Fear of crime and the police
Using lifestyle exposure theory as a guide, this study examines the complex relationship between fear of crime and select lifestyle and individual-level constructs. Participants included undergraduate students at two state-funded universities located in Pennsylvania. Student fear of crime at both universities was examined to ascertain what factors influence this emotion-laden phenomenon. Results revealed support for several key fear of crime correlates. Notably, a significant relationship emerged between police visibility and fear of crime in the estimated partial and full models. Results also indicated that student lifestyle choices can impact fear of crime; this relationship can vary across samples, as evidenced in this study. It was also found that multiple individual characteristics, namely gender, race and living arrangement, were positively related to student fear of crime. A discussion and implications are offered to conclude.