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The Defensible Space Concept

Theoretical and Operational Explication

Architectural Psychology and Environmental Services, Dublin.

Ciaran Dolphin

Irish Foundation for Human Development, Dublin.

This study develops a comprehensive operationalization of the defensible space concept (Newman, 1972). A total of 11 indicators of defensible space were developed that take the contextual reality of the person-environment relationship into account. Then 23 telephone kiosks in Dublin city, Ireland, were rated on these indicators. A SSA-1 analysis of the structure of these indicators defined two distinct environmental contexts in which kiosks were located-public and semipublic environments. Subsequent analyses of the structure of the indicators within these environments demonstrated that the meaning of indicators is inextricably bound to the environmental context of which they are part. These findings helped to clarify contradictory findings in the literature regarding the defensive role of some indicators and suggest that definition of environmental contexts is a prerequisite to prediction of crime or vandalism occurrence.

Environment and Behavior, Vol. 18, No. 3, 396-416 (1986)
DOI: 10.1177/0013916586183006


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