A Comparative Study of University Students' Perceptions Towards Crime in Japan and America

Kristin SzaboKristin SzaboSpring ２０１３

Advisors：Dr. Yoshiko Saito-Abbott

Dr. Shigeko Sekine

OutlineOutline1. Significance of the Study2. Research Questions3. Research Background 4. Research Method5. Research Results6. Findings7. Conclusion8. Discussion9. Bibliography10. Acknowledgments

1. 1. Significance of the studySignificance of the study• Japan is said to have a low crime rate when compared to Japan is said to have a low crime rate when compared to

the rest of the world -especially U.Sthe rest of the world -especially U.S

• During my study abroad in Japan I felt safer than I ever During my study abroad in Japan I felt safer than I ever had in the US and never witnessed a crimehad in the US and never witnessed a crime

• People only seemed to talk about petty crimes. I wanted People only seemed to talk about petty crimes. I wanted to know why people did not take more precaution with to know why people did not take more precaution with thingsthings

2. Research Questions2. Research Questions1. What impact does the level of safety have on university 1. What impact does the level of safety have on university students from rural or urban settings?students from rural or urban settings?

2. How does crime affect university student’s perceptions of 2. How does crime affect university student’s perceptions of their community?their community?

3. What precautions do Japanese and American university 3. What precautions do Japanese and American university students take to avoid or prevent crime?students take to avoid or prevent crime?

3. Research Outline3. Research Outline

a. Countries at a Glanceb. Types of Crime Ratesc. Japanese “koban” and Policed. Gun Control in Japane. Gun Control in Americaf. Safety Precautions in Japang. Safety Education

a.a. Countries at a Glance Information Japan America

Population: 1.285 million 3.13 million

Area: 145 sq. miles 380 sq. miles

Crime Rate: 15.2% 21.1%

Differences in Race and Ethnicity:

Japanese 99% ,Other 　 1%

European 84%,African 12%,Asian 3%,Native American 　1%

(Country Watch, 2013)

(BBC: Country Profiles, 2013)

Types of crime:

America Japan

Homicide 4.7 .94

Rape 26.8 1.38

Burglary 113.7 3.53

Assault 241.1 24.26

Larceny 1,976.9 1,119.16

＊ In a population of 100,000

b. b. Types of Crime Rates

(Stat.go.jp, 2010)(FBI.gov, 2012)

c. c. Japanese “Koban” and PoliceKoban: A koban is a small police station, that houses several police officers in various places around a city. The police station exists to help protect and to guide lost people.

(Wa-pedia, 2013)

• Unlike in American, where the patrol car is the center of police activity, police activity in Japan centers on the koban.

(keishicho.metro.tokyo.jp, 2013)

d. d. Gun Control in Japan

It is illegal to own a sword or firearms in Japan. However, if you have a license, you can have a hunting rifle, sword or shotgun, but most people do not have a license.

(

(Bayley, 1976)

Swords and Firearms Control Law (Adopted March 10th 1958; Amended

1978 、 1993 & 1995 )

“We don’t need guns”

e. Gun Control in AmericaGun regulations are subject to State

laws.According to the 2nd Amendment of the

U.S. Constitution (1791) "A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." Guns cannot be outlawed completely.

In recent years, because of frequent national news concerning shootings and other related gun fatalities, stricter gun laws have been advocated for.

76% of Americans support gun control.(CNN/ORC, 2012)

f. f. Safety Measures in Japan• Security Buzzer

In case of an emergency, it is a small electronic device that is designed to emit a high-pitched noise in order to notify the police or anyone of danger.-A buzzer phone app is also available

• Stun gun• Pepper Spray• Cell Phone• Martial Arts• Neighborhood Watch

(Softbank, 2008)

(Japan Today, 2008)

g. g. Safety Education• In America and Japan, police and firemen officials, visit the school for safety

education• Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) / Drug Abuse Prevention Center (DAPC)

• “Safe Routes to School” program (SRTS)/Community Safety Maps• Both countries utilize slogans to spread messages about safety “☆ ika no osushi”, “Don’t talk to strangers”, “Absolutely no good. (dame. zettai.)”

(DARE, 2013) (DAPC, 2013)

(岡山県警察 , 2013)(SRTS, 2013)

4. Research Method• Participants: 62• Japanese University Students 32

• Males 14, Females 18• Ages 19-25

• American University Students 30• Males 15, Females 15 • Ages 20-30

• Survey Tools:　 Googledocs, Facebook• English Survey Japanese Survey

5. Research Results ： Participants’ Ethnic Demographics

Research Result: 1

Research Question 1What impact does the level of safety have on university students from rural or urban settings?

Safety Awareness: Community

Both Japanese and American students feel safe where they live.

The Community where I live ：

Japan

Safety Awareness: Police

Both countries think it is the police’s duty to protect people Even with police, 53 ％　 of Americans don’t feel safe Because of police 57 ％　 Japanese do feel safe

Japan America

Role of Community

Even though both countries think that it is the duty of the community to protect; both do not think they do

10%

53%

37%

アメリカ

31%

31%

37%

日本はい

いいえ

中性

“Is your community active in protecting your neighborhood?”

Yes

No

Neither

31%

America Japan

Crimes and Participants

Most Americans know someone who was a victim of crime

0% 50% 100%

日本

アメリカ

“In the past five years, were you or someone you know a victim of crime?”

0% 50% 100%

Friends Participants

Serious crime

Petty crime

No

America

Japan

The most committed crime is theft in both countries

0% 50% 100%

アメリカ

日本

Experiences of crime

Robbery/theftIdentity theft

FraudAttempted murder

Gang-relatedSexual crime

Other

Arson

“Which crime were you or someone you know a victim of?”

America

Japan

Summary of Results: 1

• Both Japanese and American students feel safe where they live

• Both Japanese and American students, agree it is the duty of everyone to protect one another, but feel that is not the case

• Americans do not feel safe because of police presence

• The biggest type of crime in both countries is theft

Research Question 2How does crime affect university student’s perceptions of their community?

Research Results: 2

Perceptions of Community

0% 50% 100%

日本 アメリカ

87% of Americans and 60% of Japanese feel safe being around someone who is a different ethnicity

“If you see someone who is foreign or different ethnically/racially, do you feel unsafe?”

Maybe

Not at all

Mostly

Yes, very much

Not Really

AmericaJapan

Feelings of Safety: Times

Times feel safe:

America

Japan

Yes No Neutral Yes No Neutr

al

6:00 – 12:00

86% 7% 7% 91% 0% 9%

12:00 – 6:00

86% 3% 10% 84% 0% 16%

6:00 -10:00

67% 10% 23% 35% 50% 16%

10:00 – 2:00

30% 33% 27% 6% 79% 16%

Awareness of SafetyAmerica: 6am-10pm Americans feel safeReasons ： Police presence, they have never experienced

crime, or they have a form of protection

Japan: 6am-6pm Japanese feel safeReasons ： Police presence, they have never experienced

crime, or they have never heard of any crime in the area

Reasons ： They could not protect themselves or Friends and Family told them it was “unsafe”.

Americans and Japanese: Feeling Unsafe

Summary of Results: 2

• Nearly 60% of Japanese people and nearly 90% of the American people feel safe around different races and ethnicities

• Americans feel safe longer in the day than Japanese

• When family or friends say that “it is not safe”, then students from both countries do not feel safe

Research Results: 3

Research Question 3What precautions do Japanese and American university students

take to avoid or prevent crime?

Perceptions of Guns

0% 50% 100%

JapanUS

• 3 times more Japanese are against being in possession of guns.• 1/3 of American University students support guns.

“People should be able to have guns to protect themselves.”

Strongly Disagree

DisagreeNeutral

AgreeStrongly Agree

AmericaJapan

Crime Prevention Measures

0% 50% 100%

Japan

US

In both America and Japan, pepper spray is a major form of protection. Japan also listed stun guns and security buzzers.

“If you carry some form of protection what is it?”

Pepper SprayKnifeGun

Pipe

AmericaJapan

Other

Safety Education

Both countries learned in the period from elementary school to high school

“When did you learn about safety?”

• Japan is influenced by the media • America is influenced by “family” and “nothing”

“What do you think influences you to be safe?”

Precaution Perceptions

Survey ResultsParticipants’ Safety Measures

Japan America

1. Cellphone 1. Cellphone

2. Well-lit surroundings

2. Surroundings

3. Lock windows/doors/bike

3. Lock doors/car

Summary of Results: 3

• Both countries lock cars/bikes, travel in well-lit surroundings, and carry a cell phone for safety

• Media is a big influence on Japan’s perception of safety

• Americans said that “family” or “nothing” influenced them to take precautions

Conclusion• In general, college students in either country are living

safely

• However, even though Japan has less experience with crime, their safety awareness is higher than Americans

• It might be said the crime rate in Japan is lower than America because Japanese are taking more precautions

• Precautions that Japanese and Americans take and their safety education is very similar

• There is no deep relationship with education and cultural differences necessarily with the crime rate

Discussion & Future Study• So as not to become a victim of crime, Japanese and American

students take matters of safety into their own hands

As this study was only intended for students of Okayama University and CSUMB, in order to achieve greater accuracy in results I would survey more Universities

For future research, I would more precisely compare the safety of rural and urban areas, and want to try follow-up interviews as well

8. BibliographyAPA

A SITUATION OF CRIME GENERATION AND SELF-ANTICRIME ACTIVITIES ON THE

NEIGHBORHOOD UNIT. (n.d.). Retrieved February 22, 2013, from

https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/aijt/16/33/16_33_705/_article

CNN.com - Breaking News, U.S., World, Weather, Entertainment & Video News. (n.d.-a). Retrieved

May 2013, from http://www.cnn.com/

D.A.R.E. America. (n.d.). Retrieved May 2013, from http://www.dare.com/home/default.asp

DAPC - Program. (n.d.). Retrieved May 2013, from

Friman, H. R. (2001). Informal economies, immigrant entrepreneurship and drug crime in Japan. Journal

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Haley, J. O. (1982). Sheathing the Sword of Justice in Japan: An Essay on Law without Sanctions.

Journal of Japanese Studies, 8(2), 265–281.

8. Bibliography

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doi:10.1016/j.ijsl.2006.08.002

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Acknowledgments

Dr. Yoshiko Saito-AbbottDr. Shigeko SekineGus LeonardJapanese exchange studentsWLC400 StudentsMy Family

Special thanks to:Takashi Yokoi, Masaki Iwai and Urara Enomoto