What is anti-social behaviour? An empirical study of the impact of age on interpretations

Abstract

Anti-social behaviour' (ASB) has become an important political and social issue across Europe over the last two decades, despite much debate over the term itself. In England and Wales there is an assumption that what constitutes ASB is 'common sense' and that it represents behaviours that are 'patently unacceptable'. Yet critics argue that the term is 'slippery' and, in practice, disproportionately applied to specific groups in society, including young people. This article reports the findings of a study in Greater London exploring interpretations of ASB among adults and young people. It shows that interpretations vary according to the age of the person identifying the behaviour, as well as the age of the perceived 'victim' and 'perpetrator'. Adults are more likely to interpret behaviours as anti-social, particularly those associated with young people. The article considers how perceptions of risk influence interpretations and calls for greater intergenerational 'connectedness' to improve understandings of behaviour between adults and young people.

Refashioning vagrancy: a tale of Law's narrative of its imagination

“…ASBOs cover any type of behaviour considered ‘anti-social’ of which there appear to be three kinds: (i) interpersonal or malicious conduct, for example, threatening one's neighbour; (ii) environmental conduct, such as excessive noise or graffiti; and (iii) problematic behaviour while in public, such as panhandling aggressively (see Millie, 2008, pp. 1682–1684; Hulley, 2014). Unlike in North America, however, it is important to note that English law still regulates vagrancy – many thanks are owed to the reviewer who brought this to my attention.…”