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After the downturn: Perceptions of crime and policing in the southeastern Saskatchewan oil patch
Author(s) -
O'Connor Christopher D.,
Ruddell Rick
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
the canadian geographer / le géographe canadien
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.35
H-Index - 46
eISSN - 1541-0064
pISSN - 0008-3658
DOI - 10.1111/cag.12671
Subject(s) - boom , law enforcement , oil boom , industrialisation , perception , enforcement , recession , criminology , resource curse , political science , geography , psychology , economics , natural resource , law , engineering , environmental engineering , keynesian economics , macroeconomics , neuroscience
The relationship between crime and the rapid growth and industrialization associated with resource‐based booms in large boomtowns is well‐documented. This study focuses on changes in police‐reported crime and perceptions of crime and disorder in a region experiencing a mini‐boom after the boom subsides. Analyses of survey results of 1,336 respondents living in oil‐impacted and non‐impacted communities in southeastern Saskatchewan reveal several noteworthy differences between these two groups. Inconsistent with prior research, respondents in the oil‐impacted region were less fearful of being victimized than their counterparts in non‐impacted communities and did not believe that a lack of law enforcement was a problem. Our analyses also revealed that the economic downturn after oil prices and production plunged was associated with significant decreases in rates of reported crime, crime severity, and traffic collisions. Implications for establishing a more comprehensive theory of the boom‐crime relationship and future research are discussed .