EXPLORING THE MOST COMMON CRIMES INSIDE THE SCHOOL CAMPUS: BASIS

FOR CRIME PREVENTION PROGRAM

Introduction

Meriam Webster Dictionary defines school as an organization that provides instruction:

such as instruction for the teaching of children. It is an institution for specialized higher education

often associated with university.

Furthermore, according to Merriam Webster Dictionary, a university is an institution of

higher learning that provides teaching and research facilities and is allowed to award academic

degrees. It consists of an undergraduate division that awards bachelor's degrees and a graduate

division that includes a graduate school and professional schools that award master's and doctorate

degrees.

With regards to colleges and universities, parents do send their children to school for the

following reason;

Jose Rizal Memorial State University is the premiere university in the Province of

Zamboanga del Norte with campuses and extensions in Dapitan City (Main), Dipolog Campus,

Katipunan Campus, Tampilisan Campus and Siocon Campus.

Its visions, as the leading university, are as follows:

1. A lively and diversified university with a worldwide reputation.

2. In the southern Philippines, there is a dynamic, inclusive, and regionally varied university.

3. "Panglantaw: Usa ka unibersidad nga giila sa kalibutan nga aktibo sa kausaban ug lahi sa uban."

and "Panglantaw: Usa ka unibersidad nga giila sa kalibutan nga aktibo sa kausaban ug lah

4. "Usa ka banggiitan nga unibersidad nga nagalakip sa tanan sa Southern Philippines."

 Its mission is also as follows:

1. Commits to provide high-quality, cost-effective services in the areas of research,

education, production, and extension.

2. It pledges to give advanced professional, technical, and entrepreneurial training in order

to produce highly skilled, innovative, and self-renewing persons.

3. "Tahas: Ang Jose Rizal Memorial State University nanumpa nga mopadangat sa

epektibo ug hapsay nga serbisyo diha sa pagpanudlo, pagsiksik, pagpalapad sa serbisyong

pangkatilingbanon ug pamuhat nga serbisyong pangkatilingbanon

4. Ang tumong sa pag-umol ug mga tawo nga adunay igong katakus, bag-o ug may

kinaugalingon nga kausaban ang pagpasalig kini sa paghatag ug abante nga propesyonal, teknikal

ug teknoprenyur nga pagbansay

Parents do send their children to school in order for them to learn. They send their children

to colleges and universities for higher educational training for a variety of reasons, including peace

and order. Thus, they choose to send their children to universities where they believe learners will

be safe and protected from crime in the campus.

Crimes can be classified in various ways. Crimes also can be grouped by subject matter.

For example, a crime like assault, battery, or rape tends to injure another person’s body, so it can

be classified as a “crime against the person.” If a crime tends to injure a person by depriving him

or her of property or by damaging property, it can be classified as a “crime against property.”

These classifications are basically for convenience and are not imperative to the study of criminal

law.
 More important and substantive is the classification of crimes according to the severity of

punishment. This is called grading. Crimes are generally graded into four

categories: felonies, misdemeanors, felony-misdemeanors, and infractions. Often the criminal

intent element affects a crime’s grading. Murder, for example, are evil in their nature and are

generally graded higher than malum prohibitum crimes, which are regulatory, like a failure to pay

income taxes.

The most serious crimes are felonies. They are either motivated by a terrible goal, such as

the desire to kill, or they are accompanied by a grave consequence, such as death, major damage,

or property devastation. Sentence could be execution, prison time, a fine, or alternative

sentencing such as probation, rehabilitation, and home confinement. Potential consequences of a

felony conviction also include the inability to vote, own a weapon, or even participate in certain

careers.

Misdemeanors are less serious than felonies, either because the intent requirement is of a

lower level or because the result is less extreme. It is usually punishable by jail time of one year

or less per misdemeanor, a fine, or alternative sentencing like probation, rehabilitation, or

community service.

Felony-misdemeanors are crimes that the government can prosecute and punish as either a

felony or a misdemeanor, depending on the particular circumstances accompanying the offense.

The discretion whether to prosecute the crime as a felony or misdemeanor usually belongs to

the judge, but in some instances the prosecutor can make the decision.

Infractions, often known as violations, are the least serious crimes and include minor

offenses like jaywalking and traffic offences that result in a simple traffic ticket. Fines or

alternative penalties, such as traffic school, are usually imposed for infractions.
 Despite the university's existing rules and regulations to prevent crime from happening,

violations continue to occur inside the campus in a subtle manner, and victims are sometimes

unaware of the crime because they believe it is not a significant transgression. Thus, it is with

utmost desire of the researcher to pursue this study on most common crimes inside the campus as

basis for crime prevention.

Theoretical Framework

The existence of crime may be traced back to the dawn of human civilisation. When it

comes to criminology, it has developed over time and continues to develop. A theory is an

investigation into the psychological motivations that drive someone to engage in criminal action.

There are a variety of alternative criminal behavior theories. Different ideas examine how a crime

was committed from various perspectives. Some views even claim that society is to blame for all

crimes. Let's take a look at a few of the most popular ones.

1. Classical or Traditional Theory. It is the most classical or traditional of all the theories of

criminal behavior, as the name implies. Cesare Beccaria, an Italian criminologist, came up with

this theory. Crime, according to Classical thought, arises when the danger outweighs the gain.

This notion is more akin to a risk-to-reward ratio that favors reward. Simply put, crime

occurs when the value of the reward exceeds the value of the danger involved. According to this

theory, committing a crime is a personal decision. Thus, if the crime is committed voluntarily, it

is done for personal gain and selfishness. Classical theory combines the reward and risk ratios, as

well as the effect of a selfish decision.

2. Strain Theory: Society's Involvement

 This theory is not the same as the traditional theory. While classical theory holds that crime

is undertaken voluntarily, strain theory contends that social circumstances have a significant part

in every crime committed. In the 1930s, an American sociologist named Robert King Merton

devised the strain hypothesis.

Albert Cohen, a criminologist by training, contributed to the development of this idea.

Later on, two other sociologists from America, Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin, contributed to

this theory. A variety of factors are thought to play a role in the prevalence of crime. Failure, a loss

of social dignity, inequality, unequal wealth distribution, and a variety of other social issues are

examples of these factors.

Robert Agnew, an American criminologist, reformulated the inputs supplied by many

sociologists and criminologists under this paradigm. In this section, he discusses the importance

of emotion in considering a crime in the context of strain theory.

3. Social control or Power control theory: The right governance leads to less crime.

This hypothesis was created by John Hagan, a professor at Northwestern University. His

teaching specialization is law and sociology. Gender is a major issue on the table, according to his

theory. This might also be considered one of the most current criminal behavior hypotheses. The

evolution and inputs of the power control theory are still present. Another part of this argument is

that society, which includes people of all genders, is accountable for crime prevention. This idea

also claims that if there were no governance or legal authorities, criminal activity would be at its

peak.

4. Routine activity theory: Completion of a desire through crime

 This theory is linked to power or social control theory in one way or another. The societal

routine is one of the primary components of the routine activity theory. Other essential components

include achieving a desire through crime and less effective deterrents or rules.

According to this view, crime is sparked by a 'desire' that arises from a disruption in routine.

Because humans cannot cope with the break in habit, they resort to immoral behavior. When the

authority in power fails to effectively control exposure to new circumstances, a crime occurs. This

theory was discovered by Lawrence E. Cohen and Marcus Felson. Their explanation was from the

period of 1947 to 1974 in the United States.

5. Critical theory: Relevance to the current societal composition of America

This viewpoint contends that democracy, while useful, is also unbalanced. For example,

according to this notion, the number of persons who formulate, enforce, and protect laws is fairly

small. On the other hand, the people who are required to follow those laws are far more numerous.

As a result, crime exists because those who commit criminal actions do not struggle with

the law, but rather with the legislators. Jürgen Habermas, a German sociologist and philosopher,

coined the term "critical theory." The logic underpinning critical theory is that capitalism creates

an environment that gives powerful people an edge. It is easier for persons with power to commit

crimes since they have sway over legislators.

6. Rational Choice Theory: A further improvement in the ideas of classical ideas

This idea has some similarities to classical theory and dates back to the 18th century.

Experts in the field of chronology, on the other hand, consider that rational choice is a

continuation of classical theory. To put it another way, the rational choice theory rationalizes

crime.
 This theory, like the classical theory, takes into account the risk and reward factors.

Further, according to this view, time is a significant component in the occurrence of crime. For

example, if the penalty for a crime is applied at a later date, the crime is less dangerous. The

penalty, on the other hand, would appear to be more deserving if it were implemented promptly.

7. Social Disorganization theory: Inefficient organizing leads to crime

In comparison to other theories of criminal conduct, this one is fairly basic. As the name

of the theory implies, social disorganization is all about crime in disorganized towns or cities. It is

fair to argue that the social disorganization theory arose as a result of this process.

This theory's conclusion is relevant to other criminology ideas. In particular, references to

rational, power, and social control theories can be seen in its explanation. This hypothesis

maintains that if no preventative measures are done, crime will continue to increase.

8. Positivist Theory: A contradiction towards a rational theory

Public executions were carried out during the eighteenth century. The goal was to instill

terror in people that they would be publicly punished. Fear served as a warning to people about

their behavior. However, as time went on, the concepts of punishment for criminal actions

continued to alter.

The positivity theory arose as a result of an external factor's evolution. Cesare Lombroso

is a well-known criminologist who believes in this notion. He was the one who went for the

criminal's bodily perception. Lombroso pioneered the idea of discriminating between distinct types

of offenders. That is how the terms criminal by birth and criminaloid were coined.

9. Labeling Theory: Unnerving but straight and to the point

This hypothesis states that when a person is classified as a criminal, his or her chances of

engaging in criminal activity increase. In other words, if a person is penalized for a crime and
hence identified as a criminal, he becomes even worse. The entire perspective alters to feel that

committing crimes is fine now that he or she is a criminal.

10. Life Course Theory: Events from lives shapes the crime

This theory is based on a criminal's life events. There are two primary events in this theory,

namely trajectory and transitory. Events produce a stepping stone that leads to crime, where

transitory means short term and trajectory indicates long term.

It is vital to understand the causes of crime in order to comprehend crime. Nobody is born

a criminal. Changes in a person's life shape him into who he is.

The ten theories of criminal behavior listed above explain why people commit crimes.

Knowing them may enable us to prevent them from harming society.

Conceptual Framework

Unlike torts, crime is not just a wrong against an individual but is also a wrong committed

against the society or a public wrong and includes acts like murder, rape and theft to mention a

few. It is not a case of differences between two parties but is a case between the wrongdoer and

the state. The definition of the concept of crime is important; of course, because of the types of

questions it directs attention to and the order of phenomena it leads one to investigate. A definition

of crime establishes the subject matter of the discipline of criminology and sets limits on what is

to be considered criminological work. Therefore, a humanistic criminology can only be developed

if an appropriately humanistic definition of crime is used as its initial point of departure. The most

commonly accepted definition of crime is ‘an act that is capable of being followed by criminal

proceedings’, which provides us with a wide classification of the term in that the only common

element of crime is that previous legal proceedings have outlined it as such.

 The idea of the need for punishment is a common element to defining crime; however it

may also include any action or omission which causes harm to person or property or in any way

violates the criminal law. The concept of crime often, but not necessarily, involves violation of

moral codes followed by some level of social disapproval but is it important to recognize that not

all crimes are disapproved of by all people.

It is possible to determine four main frameworks in which it is possible to make sense of

the ways crime can be defined, although each demonstrates noticeable difficulties associated with

defining the concept of crime. The first of these is crime as a social construction; this poses a

difficulty for creating a general definition of crime as it varies across cultures. The second

framework is crime as defined by religious doctrine or authority; within this context there is both

a conflict between what would be considered a crime by society and religion but also between

religions themselves. Although less prominent in modern day society, a crime can be defined as

an action that goes against the law of God. Sharia Law in Middle East is one such example. In

Saudi Arabia, even in this day and age, a woman driving is a crime and even though this law is

absurd, that is the law. Honor killings and domestic abuse are examples of behavior, which may

be sanctioned within a particular religion but would disagree with basic state law, most commonly

in westernized societies.

Crime can also be understood as a reflection of the law of a particular nation-state; an act

can only be defined as criminal in accordance to the laws of the state in which it was committed.

This creates a difficulty in defining crime as what may be considered a criminal action in one state

or country may not be viewed the same way in another.

Finally, more recently, concepts of crime have emerged that are formed beyond the

constraints of specific nation-state laws from general social and political theory. In most western
societies, crime is of individualistic responsibility and so places blame on individuals rather than

the systems they are contained within. However, by viewing crime in relation to social and political

theory it is possible to look at the causes of a person’s behavior, which may render them

irresponsible for their actions, and also to define actions as crimes, which may not be considered

so within the society itself. For example, during the reign of Hitler in Nazi Germany, the systematic

slaughter of the Jewish race was not considered criminal; however, when viewed in retrospect, the

Holocaust is considered to be the ‘greatest crime in history’. Regardless of German legislature at

the time, it is widely agreed that the Holocaust was criminal, however, when it came to trial, only

a small number of officers were named as personally responsible. This is because it was decided

that many of those involved could not be charged as they were simply following the instructions

issued to them by their superiors and so did not willingly commit the crimes. Here we can see

another difficulty emerging which affects the definition of crime, which goes beyond the action

itself and looks at the situation and individuals involved.

In conclusion, looking at the above 4 frameworks and examples of Saudi Arabia, Honor

Killings, Domestic Abuse and the Holocaust, we understand that the content of crime changes

along with time and the changing needs of the society. Not only that, it changes from society to

society. In India, a woman driving is something that is not frowned upon whereas; in Saudi Arabia

women driving is a crime. Even within the country of India we can see laws changing from state

to state for example selling liquor in Maharashtra is legal whereas is a crime in Gujarat. Kerela has

no restrictions on cow slaughter but cow slaughter in Andhra Pradesh and Telengana is a crime.

Overall, it can be argued that no action in itself is criminal; it is the consequences that

follow which define it as being so. An act cannot be classed, as a crime until the offender is caught

and punished, in the absence of a public authority to do so, there is no crime. From this we can see
that there exist great difficulties associated with defining the concept of crime ranging from social

and historical context to individual and personal circumstances. It is unlikely that a general

definition of crime that would satisfy all possible elements of crime in all environments is

reachable and so it is important to take into account such specific details when attempting to create

a more specific, socially and historically bound definition of what constitutes a crime. Thus, there

cannot be a scientific definition of crime and only its content can be described.

Figure 1 shows the schematic diagram of the study. As shown, Common crimes happens

inside the school campus, Jose Rizal Memorial State University ad these crimes are directed to

Basis for Crime Prevention Program within the university. This looks like a cycle of events and

processes inside the school.

Common Crimes Basis for Crime

Inside the School Prevention
Campus Program

Jose Rizal Memorial State University, Dapitan City

Figure 1. Schema of the Study

Statement of the Problem

This study aims to find out the Most Common Crimes Inside the School Campus as Basis

for Crime Prevention.

 Specifically, it will be sought to answer the following questions:

1. What are the common crimes inside the school campus?

2. Which among the common crime is most prevalent and least prevalent?

3. What are the existing rules and regulations inside the school campus?

4. What can be proposed to mitigate the common crimes inside the school campus as basis

for crime prevention?

Significance of the Study

The findings of the study can be utilized by different sectors, especially fishery sectors in

formulating programs pertaining to issues related to aquatic resources.

Philippine National Police (PNP). Results of this study will help Police Officers to

formulate sustainable programs on crime prevention especially most common crimes occurring in

the city.

Guidance Councilor. Findings of this study will help guidance councilor inside the school

campuses in ratifying their existing school rules and regulations in order to maintain peace and

order inside the school campuses.

School Administrators. Through this study, administrators will be able to collaborate with

other school personnel and/or staff and come up with simple attainable planning to prevent crime

to happen in school campus, and if not, diminished.

Supreme Student Government. Findings of this research will help SSG officers together

with SSG adviser to propose intervention to students in order for them to enjoy eventually make

them forget to do things wrong and to impose penalties to those violators.

Future Researchers. The findings of this study will serve as reference to those who will

attempt to study related to most common crimes inside the school campus.
Scope and Delimitations

This study is limited itself on the current most common crimes inside the school campus

of Jose Rizal Memorial State University Dapitan City for the year 2021-2022.

Definition of Terms

Campus. It refers to the ground and buildings of a school, college or university.

Crimes. It refers to an action or omission that constitutes an offense that may be prosecuted

by the state and is punishable by law:

Offense. In this study, it pertains to a violation committed by the students against school

rules and regulations promulgated by the SSG with corresponding punishment.

Violence. This refers to behavior of an individual student involving physical force

intended to hurt, damage, or kill someone or something.

 Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents and discusses the methodology of the study which includes the

methods used, research environment, respondents of the study, research tool, data gathering

procedure, and statistical treatment of the data.

Methods Used

A survey shall be employed for exploring the most common crimes inside Jose Rizal

Memorial State University, Dapitan City as basis for crime prevention.

Research Locale

This study will be conducted at Jose Rizal Memorial State University, Dapitan City, Main

Campus.

Respondents of the Study

The respondents of this study will be the . . .

Research Tool

The main instrument of this study will be questionnaires made by the researcher in order

to explore the most common crime inside the school campus of Jose Rizal Memorial State

University, Dapitan City. The questionnaire is composed only of two parts. First part comprises

the personal information of the respondents, second part composed of questions relating to crimes

inside the university.

Data Gathering Procedure

Data Analysis

References:

1. University Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster retrieved March 8, 2022

2. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/school retrieved March 8, 2022

3. https://www.airtract.com/article/10-Theories-of-criminal-behavior retrieved March 8, 2022

4. http://www.legalservicesindia.com/article/2456/Concept-of-

Crime.html#:~:text=The%20Concept%20of%20Crime%20Unlike%20torts%2C%20crime%

20is,a%20case%20between%20the%20wrongdoer%20and%20the%20state retrieved March

10, 2022

5. The current investigation used data from “The Campus Safety and Security Data” webpage

(http://ope.ed.gov/campussafety/#/) managed by the federal government.