| This study compared fear of crime perceptions between the years 1984 and
1994 in the Canadian city of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Our project also examined
whether any differences in reported fear were correlated with Winnipeg
official crime rates. Fear data came from urban surveys conducted in 1984
and 1994, and involved 1,383 respondents. Police reported crime rates were
obtained from Uniform Crime Reports. The data showed no differences from
1984 to 1994 in reported general fear rates, assessed by asking how safe
individuals felt walking alone in their neighbourhoods at night. There were,
however, substantive and significant differences found for offense-specific
fear indicators that asked respondents to assess worry about burglary, armed
theft, coat being stolen, being cheated and sexual assault. All of the five
offense- specific fear indicators showed increases from 1984 to 1994.
Increases in fear were found to be most closely related to the violent crime
rate, but not property or other categories. Implications of study findings
and recommend areas for future research are discussed.
|
Updated 05/20/2006