THE THEORY OF DEFENSIBLE SPACE SUGGESTS FOUR CONSTITUENTS OF GOOD DESIGN TO ENCOURAGE THE SOCIAL CONTROL NETWORKS SUPPOSEDLY ERODED BY URBANIZATION, THE PRESSURE OF POPULATION, AND NEW BUILDING TECHNIQUES: (1) TERRITORIALITY, (2) SURVEILLANCE, (3) IMAGE, AND (4) ENVIRONMENT. HOWEVER, OTHER FACTORS ALSO INFLUENCE THE LEVEL OF CRIME, SUCH AS THE SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RESIDENT POPULATION (E.G., PERCENTAGE OF FAMILIES ON WELFARE, PER CAPITA DISPOSABLE INCOME OF RESIDENTS), QUALITY OF HOUSING MANAGEMENT, EXTENT OF TENANT PARTICIPATION IN MANAGING THE HOUSING, NUMBER OF OFFENDERS LIVING IN THE VICINITY, AND RATIO OF CHILDREN TO ADULTS. ALTHOUGH DEFENSIBLE SPACE HAS CONSIDERABLE INTUITIVE APPEAL, IT MAY HAVE BEEN OVERSOLD TO CITY PLANNERS AND HOUSING SPECIALISTS. SOCIAL VARIABLES NEED TO BE CONSIDERED ALONG WITH HOUSING DESIGN, AND THE PRACTICAL PROBLEMS OF IMPLEMENTATION SHOULD NOT BE IGNORED. FURTHERMORE, DEFENSIBLE SPACE SOLUTIONS, EVEN IF THEY BENEFIT THOSE WHO ENJOY THEIR PROTECTION, MAY DO LITTLE TO REDUCE THE OVERALL LEVELS OF CRIME. NOTES AND REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--PRG)