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Vandalism in Urban Public Telephones

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Environmental Social Psychology

Part of the book series: NATO ASI Series ((ASID,volume 45))

Abstract

This chapter analyses the causes of vandalistic behaviour in telephone boxes by a two-step Action-Research. The first step consists of systematic observation and surveys through which the behaviour and attitudes of users confronted by malfunctioning telephones is assessed. The results suggest that rough and violent handling of telephones can be explained by a lack of alternatives which cause a feeling of losing control. This hypothesis is tested in a second step, by providing the users with additional information. Results clearly show that enhancing the control of the situation by information reduces rough and violent handling of telephones.

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© 1988 Kluwer Academic Publishers

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Moser, G. (1988). Vandalism in Urban Public Telephones. In: Canter, D., Jesuino, J.C., Soczka, L., Stephenson, G.M. (eds) Environmental Social Psychology. NATO ASI Series, vol 45. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2802-2_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2802-2_6

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-7760-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-009-2802-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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