Examining community participation in crime prevention in rural Peshawar, Pakistan

ABSTRACT Lower crime rates in rural areas of the world are often taken as a sign that crime is not a major concern in these areas. However, rural crime undermines sustainable development to a large extent. This research presents an empirical examination of the prospects of community policing in crime prevention in rural Peshawar, Pakistan as little is known about its effectiveness. A cross-sectional survey is conducted to gather quantitative data by interviewing a sample of the community residents in Palosi and Regi neighbourhoods. Results of logistic regression indicate that overall community participation is an effective strategy in preventing crime in the study area indicating a chi-square significance of <0.05, but police are not successful in developing trust in the communities. It is suggested that police have to render quality services including information and communication technologies that largely contribute to the rapid transfer of information and knowledge and crime control.