Availability and use of weapons in the neighbourhood as risk factors for criminal offending among prison inmates in Nigeria

Abeeb Olufemi Salaam

doi:10.5964/ejop.v6i4.221

Abstract

The current study recruited participants from among the prison inmates in Nigeria to determine the relative impacts of availability and use of weapons in their respective communities prior to incarceration as risk factors for criminal offending. Eight hundred and twenty one participants made up of those awaiting trial and convicts, ranging in age from 16 to 65 years (M= 30.4, SD= 7.6) were recruited through opportunistic (non probability) sampling across ten medium and maximum security prisons in Nigeria to participate in the study. Adopting the quantitative analysis, the computed outcomes predict the effects of weapon availability as potential risk factors to criminal offending among this group. The implications of the findings for crime reduction policy in targeting offenders who are at risk of committing criminal offences due to weapon availability are emphasised.

Highlights

The impact of breaking the law and the subsequent arrest and incarceration of criminals may spaw n negativ e psychological consequences in offenders, w ho must rapidly come to terms w ith the shock of prison life and deal w ith the burden of know ing that their families may be suffering both emotional and financial losses because of them (Hagan & Dinov itzer, 1999)
I t is hoped that the findings from the current study w ill hav e the potential to inform the crime reduction policy in Nigeria, by prov iding an indication of the form and size of the problem under inv estigation, in addition to policing strategies aimed at stemming the supply and use of w eaponry to perpetrate criminal/v iolent offending
The w eapon av ailability and use measure adopted in the current study demonstrated good coefficient reliability, w ith a Cronbach alpha of 0.82

Summary

Background

The impact of breaking the law and the subsequent arrest and incarceration of criminals may spaw n negativ e psychological consequences in offenders, w ho must rapidly come to terms w ith the shock of prison life and deal w ith the burden of know ing that their families may be suffering both emotional and financial losses because of them (Hagan & Dinov itzer, 1999). It can be speculated that the country‟s problems w ith small arms and w eaponry can be dated back to the 196770 civ il w ar, during w hich the southeast made a failed attempt to secede During this period, most able bodied men enlisted- either v oluntarily or by conscription into the armed forces as fighting soldiers, especially on the rebel Biafran side. Besides the civ il w ar risk phenomenon, it can be contemplated that cross border smuggling as a result of the civ il w ars in neighbouring countries like Sierra Leone and Liberia may hav e led to the proliferation of arms and w eaponry into Nigeria This is facilitated by huge cross-border smuggling and mercenary activ ities (from Chad and Niger, for example) and the country‟s long, porous borders that are poorly policed due to the inadequate resources and the lack of capacity of the security agencies (Ginifer & I smail, 2005). I t is hoped that the findings from the current study w ill hav e the potential to inform the crime reduction policy in Nigeria, by prov iding an indication of the form and size of the problem under inv estigation, in addition to policing strategies aimed at stemming the supply and use of w eaponry to perpetrate criminal/v iolent offending

Ethical considerations

Findings

Discussion of major findings