Fixing Broken Windows: Restoring Order and Reducing Crime in Our Communities by George Kelling and Catherine Coles is a sociology book about petty urban crime and strategies to contain it. The title comes from the paradigm of the following example:
- Consider a building with a few broken windows. If the windows are not repaired, the tendency is for vandals to break a few more windows. Eventually, they may even break into the building, and if it's unoccupied, perhaps become squatters or light fires inside.
- Or consider a sidewalk. Some litter accumulates. Soon, more litter accumulates. Eventually, people even start leaving bags of trash from take-out restaurants there or breaking into cars.
Mayor Giuliani adopted this strategy in New York City. He had the police strictly enforce the law against subway fare evasion and stopped (some say persecuted) the "squeegee men" who had been wiping windshields of stopped cars and demanding payment. Rates of more serious crimes fell significantly.
Reference:
- George Kelling and Catherine Coles. Fixing Broken Windows: Restoring Order and Reducing Crime in Our Communities, ISBN 0684837382