ABSTRACT
Since the 1920s most criminologists are of the opinion that urbanization and industrialization bring about social changes. Industrialization, modernization, and urbanization are said to cause the breakdown of traditional patterns of the social fabric of society. Th e breakdown results in all forms of changes that may lead to personal alienation and instability, which may lead to anomic conditions that lead to increases in crime. Social disorganization theories link crime rates to neighborhood ecological characteristics, urban decay, and breakdown in social life (Shaw, 1929). Drawing upon Shaw and McKay’s (1942) theoretical roots, many researchers have continued to study how and why neighborhoods aff ect the social dynamics and characteristics of changing environments. One of the most studied eff ects is the crime rate and its patterns (e.g., Cohen & Felson, 1979; Sherman, Gartin, & Buerger,
Developing Societies and Crime 21 Institutional Instability 23 Confl ict 23 Economic Deprivation and Opportunity for Crime 23 Availability of Arms 24 Law and Order in Transitional Societies 24 Preventing Crime in Transitional Societies 25
Brief History of Cameroon 27 Police Performance 28 Eff ects of Lack of Performance on the Part of Police 31
High Crime Rate 31 Economic Cost 32 Social Cost 33
Th e Rule of Law 34 Conclusion 37 References 38
1989; Stark, 1987). Recent criminological research has focused on the impact of social characteristics on the patterns of crime and victimization (Morenoff & Sampson, 1997; Sampson & Groves, 1989; Taylor, 1997).
