Anti-social behaviour (ASB) has been a major preoccupation of New Labour's project of social and political renewal, with ASBOs a controversial addition to crime and disorder management powers. Thought by some to be a dangerous extension of the power to criminalise, by others as a vital dimension of local governance, there remains a concerning lack of evidence as to whether or not they compound social exclusion.
This collection, from an impressive panel of contributors, brings together opinion, commentary, research evidence, professional guidance, debate and critique in order to understand the phenomenon of anti-social behaviour. It considers the earliest available evidence in order to evaluate the Government's ASB strategy, debates contrasting definitions of anti-social behaviour and examines policy and practice issues affected by it.
Contributors ask what the recent history of ASB governance tells us about how the issue will develop to shape public and social policies in the years to come. Reflecting the perspectives of practitioners, victims and perpetrators, the book should become the standard text in the field.
Introduction: Why 'anti-social behaviour?' Debating ASBOs ~ Peter Squires; Part One: Why tackle anti-social behaviour? ~Jessica Jacobson, Andrew Millie and Mike Hough; Resilient Fabians? Anti-social behaviour and community safety work in Wales ~ Adam Edwards and Gordon Hughes; Towards a balanced and practical approach to anti-social behaviour management ~ Gillian Mayfield and Andy Mills; Lost in translation: interpreting and implementing anti-social behaviour policies ~ Roger Matthews and Daniel Briggs; Part Two: Governing through localism, contract and community: evidence from anti-social behaviour strategies in Scotland ~ Rionach Casey and John Flint; Anti-social behaviour and minority ethnic populations ~ David Prior and Basia Spalek; The ASBO and the shift to punishment ~ Elizabeth Burney; A probation officer's story ~ Mike Guilfoyle; Part Three: Rationalising family intervention projects ~ Sadie Parr and Judy Nixon; Street life, neighbourhood policing and 'the community' ~ Stephen Moore; Room for resistance? Parenting Orders, disciplinary power and the production of 'the bad parent' ~ Amanda Holt; Cameras, cops and contracts: what anti-social behaviour management feels like to young people ~ Carlie Goldsmith; 'ASBO youth': rhetoric and realities ~ Brian McIntosh; 'Binge drinking', anti-social behaviour and alcohol-related disorder: Examining the 2003 Licensing Act ~ Paul Norris and Derek Williams; The criminalisation of intoxication ~ Fiona Measham and Karenza Moore; ASBOs and working women: a new revolving door? ~ Jo Phoenix; Part Four: 'ASBOmania' ~ Shami Chakrabarti and Jago Russell; The responsibility of respecting justice: an open challenge to Tony Blair's successors ~ Dawn E Stephen; Asocial not anti-social: the 'Respect Agenda' and the 'therapeutic me' ~ Stuart Waiton; Conclusion: the future of anti-social behaviour? ~ Peter Squires.
