NCJ Number
116144
Date Published
1988
Length
30 pages
Annotation
A comparative cross-cultural analysis of factors affecting fear of crime is presented, based on data obtained in Texas and Baden-Wurttemberg, West Germany.
Abstract
The survey was conducted in Texas during 1980, while the West Germany survey was carried out in 1981. Of 2,000 Texas residents sent questionnaires, 1,442 responded (72.1 percent). of 3,830 Germans sent questionnaires, 2,252 responded (58.8 percent). Fear of crime was operationalized in the survey by asking two questions: 1) whether there was any area within one mile from home where the individual would be afraid to walk at night; and 2) whether the individual would be afraid to walk alone at night within one block from home. Independent survey variables were sex, age, perceived effectiveness of local police, victimization, comparative neighborhood danger, community size, income, and race. Survey findings revealed that several variables had approximately the same amount of explained variation. Although race and victimization were significantly associated with fear of crime in Texas and not in Baden-Wurttemberg, they were not crucial variables and contributed little or nothing to explaining and predicting fear of crime. Texans were almost twice as likely to have been the victim of a crime during the previous year as were Baden-Wurttemberg residents, and this may have contributed to increased levels of fear of crime in Texas. Germans tended to rate their local police lower on effectiveness than Texans, and Germans were more likely to report being in a lower income category than Texans. It is concluded that the same factors operate with approximately the same degree of influence in both cultures with respect to fear of crime. 110 referenced, 8 tables.