Developing a model of perceptions of security and insecurity in the context of crime

Abstract

The current study was carried out as part of the CITYCOP project exploring fear of crime, risk perception and feelings of security and insecurity. Participants (n = 272) from 11 European countries answered a questionnaire exploring measures of risk perception, fear of crime, anxiety, trust in police and related behaviours. A seven-factor structure is proposed incorporating ‘Signs of Social and Physical Disorder’, ‘Trust in Police’, ‘Trait Anxiety’, ‘Collective Efficacy’, ‘Perceived Risk of Victimisation’, ‘Fear of Personal Harm’ and ‘Fear of Property Theft’. Overall findings suggest that the measures associated with feelings of insecurity are negatively related to the measures associated with feelings of security. Efforts should be made to reduce feelings of insecurity through encouraging trust in law enforcement and community interaction and reducing signs of social and physical disorder.