Impact of community gardening on neighborhood crime rates: Research proposal

Abstract

Gardening has been a part of human existence from the beginning of time, but people have become distanced from gardening as civilization has grown and urbanized. As this distance has grown, so has the disconnect between people and the basic needs which shape their views of themselves and of society. It is possible that, in the drift away from gardening as communities, humans have become less moral. The purpose of this study is to determine if community gardening lowers violent crime rates. This relationship will be gauged by answering the following questions: Which type of community gardening benefits community relationships the most? Which type of community gardening impacts crime rates the most? How can parks and recreation agencies encourage community gardening? In order to gather this information, control groups will be monitored over a 6-month growing period. These groups will consist of 3 different neighborhoods of similar economic classes and crime rates. There will be 3 levels of community gardening between these groups: no gardening, individual home gardeners, and individuals gardening on a community plot. The results of these case studies will help to determine how parks and recreation agencies can help to encourage community gardening for healthier communities