Summary
Policies seeking to control anti-social behaviour (ASB) have received considerableattention in the U.K. for over a decade. In 1998 the British government introduced Anti-SocialBehaviour Orders (ASBOs), civil orders designed to prevent ASB and provide localcommunities with an enforcement alternative outside of those provided by the criminal justicesystem. While extensive research has been conducted on the application and administration ofASBOs, there has been very little empirical investigation into their overall effectiveness.Utilizing official government statistics and survey data from the Crime Survey for England andWales, this study explores the relationship between ASBOs and levels of ASB over a seven yearperiod. The results reveal no meaningful association between the two variables. These findingssupplement existing research which suggests that ASBOs, rather than fulfilling their originalmandate to prevent and reduce ASB, instead act as exclusionary measures that furthercriminalize vulnerable and marginalized populations.