https://imcjms.com/public Ibrahim Medical College Journal of Medical Science https://imcjms.com/public/registration/journal_full_text/202 Sun, 30 Apr 2017 14:51:02 +0000 British Crime Survey (2009/10) reported that violence against girls and women are becoming a common hidden crime in UK.1 At least 1 in 4 women in the UK experienced domestic abuse in their lifetime; almost 1 in 5 women are likely to experience sexual assault in their lifetime. It is estimated that about 66,000 women in England and Wales have had female genitals mutilated (FGM) and 100-140 million women have undergone FGM worldwide. The Bureau of US Statistics (1998) reported – “just over 1,800 murders were attributable to intimates in 1996; nearly 3 out of 4 of these had a female victim; in 1976 there were nearly 3,000 victims of intimate murder”.2 Overall, 65 percent of all intimate murders were committed with a firearm. In 1996, women in the USA experienced an estimated 840,000 rapes, sexual assault, robbery and aggravated assault.2 The declining trend of SC in the USA over the last four decades resulted in a fundamental shift in: a) Political and civic engagement: Voting, political knowledge, political trust, and grassroots political activism are all down.3,4 Americans sign 30 per cent fewer petitions and are 40 per cent less likely to join a procession of protest, as compared to just 3 to 4 decades ago. The declines are in community life: membership and activity in all sorts of local clubs, civic and voluntary organizations have been falling at an accelerating pace. In the mid-1970s the average American attended some club meeting every month, by 1998 that rate of attendance had been cut by nearly 60 per cent. b) Informal social ties: In 1975 the average American entertained friends at home 15 times per year; the equivalent figure (1998) is barely half that. Virtually all leisure activities that involve doing something with someone else, from playing volleyball to playing chamber music, are declining. c) Tolerance and trust: Americans trust one another less now than in the past. Survey data provide, for example, employment opportunities for police, lawyers, and security personnel were stagnant in the past - had fewer lawyers per capita in 1970 than in 1900. But in the last quarter century with the erosion of SC and trust these occupations have boomed, as people have increasingly turned to the courts and the police.4,5 The elements of SC are bonding, bridging, and linking characterized by strong ties within a network that strengthen common identities and functions as a source of help and support among members, ties that link people from different networks together and become important sources of information and ties between people in different hierarchies. Studies have found that walking, cycling, public transport sharing, friendly neighborhoods can help create more SC through enhanced levels of community and social engagement and social relationships. Improved social life would provide more local schools, parks, play ground or other places where people interact and provide gathering spots for teens and the elderly. The poor quality of relationships between teens and elderly predict poor future health, both physical and mental. Lack of care, support and warmth, and conflict, over-control and inappropriate discipline appear to be detrimental to health. The impact of poor social relationships could be demonstrated on health, symptoms of common health problems, mental health and specific diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, musculoskeletal problems, depression and attempted suicide. Child development is powerfully shaped by rich SC. Trust, networks, and norms of reciprocity within a child’s family, school, peer group, and larger community have far reaching effects on their opportunities and choices, educational achievement, and hence on their behavior and development. People are friendlier, and the streets are safer. Places have higher crime rates in large part because people don’t participate in community organizations, don’t supervise younger people, and are not linked through networks of friends. Regular club attendance, volunteering, entertaining, or attending cultural or traditional or national festivals is the happiness equivalent of getting a college degree or more than doubling one’s income. The SC becomes mentors helping our children to become compassionate, courageous, respectful, confident and purposeful. The greatest gift SC can give our children is the authentic self-esteem that comes from developing their virtues — becoming contributors rather than consumers. To reduce the prevalence of DSMH and crimes the world needs people willing to volunteer community responsibility with the maxim – “think together and work together, share miseries and happiness together”.   Professor, Department of Community Medicine   Source information 2.   U.S. Department of Justice, Prevalence, Incidence, and Consequences of Violence against Women: Findings from the National Violence against Women Survey, November 1998. 4.   Putnam RD. Bowling Alone: The collapse and revival of American community, New York: Simon and Schuster 2000; 288-290. 2026 Ibrahim Medical College. All rights reserved.