[A Sip of Books] A Crime Record of 30 Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Some sentences encapsulate the entire content of the book itself, while others instantly reach the reader’s heart, creating a connection with the book. We present meaningful sentences excerpted from the book. - Editor’s note

South Korea’s first criminology PhD monitors crimes that occurred during the 30 months of the COVID-19 pandemic alongside active police officers, seeking answers on how to understand and prevent crime during the pandemic.

According to various statistics and data, incarceration rates and crime rates are not significantly related. If incarceration rates could lower crime rates, meaning that crime could be suppressed through imprisonment, then the United States, which has the highest incarceration rate in the world, should have the lowest crime rate. However, the reality is quite the opposite. In fact, incarceration (the compulsory measure of restricting physical freedom by detaining suspects in detention centers or prisons) can reduce some property crimes but has no effect on violent crimes. In some cases, a high incarceration rate has even led to an increase in crime rates.

- From page 56

These days, I believe we are in a transitional period where traditional perceptions of ‘mothers’ and ‘women’ are changing. And it is true that these perceptions are somewhat shifting. In the past, the ideal woman was seen as a virtuous wife and wise mother. Therefore, after marriage, women were called “someone’s mother” or “someone’s wife,” losing their own names. But women in today’s society have a clear sense of identity, so even after marriage, they are not satisfied with being just someone’s mother or wife. Of course, there is still a tendency for women to put themselves aside after marriage. However, nowadays, there is no longer a desire or motivation to sacrifice one’s life or devote oneself entirely for someone else. ---This issue is called ‘role conflict.’ While one’s identity grows stronger, the roles women can fulfill that match their names have not changed much. Conflict arises between one’s own identity and the role one must play as a mother. Such conflict causes psychological tension, and if the tension worsens, it can lead to burnout, or one may project their tension as anger onto someone else. For mothers, that target could be their husband or their children.

- From pages 62?63, 64

Crime Records of the 30-Month COVID-19 Pandemic | Written by Yunho Lee & Kyungbae Park | Dodo | 19,800 KRW

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.