something about big crime problems in the city, you have to attack the smaller problems, which if left unattended can create an environment where bigger problems can emerge. *SIDEBAR* CRIME PERCEPTIONS: Statistics Canada's study of Canadians' perception of signs of crime revealed: .Between nine and 19 per cent of people feel drug dealing and drug use is the worst issue in their neighbourhood. .The least often observed signs of crime were prostitution and people sleeping on the streets. .Nine per cent of people saw garbage or litter lying around to be a problem. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom