The public and the crime rates in the Czech Republic: Trends of development.

The author considers his own concept of the "patient society" in relation t o the development in the CR after 1989. After first wave of crime rates inc rease (index 3.3) and after short term period (1994-1996) of stabilisation, last year there was a 5% rise in crime. However the level of fear of crime remained unchanged. The problem of crime continues to top the ladder of pe rceived contemporary problems, but the weight attached to economic factors in the context of economic recession is increasing. The trust in institutio ns continues to be among the stabilising elements, and there have been no s triking changes in the area of punitive or xenophobic attitudes. Public sat isfaction with the work of the police has even slightly increased. More sig nificant social differentiation in attitudes to crime and trust in institut ions have been identified: both trust and willingness to co-operate with th e police, for example, correlating positively with social status. Research on victimisation confirms its growth among the highest social strata as wel l as a slight increase among the lowest strata (the average for the whole p opulation is roughly 30% victims of crime over the year). The most interest ing finding is bright difference in level of fear related to place of resid ence. While fear of crime is naturally higher in the large towns, the patte rn is different in Prague. The inhabitants of Prague have currently adapted to their clearly higher level of crime and that a kind of more general tre nd, the effect of "risk normalisation" is at work there. The deepening soci al differentiation of society in relation to the phenomenon of crime is beg inning to be reflected in the attitudes of youth and is making it essential to consider the question of more comprehensive and multifactorial sociolog ical analysis and explanation. The respondents from the survey of the Czech population cited (1998, N=1719 ), expressed the greatest fear of economic (property) crime, and in doing s o were reacting relatively realistically. Nevertheless, the "realism" of th e public opinion ought not to be regarded as the main criterion for the eva luation of practical policies. The results confirm the plausibility of Mert on's concept of anomie (in the respect of relative social deprivation), and one cannot therefore rule out the shift of a previously stabilised and pat ient Czech public to reactions that might be described as "intimidated", "s tressed". or even "wild".