NCJ Number
222848
Journal
Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice Volume: 49 Issue: 5 Dated: December 2007 Pages: 617-646
Date Published
December 2007
Length
30 pages
Annotation
Using data from the Winnipeg Area Study (Canada) from 1984, 1994, and 2004, and official crime data from the Winnipeg Police Service, this study examined trends in fear of crime among Winnipeg residents and compared them to reported crime in that city.
Abstract
Generally, respondents reported low levels of fear of crime over the 20-year period when asked questions related to how worried they were about becoming victims of certain crimes. On a scale of 0 through 10 (0=never worry; 10=worry a great deal), mean levels of fear for any crime over the three time points (1984, 1994, 2004) did not surpass 5.5, the scale mid-point. Over time, people worried most about someone breaking into their home. The least feared crime varied over time. Over the 20-year period, fear of crime increased for all crimes from 1984 to 1994 and then declined from 1994 to 2004. There was little support for the hypothesis that there would be a positive association between offense-specific fears and increases in the crime rate. Neither was there support for the hypothesis that increase in fear of crime would be highest when violent crime increased. Despite stability or moderate increases in violent crimes such as robbery, assault, and sexual assault, mean levels of fear of victimization from these crimes decreased from 1994 through 2004. These findings challenge policymakers' use of fear-of-crime measures as a variables in measuring the effectiveness of criminal justice initiatives designed to control and/or prevent crime. The 1984, 1994, and 2004 Winnipeg Area Studies (WAS) each consisted of approximately 750 randomly selected households that participated in a 25-minute telephone interview. The WAS includes one general measure of fear of crime and five offense-specific fear indicators for theft from a home break-in, armed robbery, theft of a coat left unattended, being cheated out of a large amount of money, and sexual assault. 3 tables, 3 figures, and 52 references