ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a number of theories of crime prevention drawing on the paradigm of Crime Science. Each theory is introduced in a way that highlights its importance for rural studies, particularly on crime, perceived safety, and crime prevention. The chapter highlights the focus of criminology on certain theories that neglect the nature of rural areas. It also discusses how rural change has affected victimization and perceived safety. Rural crime includes farm crime, such as theft of tractors or cattle, often property crimes against the unit of production, but also acts that cause harm to nature or wildlife, also called environmental crimes. A few definitions of harm are “physical or psychological injury or damage,” “wrongdoing, evil,” and “to injure physically, morally, or mentally” someone and something. A range of factors can influence victimization and fear of crime, including age, gender, ethnicity, economics, behavior, culture, and self-identity.
