| In recent years the phenomenon of 'senseless'violence has become a major concern in The Netherlands. The Current discussion centers around the question whether this type of violence is increasing, both in frequency and seriousness. Information sources show varying patterns. Equally problematic is the fact that the definitions of concepts such as 'senseless violence' and 'street violence' differ significantly. Do we actually know what we are talking about when we are disucssing the issue of 'senseless' violence? And what do we know about what drives the perpetrators to this sort of behavior? In response to a request of the Dutch government, the Research and Documentation Centre of the Department of Justice, together with the University of Groningen and privately-owned Beke Research Group recently published the first results of a study of street violence. Street violence was defined as physical violence aimed against persons and committed outdoors in a public arena. It is restricted to violence between strangers. Police reports from two police regions on incidents of violence in 1998 were used as data sources. The first findings, focusing on the nature and level of street violence, were presented to the government in December 1999. |
Updated 05/20/2006