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Crime and Delinquency in Haiti: a Study of Crime in a Developing Country

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Crime and Delinquency in Haiti: a Study of Crime in a Developing Country Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College 6-1988 Crime and Delinquency in Haiti: A Study of Crime in a Developing Country Gerard Mauze Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses Part of the Criminology Commons Recommended Citation Mauze, Gerard, "Crime and Delinquency in Haiti: A Study of Crime in a Developing Country" (1988). Master's Theses. 1137. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/1137 This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. CRIME AND DELINQUENCY IN HAITI: A STUDY OF CRIME IN A DEVELOPING COUNTRY by / , / Gerard Mauze, Jr. A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Department of Sociology Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan June 1988 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CRIME AND DELINQUENCY IN HAITI*. A STUDY OF CRIME IN A DEVELOPING COUNTRY Gerard Mauze', Jr., M.A. Western Michigan University, 1988 The primary intent of this study was an attempt at describing, understanding and analyzing the most common types, incidences and forces that produce crime and delinquency in Haiti. A secondary concern of this work was to do the ground work which would enable the formulation of testable hypotheses about the causes of crime and delinquency in Haiti. Even though a number of developing nations face a rapid growth in their crime and delinquency rates, Haiti appears to maintain a relatively low crime rate. The law-abiding behavior of Haitian youths is due to a number of factors: (a) the strong family ties and dependence on the extended family for the upbringing of the children, (b) strong belief in religion, and (c) a system of informal social control. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Now that the writing is done I am faced with a task which I fulfill with pleasure, but find by no means easy. I wish to acknowledge with thanks the help of those without whom I would not have undertaken, let alone finish this task. "Crime and Delinquency in Haiti: A Study of Crime in a Developing Country" is a product of gregarious, face-to- face and mind-to-mind contact with numerous individuals, so many in fact, in so many different universities, research institutes and offices that it would be impossible for me to list them all. The support and encouragement of some of them, however, should not go unrecognized because they stand out as major guideposts along the way. First, a special thank you goes to my major professor, Dr. Paul C. Friday, for his time, counsel and guidance. His encouragement and criticism have left me deeply indebted to him. I owe him much more than he suspects. I also acknowledge Professors Lewis Walker and Thomas Van Valey who have greatly improved the study by their constructive, theoretical, and methodological suggestions ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. which provided insight and clarity. Additional appreciation must be given to: Millery Mauze, Yves Delbeau, and Lucienne St. Lot whose knowledge of Haitian society were invaluable. Renee Skeete-Hutchinson who has been so diligent in typing the various drafts of the thesis. Also my parents, Gerard and Nirva Mauze, who have been a constant source of encouragement and inspiration throughout the years of my education, I want to express my sincere gratitude. Finally, to my wife Darlene, my children Jeanel and Jihane, who have been faithful witnesses of my nights of vigil and meditation, to them, I dedicate this work. ✓ / Gerard Mauze, Jr. iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. INFORMATION TO USERS This reproduction was made from a copy of a document sent to us for microfilming. While the most advanced technology has been used to photograph and reproduce this document, the quality of the reproduction is heavily dependent upon the quality of the material submitted. The following explanation of techniques is provided to help clarify markings or notations which may appear on this reproduction. 1.The sign or “target” for pages apparently lacking from the document photographed is “Missing Page(s)”. If it was possible to obtain the missing page(s) or section, they are spliced into the film along with adjacent pages. This may have necessitated cutting through an image and duplicating adjacent pages to assure complete continuity. 2. When an image on the film is obliterated with a round black mark, it is an indication of either blurred copy because of movement during exposure, duplicate copy, or copyrighted materials that should not have been filmed. For blurred pages, a good image of the page can be found in the adjacent frame. If copyrighted materials were deleted, a target note will appear listing the pages in the adjacent frame. 3. When a map, drawing or chart, etc., is part of the material being photographed, a definite method of “sectioning” the material has been followed. It is customary to begin filming at the upper left hand comer of a large sheet and to continue from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. If necessary, sectioning is continued again—beginning below the first row and continuing on until complete. 4. For illustrations that cannot be satisfactorily reproduced by xerographic means, photographic prints can be purchased at additional cost and inserted into your xerographic copy. These prints are available upon request from the Dissertations Customer Services Department. 5. Some pages in any document may have indistinct print. In all cases the best available copy has been filmed. University Microfilms International 300 N. Zeeb Road Ann Arbor. Ml 48106 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Order Number 1334708 Crime and delinquency in Haiti: A study of crime in a developing country Mauze, Gerard, Jr., M.A. Western Michigan University, 1988 U MI 300 N. ZeebRd. Ann Arbor, MI 48106 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PLEASE NOTE: In all cases this material has been filmed in the best possible way from the available copy. Problems encountered with this document have been identified here with a check mark V . 1. Glossy photographs or pages_____ 2. Colored illustrations, paper or print______ 3. Photographs with dark background_____ 4. Illustrations are poor copy______ 5. Pages with black marks, not original copy 6. Print shows through as there is text on both sides of page______ 7. Indistinct, broken or small print on several pages t / 8. Print exceeds margin requirements______ 9. Tightly bound copy with print lost in spine_______ 10. Computer printout pages with indistinct print______ 11. Page(s)___________ lacking when material received, and not available from school or author. 12. Page(s) seem to be missing in numbering only as text follows. 13. Two pages numbered . Text follows. 14. Curling and wrinkled pages______ 15. Dissertation contains pages with print at a slant, filmed as received ^ 16. Other_______________________________________________________ Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS..................................... ii LIST OF TABLES ....................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES ....................................... viii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION................... .•.......... 1 Statement of the Problem ............... 1 Goal of the Study ........................ 6 Limitations of the Study ............... 8 Review of Related Literature ........... 10 Deviance in C u b a ...................... 20 Urbanization and Crime ............... 25 Crime Problem in N i g e r i a ............. 36 Research in Haiti ........................ 40 Some Conclusions ........................ 46 II. THE SOCIOGRAPHY OF HAITI ................... 49 Introduction ............................ 49 Area, Geography, and C l i m a t e ........... 49 Origin of the Population ............... 52 H i s t o r y ................................... 54 Demographic Make-Up ...................... 56 L a n g u a g e ................................ 62 Social Structure and Social Stratification .......................... 64 iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Table of Contents— Continued CHAPTER Upper C l a s s .......................... 67 Middle Stratum ........................ 71 Urban Lower C l a s s ................... 73 P e a s a n t s .............................. 75 R e l i g i o n ................................ 79 Roman Catholicism ................... 79 Protestantism ........................ 82 V o o d o o i s m ...........................
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