Appendix F - Risk and protective factors
The following definitions were adopted, created and/or refined by the ministry in consultation with its community and provincial partners. They are complementary to the risk and protective factors identified in the Crime Prevention in Ontario: A Framework for Action booklet, and are also consistent with the Risk-driven Tracking Database. They are intended to guide partners involved in the community safety and well-being planning process as they identify local risks to safety and well-being and develop programs and strategies to address those risks. These risk and protective factors are commonly used by communities across the province that have implemented multi-sectoral risk intervention models.
Risk factors
Antisocial/problematic behaviour (non-criminal)
- Antisocial/negative behaviour - antisocial/negative behaviour within the home
- Resides where there is a lack of consideration for others, resulting in damage to other individuals or the community (i.e., obnoxious/disruptive behaviour)
- Antisocial/negative behaviour - person exhibiting antisocial/negative behaviour
- Is engaged in behaviour that lacks consideration of others, which leads to damages to other individuals or the community (i.e., obnoxious/disruptive behaviour)
- Basic needs - person neglecting others’ basic needs
- Is unable to meet their own physical, nutritional or other needs
- Basic needs - person unable to meet own basic needs
- Cannot independently meet their own physical, nutritional or other needs
- Elder abuse - person perpetrator of elder abuse
- Has knowingly or unknowingly caused intentional or unintentional harm upon older individuals because of their physical, mental or situational vulnerabilities associated with the aging process
- Gambling - chronic gambling by person
- Regular and/or excessive gambling; no harm caused
- Gambling - chronic gambling causes harm to others
- Regular and/or excessive gambling that causes harm to others
- Gambling - chronic gambling causing harm to self
- Regular and/or excessive gambling; resulting in self-harm
- Housing - person transient but has access to appropriate housing
- Has access to appropriate housing but is continuously moving around to different housing arrangements (i.e., couch surfing)
- Missing - person has history of being reported to police as missing
- Has a history of being reported to police as missing and in the past has been entered in the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) as a missing person
- Missing - person reported to police as missing
- Has been reported to the police and entered in CPIC as a missing person
- Missing - runaway with parents’ knowledge of whereabouts
- Has run away from home with guardian’s knowledge but guardian is indifferent
- Missing - runaway without parents knowledge of whereabouts
- Has run away and guardian has no knowledge of whereabouts
- Physical violence - person perpetrator of physical violence
- Has instigated or caused physical violence to another person (i.e., hitting, pushing)
- Sexual violence - person perpetrator of sexual violence
- Has been the perpetrator of sexual harassment, humiliation, exploitation, touching or forced sexual acts
- Threat to public health and safety - person's behaviour is a threat to public health and safety
- Is currently engaged in behaviour that represents danger to the health and safety of the community (i.e., unsafe property, intentionally spreading disease, putting others at risk)
Criminal involvement
- Criminal involvement - animal cruelty
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of animal cruelty
- Criminal involvement - arson
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of arson
- Criminal involvement - assault
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of assault
- Criminal involvement - break and enter
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of break and enter
- Criminal involvement - damage to property
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of damage to property
- Criminal involvement - drug trafficking
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of drug trafficking
- Criminal involvement - homicide
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of the unlawful death of a person
- Criminal involvement - other
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of other crimes
- Criminal involvement - possession of weapons
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of possession of weapons
- Criminal involvement - robbery
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of robbery (which is theft with violence or threat of violence)
- Criminal involvement - sexual assault
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of sexual assault
- Criminal involvement - theft
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of theft
- Criminal involvement - threat
- Has been suspected, charged, arrested or convicted of uttering threats
Education/employment
- Missing school - chronic absenteeism
- Has unexcused absences from school without parental knowledge, that exceed the commonly acceptable norm for school absenteeism
- Missing school - truancy
- Has unexcused absences from school without parental knowledge
- Unemployment - person chronically unemployed
- Persistently without paid work
- Unemployment - person temporarily unemployed
- Without paid work for the time being
Emotional violence
- Emotional violence - emotional violence in the home
- Resides with a person who exhibits controlling behaviour, name-calling, yelling, belittling, bullying, intentional ignoring, etc.
- Emotional violence - person affected by emotional violence
- Has been affected by others falling victim to controlling behaviour, name-calling, yelling, belittling, bullying, intentional ignoring, etc.
- Emotional violence - person perpetrator of emotional violence
- Has emotionally harmed others by controlling their behaviour, name-calling, yelling, belittling, bullying, intentionally ignoring them, etc.
- Emotional violence - person victim of emotional violence
- Has been emotionally harmed by others who have controlled their behaviour, name-called, yelled, belittled, bullied, intentionally ignored them, etc.
Family circumstances
- Parenting - parent-child conflict
- Ongoing disagreement and argument between guardian and child that affects the functionality of their relationship and communication between the two parties
- Parenting - person not providing proper parenting
- Is not providing a stable, nurturing home environment that includes positive role models and concern for the total development of the child
- Parenting - person not receiving proper parenting
- Is not receiving a stable, nurturing home environment that includes positive role models and concern for the total development of the child
- Physical violence - physical violence in the home
- Lives with threatened or real physical violence in the home (i.e., between others)
- Sexual violence - sexual violence in the home
- Resides in a home where sexual harassment, humiliation, exploitation, touching, or forced sexual acts occur
- Supervision - person not properly supervised
- Has not been provided with adequate supervision
- Supervision - person not providing proper supervision
- Has failed to provide adequate supervision to a dependant person (i.e., child, elder, disabled)
- Unemployment - caregivers chronically unemployed
- Caregivers are persistently without paid work
- Unemployment - caregivers temporarily unemployed
- Caregivers are without paid work for the time being
Gang issues
- Gangs - gang association
- Social circle involves known or supported gang members but is not a gang member
- Gangs - gang member
- Is known to be a member of a gang
- Gangs - threatened by gang
- Has received a statement of intention to be injured or have pain inflicted by gang members
Housing
- Housing - person doesn't have access to appropriate housing
- Is living in inappropriate housing conditions or none at all (i.e., condemned building, street)
Mental health and cognitive functioning
- Cognitive Functioning - diagnosed cognitive impairment/limitation
- Has a professionally diagnosed cognitive impairment/limitation
- Cognitive functioning - suspected cognitive impairment/limitation
- Suspected of having a cognitive impairment/limitation (no diagnosis)
- Cognitive Functioning - self-reported cognitive impairment/limitation
- Has reported to others to have a cognitive impairment/limitation
- Mental health - diagnosed mental health problem
- Has a professionally diagnosed mental health problem
- Mental health - grief
- Experiencing deep sorrow, sadness or distress caused by loss
- Mental health - mental health problem in the home
- Residing in a residence where there are mental health problems
- Mental health - not following prescribed treatment
- Not following treatment prescribed by a mental health professional; resulting in risk to self and/or others
- Mental health - self-reported mental health problem
- Has reported to others to have a mental health problem(s)
- Mental health - suspected mental health problem
- Suspected of having a mental health problem (no diagnosis)
- Mental health - witnessed traumatic event
- Has witnessed an event that has caused them emotional or physical trauma
- Self-harm - person has engaged in self-harm
- Has engaged in the deliberate non-suicidal injuring of their own body
- Self-harm - person threatens self-harm
- Has stated that they intend to cause non-suicidal injury to their own body
- Suicide - affected by suicide
- Has experienced loss due to suicide
- Suicide - person current suicide risk
- Currently at risk to take their own life
- Suicide - person previous suicide risk
- Has in the past, been at risk of taking their own life
Neighbourhood
- Poverty - person living in less than adequate financial situation
- Current financial situation makes meeting the day-to-day housing, clothing or nutritional needs, significantly difficult
- Social environment - frequents negative locations
- Is regularly present at locations known to potentially entice negative behaviour or increase the risks of an individual to be exposed to or directly involved in other social harms
- Social environment - negative neighbourhood
- Lives in a neighbourhood that has the potential to entice negative behaviour or increase the risks of an individual to be exposed to or directly involved in other social harms
Peers
- Negative peers - person associating with negative peers
- Is associating with people who negatively affect their thoughts, actions or decisions
- Negative peers - person serving as a negative peer to others
- Is having a negative impact on the thoughts, actions or decision of others
Physical health
- Basic needs - person unwilling to have basic needs met
- Person is unwilling to meet or receive support in having their own basic physical, nutritional or other needs met
- Physical health - chronic disease
- Suffers from a disease that requires continuous treatment over a long period of time
- Physical health - general health issue
- Has a general health issue which requires attention by a medical health professional
- Physical health - not following prescribed treatment
- Not following treatment prescribed by a health professional; resulting in risk
- Physical health - nutritional deficit
- Suffers from insufficient nutrition, causing harm to their health
- Physical health - physical disability
- Suffers from a physical impairment
- Physical health - pregnant
- Pregnant
- Physical health - terminal illness
- Suffers from a disease that cannot be cured and that will soon result in death
Substance abuse issues
- Alcohol - alcohol abuse by person
- Known to excessively consume alcohol; causing self-harm
- Alcohol - alcohol abuse in home
- Living at a residence where alcohol has been consumed excessively and often
- Alcohol - alcohol use by person
- Known to consume alcohol; no major harm caused
- Alcohol - harm caused by alcohol abuse in home
- Has suffered mental, physical or emotional harm or neglect due to alcohol abuse in the home
- Alcohol - history of alcohol abuse in home
- Excessive consumption of alcohol in the home has been a problem in the past
- Drugs - drug abuse by person
- Known to excessively use illegal/prescription drugs; causing self-harm
- Drugs - drug abuse in home
- Living at a residence where illegal (or misused prescription drugs) have been consumed excessively and often
- Drugs - drug use by person
- Known to use illegal drugs (or misuse prescription drugs); no major harm caused
- Drugs - harm caused by drug abuse in home
- Has suffered mental, physical or emotional harm or neglect due to drug abuse in the home
- Drugs - history of drug abuse in home
- Excessive consumption of drugs in the home has been a problem in the past
Victimization
- Basic needs - person being neglected by others
- Basic physical, nutritional or medical needs are not being met
- Crime victimization - arson
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of arson
- Crime victimization - assault
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of assault (i.e., hitting, stabbing, kicking, etc.)
- Crime victimization - break and enter
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of break and enter (someone broke into their premises)
- Crime victimization - damage to property
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of someone damaging their property
- Crime victimization - other
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of other crime not mentioned above or below
- Crime victimization - robbery
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of robbery (someone threatened/used violence against them to get something from them
- Crime victimization - sexual assault
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of sexual assault (i.e., touching, rape)
- Crime victimization - theft
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of theft (someone stole from them)
- Crime victimization - threat
- Has been reported to police to be the victim of someone uttering threats to them
- Elder abuse - person victim of elder abuse
- Has knowingly or unknowingly suffered from intentional or unintentional harm because of their physical, mental or situational vulnerabilities associated with the aging process
- Gambling - person affected by the gambling of others
- Is negatively affected by the gambling of others
- Gangs - victimized by gang
- Has been attacked, injured, assaulted or harmed by a gang in the past
- Physical violence - person affected by physical violence
- Has been affected by others falling victim to physical violence (i.e., witnessing; having knowledge of)
- Physical violence - person victim of physical violence
- Has experienced physical violence from another person (i.e., hitting, pushing)
- Sexual violence - person affected by sexual violence
- Has been affected by others falling victim to sexual harassment, humiliation, exploitation, touching or forced sexual acts (i.e., witnessing; having knowledge of)
- Sexual violence - person victim of sexual violence
- Has been the victim of sexual harassment, humiliation, exploitation, touching or forced sexual acts
Protective factors
Education
- Academic achievement
- Successful at school (i.e., obtains good grades)
- Access to/availability of cultural education
- Availability of programming and/or curriculum that includes cultural diversity, including First Nations, Francophone, etc.
- Adequate level of education
- Has obtained at least their high school diploma
- Caring school environment
- Attends a school that demonstrates a strong interest in the safety and well-being of its students
- Involvement in extracurricular activities
- Engaged in sports, school committees, etc., that provide stability and positive school experience
- Positive school experiences
- Enjoys/enjoyed attending school and generally has/had a positive social experience while at school
- School activities involving the family
- School and family supports are connected through activities
Family supports
- Adequate parental supervision
- Caregivers are actively involved in ensuring safety and well-being
- Both parents involved in childcare
- Two parents that are both strong, positive figures in their life
- Family life is integrated into the life of the community
- Family life is integrated into the life of the community, creating strong social bonds
- Open communication among family members
- Communication among family members allows for open and honest dialogue to discuss problems
- Parental level of education
- Parents have at least received their high school diplomas
- Positive relationship with spouse
- Relationship with spouse is positive and their spouse positively affects their thoughts, actions or decisions
- Positive support within the family
- Positive and supportive caregivers/relatives whom they can rely on
- Single parent family with a strong father or mother figure
- Although they are from a single parent family, they have one strong, positive father or mother figure
- Stability of the family unit
- Consistent family environment
- Strong family bond
- Relationships with parents and/or other family members based on bond which may prevent them from engaging in delinquent behaviour
- Strong parenting skills
- Strong parental monitoring, discipline, clear standards and/or limits set with child/youth
Financial security and employment
- Financial stability
- Financially stable and able to provide the necessities of life
- Ongoing financial supplement
- Receiving a financial supplement which provides a regular non-taxable benefit (for example, housing subsidy, Guaranteed Income Supplement, Old Age Security, Ontario Disability Support Program, etc.)
- Positive work environment
- Working in an environment that is safe, supportive and free of harassment/discrimination
- Stable employment
- Steady paid employment
- Temporary financial support
- Receiving a financial supplement on a short or fixed-term basis in order to overcome a temporary obstacle (for example, Ontario Works, etc.)
- Work life balance
- Positive use of time; employment schedule includes adequate down-time and time to pursue personal interests
Housing and Neighbourhood
- Access to/availability of resources, professional services and social supports
- Access to/availability of resources, professional services and social supports
- Access to stable housing
- Stable housing is available that they may access at any time
- Appropriate, sustainable housing
- Lives in appropriate, sustainable housing, in which they are reasonably expected to remain
- Housing in close proximity to services
- Lives in close proximity to resources, professional services and social supports
- Positive, cohesive community
- Resides in a community that promotes positive thoughts and/or behaviour and has a reasonable level of social cohesion
- Relationships established with neighbours
- Relationships with neighbours assist in providing a strong network of support
Mental health
- Accessing resources/services related to mental health
- Currently accessing resources and/or services (i.e., involved in counselling, seeing a psychologist, addictions counselling, etc.)
- Adaptability
- Ability and willingness to adjust to different situations while communicating and building relationships
- Personal coping strategies
- The ability to solve/minimize personal and interpersonal problems related to stress or conflict
- Self-efficacy
- Belief in their own ability to complete tasks and reach goals; self-motivated
- Self esteem
- Positive perceptions of his/her self-worth
- Taking prescribed medication
- Taking prescribed medication for a mental health disorder in accordance with doctor's instructions
Physical health
- Accessing consistent resources/services to improve on-going physical health issue
- Established and ongoing medical support for a chronic health issue through a consistent service provider
- Accessing resources/services to improve a temporary physical health issue
- Accessing resources and/or services to treat a short-term illness or injury
- Demonstrates commitment to maintaining good physical health
- Exercises regularly, eats a balanced diet
- Positive physical health
- Appears to be in good physical health
- Primary care physician
- Has a family doctor
Pro-social/positive behaviour
- Optimism and positive expectations for future
- Has a positive expectation for their future which could lead to positive decisions/behaviour
- Positive interpersonal skills
- The ability to interact positively and work effectively with others
- Positive pro-social behaviours
- Engages in activities/behaviours that positively impact others prompted by empathy, moral values, sense of personal responsibility (for example, sharing, volunteering, etc.)
- Sense of responsibility
- Takes responsibility for their own actions
- Strong engagement/affiliation in community, spiritual and/or cultural activities
- Involved in positive activities with cultural, religious, spiritual and/or social groups that strengthen community ties and social support
- Strong problem-solving skills
- The ability to address issues and solve day-to-day problems in an effective, calm manner
Social support network
- Close friendships with positive peers
- Associates with people who positively affect their thoughts, actions or decisions
- High level of trust in community support services
- Believes community support services are willing/able to help/influence them in a positive way
- High level of trust in police
- Believes the police are willing/able to help them in a positive way
- Positive role models/relationship with adult
- Engagement with a positive role model/adult who they receive support from and can look up to
Updated: January 15, 2024
Published: September 22, 2021