NatCen Morrell, Scott, McNeish, Webster (2011)

• a study into the August riots in England.
• Background

  riots took place in London from 6th August to 11th August 2011. It started during a peaceful protest in response to the fatal shooting of Mark Duggan by the police.
• Tottenham Riots: 


  has a history of riots – 1985 a protest started outside a police station following the death of a local women who collapsed during a raid on her home. This became violent and a police officer was killed. There is a deeply ingrained mistrust of the police.
• Tottenham is an area of high unemployment, 48% of children are classified as living in poverty.
• People viewed the future as hopeless for young people due to very few opportunities. But it was still viewed as good place to live and there was a sense of belonging among the various different communities.
• Education was improving but this didn’t help people who had already left education.
• Aim

  the aim of the study/report was to investigate what had triggered the August 2011 riots and the extent and nature of the youth involvement.
• Hypothesis

  Morrell et al., wanted to know why young people got involved in the riots. They did not have specific hypotheses but the report was broken down into three sections (1) what occurred in Tottenham based on police, media and eyewitness reports, (2) who was involved, (3) why and how young people were involved.
• Method

  this report was prepared for the Cabinet Office by Morrell et al. on behalf of the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen).
• Sample

  in Tottenham 36 participants (18 under and 18 over) were interviewed who were mixed genders, ethnicities and work status – a vast majority were still in education.
• Procedure

  data gathered 5 weeks after the riots, they gained fully informed consent and the participants were assured that the research was confidential and anonymous. The researcher agreed not to report any criminal activity they did however explain that they would have to report any details to potential future criminal activity (if they had plans to commit further crime). Participants were interviewed individually or in groups of two or four. Community stakeholders and participants from the areas unaffected by the riots were interviewed in focus groups.
• What happened in Tottenham?

  There was an alleged incident between the police and a girl, this incident was described as the trigger for the peaceful protest becoming violent by participants.
• 16:00 – Family and friends of Mark Duggan gather outside Tottenham police station. The protest is peaceful and around 300 people join the demonstration.                                                                 
• 19:20 – Bottles are thrown at police cars near the police station and one of the vehicles is set alight            
• 20:20 -  Riot officers and police on horseback arrive to disperse the crowds but are attacked by protesters using bottles, fireworks and other missiles.                                                                          
• 20:45 –The London Fire Brigade receives its first call to attend                                                                 
• 22:45 – Shops are set alight.
• The rioting continued until 06:15am on August 7th and by 12:00pm the fire brigade had the fires under control.
• Watchers: young people present during the incidents and observed what happened but did not personally become involved in the criminal activity.
• Bystanders – people who happened to be there (passing through or lived locally) and the curious – people deliberately choosing to be there so they could see what was going on.               
• Rioters: young people who were actually involved in violent disturbances and vandalism
• Protestors (acting out because they were upset about the death of Mark Duggan)
• Retaliators (acted to get their own back on the system or police)
• Thrill-seekers (got involved because they enjoyed the excitement or the buzz).                                            
• Looters: breaking into shops, stealing from broken-into shops or stealing foods that had been left on the street.
• Opportunists (people who saw the chance to steal things for themselves or their family, or to sell)
• Sellers (people who planned their involvement to maximise their profits). 
• Non-involved: young people who did not take part. Stay-away (young people who choose not to get involved or observe)
• Wannabes (people who weren’t there but would have linked to have been).
• Who was involved?

  The interview data proposed that a wide range of different people were involved in the riots, different age groups, ethnicities and people who were employed, unemployed or still in education or training. The researchers used the data to create different categories of involvement in the riots. Some were both rioters and looters.                                                                                          
• Why did people get involved (or not)?

  Key motivations were found to be benefiting from an exciting experience, having the opportunity to acquire items without paying, either to keep or to sell for profit, and getting back at police.
• The young people identified different factors that influenced their involvement in the riots
• Nudge Factors

  encouraged those to get involved     
• Tug Factors

  discouraged them from getting involved  
• Nudge and Tug factors

  
• Result Summary

  it was a day like no other for people involved, normal rules did not seem to apply. Decisions about whether to get involved were based on what the young people though was right or wrong and whether they thought the benefits outweigh the risks.
• Conclusions 


  Anti-social criminal behaviour is influenced by collective behaviour/group processes, dispositional factors, what young people believe to be right and wrong, and an individual’s assessment of the risks and benefits of involvement.