NCJ Number
173143
Journal
Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency Volume: 35 Issue: 3 Dated: August 1998 Pages: 341-372
Date Published
1998
Length
32 pages
Annotation
Recent developments in the fear of crime literature have led scholars to the general conclusion that fear is a multidimensional concept; in particular, methodological work in the fear of crime tradition has recognized various dimensions of the concept of fear, suggesting there are cognitive (risk perception) and emotional (being afraid) components that need to be theoretically and empirically distinguished.
Abstract
The fear of crime literature has established the value of examining crime-specific fears, recognizing proximate causes of fear can vary depending on the crime fear in question. The author extends the notion of the multidimensional nature of fear of crime by comparing multilevel models of the fear of violence versus the fear of burglary, with a specific focus on the crime- fear relationship for each type of fear. Using data from 4,638 individuals living in 100 Seattle, Washington, communities, hierarchical logistic models of fear of violent victimization and fear of property victimization were estimated. It was found individual and neighborhood crime experiences had differential effects on fear of violence compared to fear of burglary, thus providing further evidence of the multidimensional nature of fear of crime. Implications of the findings for understanding the relationship between crime and fear are examined in relation to the effects of violent versus property crime on fear and effects of crime on fear of violence versus fear of burglary. The author contends crime-specific opportunity plays a role in producing fear. 55 references, 18 notes, and 4 tables