Across the wide prairie: Exploring fear of crime in a small Canadian municipality

2021 ◽  
pp. 000486582199908
Author(s):  
Tarah Hodgkinson ◽  
Kate Lunney
Keyword(s):  
Social Control ◽  
Fear Of Crime ◽  
Informal Social Control ◽  
Physical Disorder ◽  
Social Predictors ◽  
Fear Reduction ◽  
Reduction Strategies ◽  
Urban Contexts ◽  
Criminological Theories

Although fear of crime is well-researched in urban domains, the predictors of fear of crime in non-urban contexts are less established. Using a sample of 559 people, this study aims to address this gap by evaluating the role of individual and ecological-level predictors on fear of crime in a small Canadian municipality. Key findings of this study include support for the influence of social cohesion, informal social control and social and physical disorder on fear in a small municipality. However, no clear relationship is found between gender and fear of crime. Additionally, nuanced relationships between social predictors and fear emerge that may be uniquely explained by non-metropolitan context. The findings have implications for the use of urban-based criminological theories of fear and for the use of crime prevention and fear reduction strategies in non-metropolitan contexts.

In Guns We Trust: A Reexamination of the Collective Security Hypothesis

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (12) ◽  
pp. 1936-1954 ◽  
Author(s):  
James D. Kelsay ◽  
Jordan Papp ◽  
Jennifer Wareham ◽  
Brad W. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Social Control ◽  
Fear Of Crime ◽  
Informal Social Control ◽  
Collective Security ◽  
Gun Ownership ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Public ◽  
Security Hypothesis ◽  
Perceptions Of Police ◽  
Using Data

This study reexamines the collective security hypothesis of gun ownership using data collected from residents of the city of Detroit, Michigan. In addition, we seek to determine whether the effects of perceptions of police, fear of crime, and victimization on individual-level gun ownership are attenuated by neighborhood levels of informal social control. Our findings indicate that police satisfaction remains a robust predictor of gun ownership, in that those who are less satisfied with police are more likely to own a firearm for defensive purposes. Moreover, the effects of this variable remain unaffected by the inclusion of informal social control. These results confirm a number of previously identified correlates of gun ownership remain influential and suggest that improving perceptions of police among the public may lead to fewer firearms in circulation among the public.

Informal social control of sex offenders

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberly R. Kras
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Social Control ◽  
Support Function ◽  
Informal Social Control ◽  
Informal Controls ◽  
The Life Course ◽  
Insight Into

This essay discusses the role of informal social control for sex offenders who are reentering the community after imprisonment. The essay begins by reviewing the reintegration of sex offenders into communities, noting that they might reintegrate differently than other offenders. Considering how informal social control occurs across the life course for sex offenders may offer insight into specific mechanisms of desistance. The essay discusses the role in reentry of relationships, such as family, friends, and intimate partners, as well as the support function of social networks and community-oriented informal controls, such as school, employment, and other forms of civic engagement. The role of the community for sex offenders is tenuous, considering the legal and social policies that govern their movement and involvement in certain activities. The emerging role of the therapeutic community and the treatment group is examined. Controversies in the role of social support for sex offenders are also reviewed.

Cross-cultural nuances of the sources and consequences of subjective feelings of unsafety: A qualitative analysis in four cities

2019 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 324-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Riccardo Valente ◽  
Lucrezia Crescenzi Lanna
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Social Control ◽  
Fear Of Crime ◽  
General Trend ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Informal Social Control ◽  
Social Involvement ◽  
European Cities ◽  
Depth Interviews

The research aims at analyzing the fear of crime and its consequences on social cohesion and informal social control. The study is based on data collected through a triangulation of qualitative techniques (in-depth interviews, participant observation, and semi-structured focus groups) throughout eight neighborhoods of four European cities. Challenging the initial expectations, the results obtained show that, under certain circumstances, the fear of crime might foster genuine forms of social involvement and problem-solving participation. Nevertheless, the general trend indicates that crime-related anxieties are fueling the emergence of nostalgic, passive-aggressive, and violent forms of identity, which might promote potentially dangerous types of collective action.

Guardianship and Informal Social Control

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danielle M. Reynald
Keyword(s):  
Social Control ◽  
Crime Control ◽  
Social Ties ◽  
Informal Social Control ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Key Points ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Critical Overview ◽  
Neighborhood Level

This article provides a critical overview of the concepts of guardianship and informal social control. The discussion compares these fundamental criminological concepts and highlights areas where there is overlap, as well as key points of departure. The relationship between these concepts is scrutinized to illustrate their distinct origins as well as the distinctive ways each of these concepts have developed within the criminological literature. This article focuses on informal social control as a multi-level community process, and on guardianship as a multi-dimensional situational concept comprising, in its most fundamental form, the presence or availability of guardians, inadvertent and/or purposive supervision and direct or indirect intervention. In doing so it showcases the dimensions of guardianship which bear close resemblance to aspects of informal social control, while simultaneously emphasizing that there are important distinctions to consider when comparing some of these dimensions and the levels at which they operate. One core distinction is that informal social control is dependent on neighborhood social ties and collectively shared expectations. On the other hand, while guardianship can be strengthened by social ties at the street-block or neighborhood level, it does not necessarily require such ties to function effectively at the microlevel. Although these concepts do coincide the discussion stresses that theoretical and empirical clarification about what makes them distinct is important. In conclusion, this article shows how each concept makes a unique contribution to criminological understanding about the role of informal citizens in crime control at places.

scholarly journals Disagreement in Assessing Neighboring and Collective Efficacy: The Role of Social Distance

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 237802311876953 ◽  
Author(s):  
John R. Hipp ◽  
Seth A. Williams ◽  
Adam Boessen
Keyword(s):  
Measurement Error ◽  
Los Angeles ◽  
Social Control ◽  
Collective Efficacy ◽  
Social Distance ◽  
Informal Social Control ◽  
Social Dimensions ◽  
General Measure ◽  
Racial Ethnic

Whereas existing research typically treats variability in residents’ reports of collective efficacy and neighboring as measurement error, the authors consider such variability as of substantive interest in itself. This variability may indicate disagreement among residents with implications for the neighborhood collectivity. The authors propose using a general measure of social distance based on several social dimensions (rather than measures based on a single dimension such as racial/ethnic heterogeneity or income inequality) to help understand this variability in assessments. The authors use data from wave I (2001) of the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey ( n = 3,570) to aggregate respondents into egohoods of two different sizes: quarter-mile and half-mile radii. Consistent with expectations, neighborhoods with higher levels of general social distance have higher variability in reports of neighboring and the two components of collective efficacy, cohesion and informal social control.

scholarly journals Fear follows form: A study of the relationship between neighborhood type, income and fear of crime at train stations

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 585-603
Author(s):  
Sofie Kirt Strandbygaard ◽  
Otto Anker Nielsen ◽  
Alan Keith Spence Jones ◽  
Bo Grönlund ◽  
Lotte Bjerregaard Jensen
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Public Transport ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Fear Of Crime ◽  
Fear Reduction ◽  
Reduction Strategies ◽  
Income Data ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Neighborhood Type

In pursuing fear-reduction strategies in public transport, the total experience of accessing rail stations should be taken into account. This article correlates passengers’ fear of crime at train stations with neighborhood types and income data within the pedestrian catchment area. The research is based on urban form and income around 84 S-train stations in the Copenhagen metropolitan area and nine years of passenger surveys on fear of crime at these stations. The study reveals a significant positive correlation between low income and fear of crime; the lower the income in an urban area, the more unsafe passengers feel at the station. However, when controlling for the relationship between income, safety and neighborhood type, stations in neighborhoods with urban form associated with low incomes have the lowest ratings of safety. The research indicates that train passengers’ sense of security is connected to neighborhood type and the city’s planning characteristics. This is an important finding for urban designers and planners working on the integration of public transport and station design in urban areas.

Who will intervene to save news comments? Deviance and social control in communities of news commenters

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (8) ◽  
pp. 1840-1858 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan R Watson ◽  
Zhao Peng ◽  
Seth C Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Social Control ◽  
News Media ◽  
Social Order ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Online News ◽  
Informal Social Control ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Authoritarian Personality ◽  
White Males

Which bystanders will confront racist, misogynist, personal attacks in news comment sections? This article applies sociological concepts of deviance and social control to categorize efforts to moderate online news comments. Three dimensions of social control are theorized: affirming and sanctioning social control, formal and informal social control, and direct and indirect social control. Particular focus is on indirect informal social control (i.e. rating and reporting of news comments) in order to examine which users are likely to intervene to maintain social order. An analysis of secondary data from a survey of online news users found that demographics play an important role—younger, wealthier, White, males are most likely to report abusive comments. Trust in the news media and authoritarian personality traits also significantly predicted bystander intervention. Theoretical implications for the role of social control in enforcing social norms in news comment spaces and for professional comment moderation are discussed.

Fear of Victimization Among Incarcerated Youths: Examining the Effects of Institutional “Neighborhood” Characteristics and Gang Membership

2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jodi Lane ◽  
Gaylene S. Armstrong ◽  
Kathleen A. Fox
Keyword(s):  
Social Control ◽  
Fear Of Crime ◽  
National Sample ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Physical Disorder ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Correctional Institutions ◽  
Gang Members ◽  
Fear Of Victimization ◽  
Using Data

This study examines whether neighborhood factors found to predict fear of crime among the general population can be adapted to explain inmate fear of victimization inside juvenile correctional institutions. We test (a) whether institutional physical disorder, resident trust, and formal social control can predict fear of victimization, and (b) whether the importance of these factors for fear of victimization varies based on preincarceration street gang status. Using data from a large national sample of incarcerated youths, findings indicate non-gang members are more afraid of institutional victimization than gang members, confirming findings about levels of fear between these groups on the street. “Neighborhood” (institutional) physical disorder and resident trust predicted fear for gang and non-gang youths, whereas formal social control was significant only among non-gang youths. We discuss policy implications and directions for future research.

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