Felson sees both criminals and victims as creatures of habit, going about 'routine activities'.
Crime occurs when victims and offenders converge in the absence of a guardian or intimate handier.
Crime can be prevented by keeping potential offenders and potential victims apart. Both committees stressed the importance of improving the physical and social environments of major cities, particularly in depressed neighbourhoods with high immigrant populations, poor schools, high unemployment rates and poor housing conditions. While a large number of the committee's recommendations were aimed at discouraging or controlling criminal behaviour, many were also concerned with housing policies and with protecting valuable sections of the population. The recommendations were designed to encourage social harmony in the cities, communal life, and support for victims, the young and social outcasts. They were also intended to reduce tensions between races and generations by promoting cultural pluralism and encouraging people to participate in the life and decision-making of their community.