Direction for Improving Residential Satisfaction through Mandatory CPTED-Related Ordinances

While residential satisfaction is considered a key factor in determining life satisfaction, the recent rise in violent crime is undermining residential satisfaction. Efforts to design safe residential environments through Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) are actively underway both domestically and internationally. However, in Korea, local governments differ in the implementation of ordinances to create safe residential environments through CPTED. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the impact of CPTED-related ordinances on crime incidence. The data used for this analysis were collected from three organizations in Seoul between 2014 and 2023. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency collected data on the occurrence of the five major crimes and the number of police officers by autonomous district. Statistics Korea collected data on annual population changes in autonomous districts in Seoul. The Ministry of Government Legislation collected data on the status of CPTED ordinances by autonomous district. Based on this data, each autonomous district was categorized into “no ordinance, recommended ordinance, and mandatory ordinance.” The collected data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA. The study found that districts without ordinances had significantly higher crime rates relative to their population and police force than districts with ordinances (recommended or mandatory). These results suggest that at least a level higher than the recommended ordinance is necessary. However, recommended ordinances have limited effectiveness, so the stability of the system should be strengthened by making them mandatory in the future.