New figures released by the Crime Survey of England and Wales have found reports of vandalism have reduced by 37% since March 2007.
In Scotland the numbers are also down 21% since 2008/09 according to the Scottish Crime Survey[1]. Acts of vandalism, including arson, graffiti and broken windows have decreased and some commentators believe that this is due to the rise in the popularity of smartphones, which came to the market in 2006/07.
Kito, a 30-year-old Camden youth worker said: “There are so many things for kids now, why waste their time vandalising when they could be on their BB [Blackberry] talking to girls or on YouTube putting up their music videos? They have got a lot of things to keep them occupied.”
Ofcom research found that teenagers are spending less time socialising and more time at home on their computer or smartphone. According to the research, the average 11- to 14-year-old spends 13 hours a week playing computer games and that doesn’t leave a lot of time for much else.
The decrease in vandalism is undoubtedly a good thing but do young people understand the damage that could come from announcing their opinions on social media? In 2012, 653 people were charged for crimes relating to their social media activities[2] and although a comment could be flippant, it could lead to some serious consequences.
Vandalism is often used to make a statement to the local community but social media provides a platform for young people to air their grievances to a larger audience. With Facebook and Twitter teenagers can announce their opinions and passions and they won’t be removed or repaired the next day like graffitied walls or smashed up bus shelters.
Kito continued: “Vandalising and spraying – the local council will just come and take it off. They will wash it off. So you put it up, they wash it off, you put it up. But if you put it up on your BB it’s yours, it’s your personal message and nobody bothers you.”
Many young people now see vandalism as a pointless activity with one teenager from Queen’s Crescent Youth Club in Camden saying: “If I get angry about something, I go on Facebook.”
It’s great that young people feel like that have a place where they can talk about their thoughts, but they must be sensible about the opinions they share with the whole World Wide Web.