broken windows theory

noun

variants or less commonly broken window theory or broken-windows theory or broken-window theory

: a theory in criminology that connects small unaddressed signs of usually urban disorder and neglect (such as graffiti, litter, or vandalism) with subsequent more serious crimes and decay

The "broken windows" theory holds that serious crime becomes likelier in environments where petty offences are tolerated.

—Paul Maley

Believing in the broken window theory that posits one broken window can lead to more blight, he bought homes around El Taco Real to control the immediate neighborhood.

—Joseph S. Pete

Philip Zimbardo, a Stanford psychologist, reported in 1969 on some experiments testing the broken-window theory.

—James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling

He emphasized the broken-windows theory of police work: that criminals who commit small crimes, such as vandalism, also commit more serious crimes.

—The Associated Press

broadly : the notion that minor uncleanliness, incivility, and disorder contribute to substantial disorder, dysfunction and havoc

… one can infer a broken windows theory of civility: sweatpants and T-shirts, combined with run-of-the-mill rampant discourtesy, give rise to passenger behavior like … punching, slapping, kicking, and, in one particularly odious instance, someone dragging their bare toe across the video touch screen embedded in the plane's seat back.

—Nicholas Spangler

Word History

Etymology

Note: The hypothesis was presented by the American criminologist George L. Kelling (1935-2019) and the American political scientist James Q. Wilson (1931-2012) in the article "Broken Windows: The Police and Neighborhood Safety," published in The Atlantic (March, 1982).

First Known Use

1982, in the meaning defined above