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Is it safer behind the gates? Crime and gated communities in South Africa

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Abstract

Gated communities have long been seen as a rational response to rising crime levels, yet very little is known about the extent to which residing in a gated community actually reduces an individuals’ risk of criminal victimisation. In this study, we use location quotients to compare the extent of burglary in gated communities with burglary across the entire city of Tshwane, South Africa, as well as compare burglary in gated communities with burglary occurring within a series of buffer intervals immediately surrounding these communities. Finally, we identify what physical characteristics of gated communities differentiate between high and low burglary in these enclaves. Prior to expectations, we found that gated communities (and their immediate surrounding areas) are associated with increased levels of burglary. There are, however, a number of physical characteristics of gated communities which are associated with much lower burglary levels. The implications of our work from a crime prevention and development planning perspective are discussed.

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Notes

  1. In this study, we used the pre-2011 municipal boundary for Tshwane. This includes 371 neighbourhoods. In May 2011, the boundary for the city of Tshwane expanded to incorporate the Metsweding District Municipality in the east of the city.

  2. It is readily acknowledged that the crime data used in this research are fairly aged. These data are, however, spatially replete and provide an accurate description of the incidence of burglary in Tshwane.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Science, Department of Geography, University of Canterbury, Private Bag 4800, Christchurch, 8140, New Zealand

    Gregory D. Breetzke

  2. Department of Town and Regional Planning, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, Gauteng, 0001, South Africa

    Karina Landman

  3. Department of Criminal Justice, Florida International University, PCA 261A, Miami, FL, 33199, USA

    Ellen G. Cohn

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  1. Gregory D. Breetzke
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  2. Karina Landman
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  3. Ellen G. Cohn
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Correspondence to Karina Landman.

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Breetzke, G.D., Landman, K. & Cohn, E.G. Is it safer behind the gates? Crime and gated communities in South Africa. J Hous and the Built Environ 29, 123–139 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10901-013-9362-5

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